The US-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has called for a launch of a Twitter campaign in defense of the journalists arrested in Azerbaijan on the eve of the European Games starting in Baku on June 12.
"Tomorrow, 50 countries will take part in the opening ceremony of the first European Games, but the most famous Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova will not attend the celebrations. The investigative reporter and the winner of international awards has been in jail since December on trumped up charges after the publication of materials on corruption," Nina Ognyanova, CPJ's Program Coordinator said.
The leading defender of press freedom in the country Emin Huseynov also will not see the presentation on the opening of the Games announced to the world as "mini-Olympics". Fearing arrest in the course of the repressive actions held in Azerbaijan against journalists and human rights organizations, the head of the Institute of Freedom and Security of Journalists has been hiding in the Embassy of Switzerland since August last year.
The destiny of Ismayilova and Huseynov clearly indicates the high degree of risk to well-known journalists and human rights activists in Azerbaijan - a country, which is the main jailer of journalists in Europe and Central Asia.
The Games in Baku from 12 to 28 June will be covered by about 1,300 international journalists and the media will have a unique chance to get more information on the country where the practice of censorship exists and many limitations are applied.
Eight independent journalists have been imprisoned for criticizing the government.
Azerbaijan ranks fifth in the world in terms of rigidity of censorship, ahead of Iran and China.
Dozens of independent journalists and human rights activists, including Idrak Abbasov, were forced to emigrate after the harassment, intimidation and physical violence in connection with their professional activities.
The host country of the European Games is obliged to provide full coverage of the Games by various media. However, as the head of the press service of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry Hikmat Hajiyev announced in April, accreditation of journalists may be canceled in the case of publishing against the "territorial integrity, independence and sovereignty of Azerbaijan."
In accordance with the Olympic Charter, the 1,300 international journalists assigned to cover the European Games in Baku should be given the freedom to conduct reporting on the social, political, economic and environmental conditions in which the Games are held, including on the situation of human rights and freedom of the press.
The Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights Nils Muiznieks, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatovic, and the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders Michel Forst urged the athletes participating in the Games to take a position of condemnation of repression in Azerbaijan.
In response to the campaign with the tag #HelloBaku launched by the authorities, human rights activists launched a campaign #realBaku2015 to obtain information on issues of press freedom and human rights on Facebook and Twitter.
Ognyanova called to support the action PressUncuffed for the release of journalists, including Khadija Ismayilova:
@presidentaz, free #KhadijaIsmayilova jailed for criticism. cc: @AzerbaijanPA https://cpj.org/campaigns/pressuncuffed/khadija-ismayilova.php
@JohnKerry: Ask @presidentaz to release the journalist Khadija Ismailova #KhadijaIsmayilova https://cpj.org/campaigns/pressuncuffed/khadija-ismayilova.php#RealBaku2015
Azerbaijan hosting #EuropeanGames is one of the most repressive countries in Europe. #RealBaku2015# Baku2015 https://cpj.org/ru/2015/06/-2015.php
Azerbaijan is the chief jailer of the press in Europe and Central Asia. It takes #EuropeanGames.# RealBaku2015 #Baku2015 https://cpj.org/ru/2015/06/-2015.php. -06D-
Social
-
An online meeting of civil society activists focused on the human rights situation in Azerbaijan, convened on the initiative of the Justice Solidarity Committee, highlighted significant concerns over the detention of journalists, political activists, and opponents of the war. The gathering, held on August 30, coincided with the International Day of Remembrance of the Missing and underscored the ongoing challenges facing both Azerbaijani and Armenian societies in the wake of the Karabakh conflicts.
-
No precipitation is expected in Baku and on the Absheron Peninsula; the northwestern wind will change to a southeastern wind during the day. Air temperatures will range from 21-26°C at night and 33-38°C during the day, according to the National Hydrometeorology Service of the Ministry of Ecology.
-
A fire has erupted at the Experimental and Testing Production of the Scientific Research Institute of SOCAR (the state oil company) in the Surakhani district of Baku, the Ministry of Emergency Situations reported. "Thanks to the urgent and necessary measures taken by the Ministry of Emergency Situations, the spread of the fire to neighboring areas, including nearby residential buildings, has been prevented," the statement reads. Efforts to extinguish the fire are still ongoing.
-
In September, the average monthly air temperature in Azerbaijan is expected to be close to the climatic norm. Precipitation levels will also be near the norm, but in some areas, they will exceed it, according to the September forecast from the National Hydrometeorological Service.
Leave a review