06 Mar 17 | Azerbaijan, Azerbaijan Statements, Campaigns, Campaigns -- Featured, Statements
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]The undersigned organisations condemn in the strongest possible terms Friday’s sentencing of Mehman Huseynov, Azerbaijani journalist and chairman of the country’s leading freedom of expression group, Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety, to two years in jail on defamation charges. He was taken into custody from the courtroom, without being allowed to speak in his defence.
The 24 organisations are deeply concerned by the continued targeting of Mehman Huseynov and call on the Azerbaijani authorities to immediately and unconditionally release him and all other political prisoners, and to reverse the continuous clampdown on freedom of expression occurring in the country.
“Today’s sentencing and jailing of Mehman Huseynov is outrageous – another example of Azerbaijan’s best and brightest being targeted for expressing opinions critical of the ruling Aliyev regime. It also shows that nothing has changed since the release of a number of high-profile political prisoners last year. The revolving-door policy of politically motivated arrests is still very much in place. Huseynov is now one of at least 13 journalists, bloggers, and media workers jailed in Azerbaijan. They must all be immediately and unconditionally released, in accordance with Azerbaijan’s international obligations”, said Rebecca Vincent, UK Bureau Director for Reporters Without Borders.
Huseynov’s conviction stems from criminal defamation charges in a private case brought by the chief of the police department, related to a report he published in which he wrote about his experience of torture, after he was detained overnight by police in January,
Mehman Huseynov was detained in Baku on 9 January by plain clothed police officers and held incommunicado overnight. Huseynov has reported that while in police custody, police placed a sack over his head and used force against him. He was convicted of disobeying police orders; and although the Court released him on 10 January, he was fined, and continued to face police harassment. The court has imposed a formal travel ban on Huseynov who already has been deprived of his travel documents for the past five years.
”Mehman Huseynov`s case is emblematic of the abusive and arbitrary methods used to punish and attempt to silence human rights defenders, journalists and activists.
Mehman Huseynov (Twitter)
must be released immediately and unconditionally, he has to have compensation for torture and ill-treatment, and those who are responsible for torture and ill-treatment, regardless of their position, have to be brought to justice. The international community must act, given the continued and increased repression against human rights defenders, journalists and lawyers in Azerbaijan. The dire human rights situation in Azerbaijan deserves the highest attention and action at the Human Rights Council.”, says Florian Irminger, Head of Advocacy, Human Rights House Foundation.
”We are shocked and deeply distressed by this shameful verdict, which is nothing but a mockery of justice. Azerbaijani law-enforcement agencies have earned notorious reputations for using brutal and unlawful interrogation methods. Instead of investigating the credible torture claims, the authorities have chosen to jail the blogger”, says Gulnara Akhundova, Head of Global Response, International Media Support.
Notably, Mehman Huseynov has been critical of the appointment of first lady Mehriban Aliyeva to the post of the Vice President on 21 February 2017.
“Prior to the appointment of first lady Mehriban Aliyeva to the post of the Vice President on 21 February 2017, the Azerbaijani government has pursued a new wave of detentions and harassment of activists, journalists and bloggers, apparently aimed at consolidating the government’s authoritarian rule and preventing any dissent around the controversial appointment.” says Sasha Koulaeva, Head of Eastern Europe-Central Asia Desk, FIDH.
Detentions of Political Opposition
Ahead of the Vice-Presidential appointment, since the amendment was passed in September, authorities have arrested several representatives of the political opposition on false, politically-motivated charges, including ten members of Azerbaijan Popular Front Party, one member of the Republican Alternative Movement (REAL) and one member of the D18 movement.
There are credible allegations of torture and other cruel and degrading treatment of the detainees. For example, Rahim Shaliyev, a REAL Movement member detained on 20 February and subsequently sentenced to 30 days administrative detention on charges of resisting police, reported to his lawyer that he was subject to beatings and humiliation, resulting in an injury to his skull.
