OSCE media watchdog expresses shock after more Azerbaijani journalists jailed

The report came just days after another harsh sentence was handed down to Azerbaijani media professionals. On 16 May, the Yasamal District Court sentenced Rovshan Kebirli, the Editor-in-Chief of the opposition newspaper Muxalifet and correspondent Yashar Agazadeh to two and a half years imprisonment each for libel and insult against Jalal Aliyev, the uncle of President Aliyev, and a Member of Parliament for the ruling party.

"Azerbaijan's relentless persecution of journalists annihilates the security of journalism, a major OSCE commitment," said Miklos Haraszti.

"In recent weeks, my office registered the cases of five journalists jailed for "defamation" or "incitement". Their only "wrongdoing" was criticism of officials or questioning conventional wisdoms. This brings the total number of journalists imprisoned in Azerbaijan to seven. Several of them have been arrested in the courtroom right after the announcement of the first-instance verdict."

The OSCE Representative pointed to the fact that Azerbaijan has become one of the most dangerous places for journalists in the OSCE region.

"As I indicated to President Aliyev during our recent meeting in Baku, the claim by his advisers that such "repressions" would help discipline journalists and result in a more ethical journalism is a tragic mistake. Only a combination of freedom of expression and media self-regulation may strengthen professionalism of the media," added Haraszti.

"I regret to see that Azerbaijan has failed to move towards international standards, even despite the 2005 Presidential call to politicians for self-restraint. It seems that call was in vigour for only one year. I hope authorities will realise that the only way forward is to ban criminal defamation provisions." OSCE