"Reporters Without Borders" condemns persecution of Swedish journalist

Baku/24.09.22/Turan: In Sweden, freelance journalist Rasmus Kanbek became an object of persecution by supporters of the Azerbaijani authorities. In particular, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Sweden Zaur Akhmedov became a participant in this campaign, the press protection organization "Reporters Without Borders" said in its statement.

The case of Rasmus Kanbek symbolizes the intervention of the Azerbaijani authorities "with the aim of intimidating journalists and weakening press freedom in European countries",— said the representative of RWB Jeanne Cavelier.

"Not content with destroying pluralism in Azerbaijan, the authorities do not hesitate to pursue any critical voice beyond their borders. "RWB" demands to put an end to this persecution and asks the Swedish government, its Foreign Minister Ann Linde, to remind the Azerbaijani Ambassador of this," the statement said.

As for the specific facts, Rasmus Kanbek became a victim of harassment on Twitter. He published reports on the Karabakh conflict in the online magazine "Blankspot", as well as results of investigations of "caviar diplomacy" - a lobbying and corruption strategy used by the Azerbaijani authorities.

The campaign of harassment intensified in May 2022, after the publication of an article about the ties of a Swedish analytical center with the Baku regime. From September 1 to September 21, 2022, the journalist's account was attacked 900 times.

Rasmus Kanbek has been a target of the hashtag #FaceOfCorruption since August 29. The hashtag was also used against US politicians criticizing Baku's actions.

These attacks by representatives of the Azerbaijani diaspora were also directed against the director of "Blankspot" Martin Shibby.

Cartoons depicting Rasmus Kanbek and Martin Shibbi as bought by Armenia have also appeared in the Azerbaijani media.

The Azerbaijani Ambassador to Sweden contacted six Swedish media outlets to question Rasmus Kanbek's independence.

Zaur Akhmedov regularly shares tweets accusing Rasmus Kanbek of corruption and calling the Swedish media "Islamophobic and Turkophobic."

In tweets in mid-August (already deleted), the Ambassador addressed Rasmus Kanbek with the words: "I assume that the rich Armenian lobby will soon dismiss you from the post of anti-Azerbaijani propagandist for the ineffectiveness of your slanderous activities against Azerbaijan after your luxurious trip to Armenia with payment of all expenses."

Zaur Akhmedov responded to RWB's request and accused the journalist of "persecuting him and his interlocutors." He claimed that "the Azerbaijani Embassy has challenged hundreds of slanderous messages to Azerbaijan published on the "Blankspot" website."

The Ambassador also rejected the use of trolls and supports "the right of members of the Azerbaijani diaspora to respond to repeated slander."

Despite these accusations, the Embassy has not yet initiated any legal proceedings against Rasmus Kanbek or "Blankspot".

As noted in the statement of the RWB, Baku has been pursuing critical voices outside the country for a long time. In recent days, this campaign has intensified on Twitter under the hashtag #xainitapı (find out the traitor). The campaign began against critics of the authorities' policy on the military operation on the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. -0-