Crackdown on media
Journalists have also been subject to arbitrary detention and harassment. On 17 February 2017 Elchin Ismayilli, founder and editor of Kend.info, an on-line news portal known for its reporting on corruption and human rights violations in the Ismayilli region of Azerbaijan, was detained by police. He is accused of threatening a local government employee and has been charged with extortion and abuse of a position of influence. Ismayilli denies all the charges. On 18 February, the Nasimi District Court sentenced Ismayilli to pre-trial detention for an initial period of 24 days. Ismayilli is currently being held in the Kurdakhani pretrial detention centre.
On 22 February, cable TV channels stopped all the authorities officially suspended all broadcasts by the Turkish affiliate of FOX TV, after the channel aired a satirical discussion on the appointment of the new Vice President. A spokesperson for the National Television and Radio Council (NTRC) of Azerbaijan stated that this decision was made at the sole discretion of cable providers; however, anonymous sources within the cable providers have reported that they faced pressure from the NTRC to drop the channel.
At the same time, the authorities have continued their harassment of opposition newspaper Azadliq, which was forced to cease abandon print publication in September 2016, following ongoing financial pressures from state-owned or affiliated companies. In the second half of February 2017, over ten staff members were summoned and interrogated by the Serious Crimes Investigation Department. The publication’s Financial Director, Faiq Amirov, and prominent journalist, Symur Hezi, have been incarcerated on trumped up charges since August 2016 and August 2014, respectively.
Activists expressing critical views on the internet and social media, the last bastion of freedom of expression, have also been subject to police pressure, aimed at forcing them to delete dissenting posts. For example, on 21 February Nisakhanim Valiyeva, the Chair of the Classical Popular Front Party was held in police custody for four hours, the same day that Merhiban Aliyeva was appointed Vice President, and released only after deleting her critical Facebook posts about the appointment.
This has been accompanied by calls for increased regulation of the internet and online content. The chair of the Press Council Aflatun Amashov, whose official mandate is to safeguard independent media and rights of journalists, has submitted a proposal to the Milli Majlis (Parliament), calling for mandatory registration of bloggers and activists, aimed at ensuring greater control over those expressing themselves online.
Harassment of critics in exile
The government of Azerbaijan is also pursuing government critics living in exile abroad. Shortly after giving a speech at the European Parliament on the human rights situation in Azerbaijan on 6 February, Emin Milli, head of Meydan TV, a critical TV channel operating in exile from Berlin, reported to German Police receiving threats of physical violence from the Azerbaijani authorities.
“The Azerbaijani authorities persistently violate freedom of expression and other human rights, both at home and abroad”, said Katie Morris, Head of Europe and Central Asia at ARTICLE 19. “With this happening in their own backyard, European governments can no longer ignore the arrests, torture and harassment of government critics and their families and must call the Azerbaijan government to account”, she added.
Where the authorities are unable to reach their critics, they have sought to harass family remembers remaining in Azerbaijan. Most recently, on the 22nd of February, the brother Dadashov Khanlar and nephew Sabuhi Zanalov of Netherlands-based blogger Ordukhan Teymurkhan, known for his criticism of the Aliyevs, were sentenced to 30 days detention on entirely bogus charges of disobeying police orders.
We, the undersigned organisations, call on the government of Azerbaijan to cease its harassment and detention of government critics. Allegations of torture must be investigated, and all political prisoners must be immediately and unconditionally released.
The relentless campaign waged by the authorities against media workers, bloggers, political activists, civil society and others that are deemed to threaten the power of the ruling regime must stop immediately.
We also call on the international community to exert political pressure and take all the necessary measures until Azerbaijan fully honours its human rights commitments.
