Changing Signboards or Serving theTruth

This need for such change was dictated by "fundamental reforms in this area, so that the Azerbaijani media to benefit more from the opportunities created by innovative evolution, combining modernization, rationality, widespread use of advanced technologies, tracking leading trends and other important conditions, stimulating it activities based on the principles of transparency and satisfaction of citizens, serving to objectively and professionally inform society."

Immediately the website of the President published the Agency's Charter, which regulates the goals, objectives, details of the new structure, which is accountable mainly to the President (Charter. 6.2. The annual report on the activities of the agency is presented to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan), which makes it dependent on the will and vision of the first person future development of the media and  their role in the state and society.

Until now, the press supported by the state legally and illegally, has served the interests of the authorities, but not society; it has led to a deplorable situation in various areas, including the media themselves. The removal of honey from control over the state led to rampant corruption, voluntarism, abuse of power and many negativity, which does not make sense to count, since all the negatives are present largely thanks to social networks, but not the media.

It is noteworthy that the decree and charter on the purposes of creating the Fund focuses on the technological aspects of the further development of the media, but not on the creation and protection of a free press, which, as an institution prescribed by the constitution and the law on the media, has practically ceased to exist with some exceptions. Azerbaijan is among the world leaders in suppressing freedom of speech and freedom of the media. This aspect is the main challenge for the press today, and not its technological equipment.

The current agency have the functions of the liquidated Fund, which was designed to strengthen the economic foundations of the media, but on the contrary, weakened and since 2009  of its  existence made  it more dependent on the state. Another endowed function duplicates the bankrupt Press Council, which was supposed to ensure self-regulation of the media, but has turned into a controlling structure, even empowered by the executive branch, which has increased polarization in the media environment.

Some elements of censorship are visible in the clauses of the Charter:

3.1.27. (Take measures to protect state and commercial secrets, as well as the secrecy regime),

3.1.18. (In case of non-compliance of the information published in the online media with the requirements provided by law, contact the relevant authorities in order to take measures in this regard),

3.1.20. (If signs of an administrative offense are detected in the print media and online media, take measures in accordance with the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Republic of Azerbaijan, and if there are signs of a crime, provide relevant information).

The Agency is endowed with the right to engage in commercial activities, which is contrary to the aim of developing and strengthening the economic foundations of the media as business entities. Thus, the Agency becomes an interested commercial party that will compete with the media in its own field. We will not talk in advance about the danger of abuse in this case. However, vigilance in this matter creates the experience of the predecessor. The State Support Fund for the Media was caught in serious financial abuse, although it was not entitled to commercial activity.

It should be noted that the Agency has an excessive functions of state regulation, administrative control, and business, which turns it into a kind of monster on the principle of all in one. It will be difficult to carry out all tasks simultaneously in the status of a semi-state, semi-public and semi-commercial entity from the point of view of a conflict of interests of the state, society and business.

We will not give a premature verdict to the agency, although there are reasons for this, indicated above. It is also not clear what will be the new law on mass media, which the president ordered to prepare. The content of the current one over the past 15 years has been emasculated towards restricting freedom of speech. The forthcoming law will bring more clarity to the true motives of the authorities regarding relations between the state and the media.

However, for us, journalists, the criterion for assessing the Agency's activities remains the First principle of the Professional and Ethical Rules of the Azerbaijani journalist - Serving the truth, which is ensured by the use of such mechanisms as objectivity, balance, pluralism. The implementation or not implementation of this principle in the entire media environment will expose the real policy and intentions of the authorities in relation to the media and freedom of speech in the near future.

Mehman Aliyev

Mehman Aliyev