“Positive change is doubtful without government`s interest”

On October 11, the PACE Committee on Legal Affairs and Human Rights discussed treats to life and safety of journalists and human rights defenders in Azerbaijan. The Committee appointed British MP Hannah Bardell as rapporteur to investigate the matter and prepare a report.

The Monitoring Committee of the Council of Europe has elected a new co-chair for Azerbaijan. They became the representative of the Norwegian  “Labor party” Liz Christofferson. The Monitoring Committee gave her a 5-year mandate. Liz Christofferson will monitor all violations in the field of democracy, human rights, corruption, elections taking place in Azerbaijan. Before her, Stefan Schennak was the Rapporteur of the PACE Monitoring Committee on Azerbaijan.

Previously, there were many rapporteurs and co-chairs on Azerbaijan appointed by PACE. Andreas Gross, Andreas Herkel, Pedro Agramunt, Stefan Schennak, Christoph Strasser and many others. Which of these speakers can be considered effective?

Khalid Agaliyev, head of the Media Rights Group, answers ASTNA questions:

* * *

Question: PACE has appointed a new rapporteur on the safety of journalists and human rights activists in Azerbaijan. Do you think it was necessary now in this particular area?

Answer: Azerbaijan is one of the countries where monitoring is carried out. The member countries of the Council of Europe are obliged to comply with the standards of this body, the work of such missions is to study problematic countries, prepare comprehensive documents that clarify the situation. Unfortunately, there are quite serious problems in this area in Azerbaijan. Over the past eight  years, legislative changes have been adopted and are in effect, which have a serious impact on the atmosphere in which NGOs and civil society institutions operate, paralyze their activities. These changes noticeably moved Azerbaijan away from the CE standards. It's no secret that the environment in which journalists operate, the media is unfavorable. For many years, there have been problems in this area that have not been resolved; on the contrary, the situation continues to worsen. Laws that are in favor of journalists, the media do not work. In addition, a new Law “On Media” was adopted, which is considered one of the worst in the entire European space. In the decisions of the European Court related to Azerbaijan, the inconsistency of these amendments with EU norms has been repeatedly pointed out both in the field of media and in the field of civil society institutions. All of the above indicates the presence of very serious problems in fulfilling our obligations to the EU. This situation has long pointed to the need for monitoring. Appointing a speaker is a belated step. If it had been undertaken earlier, perhaps it could have prevented or to a large extent curbed, delayed, and prevented negative tendencies.

Question: There were no speakers in this area before. Even in the most repressive period against human rights activists and journalists, there were no speakers in this area. Why now?

Answer: Let's hope that the activity of this mission will lead to the elimination of the existing problems to a large extent. As for why the appointment has become a reality now, the reasons for this can be very different. Perhaps our influence has weakened. The government often passes various laws and documents concerning the media or other problem areas, widely promoting in European institutions that they are aimed at solving problems. For example, the arrest of human rights defenders and journalists in Azerbaijan for political reasons was confirmed in the decisions of the European Court. The number of victims of this is more than 15. In the context of the implementation of these decisions, the ECHR Plenum of the Supreme Court of Azerbaijan made a very good decision two years ago. It was a new and progressive experience. However, the government applies it selectively. This practice does not work for those who criticize the government harshly. Such examples indicate that various steps are being taken, but these are not deliberate steps to change the situation, but to drag out time. The reality is that the situation is getting worse instead of getting better. It is possible that the true nature of such steps that create the appearance is already obvious to everyone, or it is no longer possible to ignore this situation.

Question: The Monitoring Committee of the Council of Europe has also chosen a new co-rapporteur on Azerbaijan. This is Liz Kristofferson from the Norwegian Labor Party. Until now, in what areas were the speakers on Azerbaijan? Is it possible to consider their work effective? Or maybe the activity of all speakers was effective?

Answer: Until now, the appointed rapporteurs have been monitoring the state of democratic institutions, the issue of political prisoners and other various areas. This is a tool that the Council of Europe needs to alleviate the situation in the countries. However, it cannot be said that the use of this tool was effective in Azerbaijan. Despite the numerous speakers, the preparation and adoption of serious documents, it is impossible to talk about the achievement of serious, sustainable progress in any particular area.

Question: You said that nothing has changed for the better in the areas for which rapporteurs or co-rapporteurs have been appointed. Is there a need for them?

Answer: Progress, improvement depends not only on the speakers. There were speakers who were not even allowed by the government to come to Azerbaijan to clarify the situation on the spot. There were many who, having visited Azerbaijan, conducted detailed studies, prepared comprehensive documents, and clearly identified problems. However, the problems identified have not been resolved. This is possible with the active participation of a wider spectrum, civil society, political parties, and most importantly, the government. As long as the government is not interested, changes for the better are unlikely to occur. The EU also has enforcement mechanisms. But from the point of view of global conditions, their launch is not such a simple matter.

Question: What steps should PACE or the government take to avoid the need for a speaker?

Answer: A rapporteur is appointed when serious problems arise in specific areas, and steps to eliminate them are more and more late. The condition for the absence of the need for speakers is the solution of problems and their absence. However, the Azerbaijani government constantly denies problems in the monitored areas, stating that everything is in order, both in terms of the media and the state of democratic institutions. To be specific, the path of advancement in the areas for which the speaker is appointed is not very complicated. It is necessary to improve the environment for the activities of civil society institutions and human rights activists. To do this, at least, the legislative system must be returned to the state that it was 10 years ago. As for the issue of the media, journalists, the decisions of the European Court regarding this area should be systematically implemented, the laws regulating the media should be changed.