OSCE asks Azerbaijan's President to help stop new wave of prosecution of journalists, urges legal reform

In a letter sent to Azerbaijan's President, Ilham Aliyev, Haraszti wrote: "The current wave of oppressive lawsuits against journalists makes it vital that your March 2005 initiative be followed by tangible action. At that time, you appealed to public officials not to file lawsuits against the media. I am disappointed that your moratorium request is no longer being respected."

At least five journalists and a number of newspapers are facing criminal and civil defamation cases. Some of them, including Shahin Agabayli, the Editor-in-Chief of Milli Yol, and Fikret Faramazoglu, Editor-in-Chief of 24 Saat, have already received harsh sentences, including imprisonment. Mirza Sakit Zahidov, a satirical poet and journalist of Azadliq, has been accused of drug charges, an allegation he totally denies.

Haraszti pointed to the fact that in all of the cases the plaintiffs are public officials, including Interior Minister Ramil Usubov, who has filed five suits against the media this summer.

The letter asked the authorities to ensure full access for journalists to all trial hearings to provide transparent and detailed information to the public.

The OSCE Representative said it was time for Azerbaijan to go beyond the political moratorium on defamation, and translate the President's intention into legal reform.

"The reform could start with an immediate legal moratorium on criminal suits against journalists, and be completed by the transfer of the libel, defamation, and verbal insult provisions from the Criminal Code to the civil law domain. Simultaneously, civil law should be revised so that it can handle defamation offences in a measured way. This should be made in compliance with the principles of the European Court of Human Rights. In particular, rational ceilings have to be established for damage payments; and the civil libel provisions should acknowledge that public figures have to endure harsher criticism than ordinary citizens," wrote Haraszti.

Haraszti also said that his Office was ready to assist Azerbaijan in reforming its media legislation to improve the working environment for journalists.

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