|
|
|
|
Harassed
March 16
Azer Husseinbala, Azadlig, CENSORED
Taptig Farhadoglu, Turan News Agency, CENSORED
Gunduz Tairli, Azadlig, HARASSED
Kenaan Aliyev, Azadlig, HARASSED
Husseinbala, a parliamentary correspondent for the opposition newspaper Azadlig, and Farthadoglu, a reporter for the independent news agency Turan, were stripped of their parliamentary press accreditation after President Heidar Aliyev's brother Djalal Aliyev, a member of Parliament, publicly criticized the independent media in Azerbaijan. Husseinbala had recently written an article critical of the Parliament. Turan news agency's monthly parliamentary bulletin had come under fire from Djalal Aliyev shortly before Farthadoglu lost his credentials. Djalal Aliyev has called for the closure of all opposition newspapers. This is the second time this year that journalists from Azadlig have been disciplined by the government. On Feb. 7, Gunduz Tairli and Kenan Aliyev, two other Azadlig journalists, were summoned to the prosecutor's office and were urged to publish a retraction of an article on government corruption they had written for the paper. When the journalists refused, they were warned that the next time they published such material they would be brought to trial.
July 26
Metin Yasar Oglu, Mukhalifat, HARASSED
Yasar Oglu was detained by police while attempting to cover a demonstration in front of the Russian Embassy in Baku, the Azeri capital. The demonstrators were protesting the reported mistreatment of Azeris in Moscow and other Russian cities. Police dispersed the rally. Yasar Oglu was held for four hours. His camera and other equipment were damaged.
For more information contact europeweb@cpj.org