On the 10th anniversary of the death of Azeri journalist Elmar Huseynov, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media Dunja Mijatović, called on OSCE participating States to ensure journalists’ safety and the right to freedom of expression.
“On the anniversary of the death of Elmar Huseynov, the issue of journalists’ safety must be raised,” Mijatović said. “Attacks and harassment of journalists in the OSCE region is growing while thorough investigations are scarce, which has a chilling effect on free media.”
Elmar Huseynov, the founder and editor of the independent weekly news magazine Monitor, was shot and killed outside his apartment on 2 March 2005. The magazine had been under constant pressure from authorities for the critical nature of some of the articles published. Huseynov’s killers remain at large.
“I call on the governments of all OSCE participating States to thoroughly and fully investigate all attacks on media representatives for performing their professional duties,” Mijatović said. “These horrific crimes must be publicly condemned and the perpetrators must be brought to justice to prevent an environment of intimidation, fear and impunity.”
The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media observes media developments in all 57 OSCE participating States. She provides early warning on violations of freedom of expression and media freedom and promotes full compliance with OSCE media freedom commitments. -0-
Politics
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Armenia is not against the dissolution of the OSCE Minsk Group, but does not consider it appropriate to discuss this issue now. "In the context of peace, we consider it possible to make a decision on the dissolution of the OSCE Minsk Group. When peace is an established fact, the existence of such a format may raise questions," Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said at a press conference today. "The whole question is about the timing, we need to understand how effectively and correctly to turn such topics into a subject of discussion right now," the Armenian Prime Minister added.
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He expressed his willingness to meet with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev at the border between the two countries. "A meeting with Ilham Aliyev could take place at the Armenian-Azerbaijani border. I am open to such a format," Pashinyan said at a press conference today. According to Pashinyan, Armenia recently presented another proposal for a peace treaty to Azerbaijan.
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On August 31, Azerbaijan observes a "day of silence" before the Sunday’s early parliamentary elections for the unicameral Milli Majlis. All electoral campaigning is prohibited 24 hours before the voting. The early elections were initiated by the ruling Yeni Azerbaijan Party. This decision was motivated by the overlap of the scheduled elections in November with the global UN forum - the COP20 climate conference taking place in Baku.
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On August 30, at approximately 22:55, the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant in Metsamor was disconnected from the country's power grid, as reported by the Armenian Ministry of Territorial Administration and Infrastructure. The shutdown was caused by a lightning strike, which triggered the plant's safety systems to switch the station to a safe shutdown mode. Currently, the plant's staff is working on restarting the facility.
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