ARTICLE 19
CEE Bankwatch Network
Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)
Crude Accauntability
Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum
FIDH – Indernational Federation for Human Rights
Freedom House
Freedom Now
Front Line Defenders
Helsinki Foundation for Human Rights
Human Rights First
Human Rights House Foundation
IFEX
Index on Censorship
International Media Support
International Partnership for Human Rights
Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety
Netherlands Helsinki Committee
Norwegian Helsinki Committee
PEN International
People in Need
Polish Green Network
Reporters Without Borders (RSF)
World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT)[/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner equal_height=”yes” content_placement=”middle” css=”.vc_custom_1488907664556{margin-bottom: 25px !important;background-color: #dd3333 !important;}” el_class=”text_white”][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_custom_heading text=”Protect Media Freedom” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:28|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2Fdefend-media-freedom-donate-index%2F|||”][vc_column_text]
Support Index’s work.
We monitor threats to press freedom, produce an award-winning magazine and publish work by censored writers.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″ css=”.vc_custom_1488907628643{background-image: url(https://www.indexoncensorship.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/newspapers.jpg?id=50885) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_basic_grid post_type=”post” max_items=”4″ element_width=”6″ grid_id=”vc_gid:1488907408421-e22a85a0-aabc-5″ taxonomies=”7145″][/vc_column][/vc_row]
01 Mar 17
[vc_row full_width=”stretch_row_content_no_spaces” full_height=”yes” css_animation=”fadeIn” css=”.vc_custom_1488381975897{background-image: url(https://www.indexoncensorship.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/zaina-erhaim-1460×490.jpg?id=80519) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}” el_class=”text_white”][vc_column width=”1/2″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_custom_heading text=”Zaina Erhaim, 2016 Freedom of Expression Awards Journalism Fellow” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:32|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_custom_heading text=”Her government wanted her dead for training Syrian women and men to report on untold stories as their cities became engulfed in destruction. They reported her passport stolen to lock her in exile.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:26|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row equal_height=”yes” css=”.vc_custom_1488381650351{margin-right: -15px !important;margin-left: -15px !important;padding-top: 0px !important;}”][vc_column css=”.vc_custom_1488381225666{margin-right: 15px !important;margin-bottom: 15px !important;margin-left: 15px !important;}”][vc_column_text]Index on Censorship Freedom of Expression Award-winning Zaina Erhaim was studying journalism in London when civil war erupted in Syria in 2013. Erhaim felt compelled to report from her homeland and teach her craft to citizen journalists. For her efforts she was targeted by the government and its foes.
But she continues her work to highlight the unreported stories in the battle for Syria’s future.
Index on Censorship is committed to exposing censorship and threats to freedom of expression in countries like Syria.
We are a nonprofit that campaigns for and defends free expression worldwide. We publish work by censored writers and artists, promote debate, and monitor threats to free speech – and we support individuals like Zaina through our annual awards and fellowship programme.
We believe that everyone should be free to express themselves without fear of harm or persecution – no matter what their views.
Make sure your voice, and theirs, can be heard.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1488382458138{margin-top: -25px !important;}”][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”85924″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text=”Join the Index mailing list and get an exclusive gift” font_container=”tag:h3|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_separator color=”black”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row content_placement=”top”][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]We’ll send you our weekly emails and periodic updates on our events. We won’t share your personal information with anyone outside Index.
You’ll also get access to an exclusive collection of articles from our landmark 250th issue of Index on Censorship magazine exploring journalists under fire and under pressure. Your downloadable PDF will include reports from Lindsey Hilsum, Laura Silvia Battaglia and Hazza Al-Adnan.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_single_image image=”76282″ img_size=”full” alignment=”center”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″][gravityform id=”20″ title=”false” description=”false” ajax=”false”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text=”Mapping Media Freedom” font_container=”tag:h3|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fmappingmediafreedom.org%2F%23%2F|||”][vc_separator color=”black”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row equal_height=”yes” content_placement=”middle”][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]
Launched in May 2014, the database contains over 2,700 verified threats to media freedom. We monitor incidents in 42 European and neighbouring countries. We lobby governments and the EU to take action to protect journalists and citizens’s rights to information.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″ css=”.vc_custom_1488811147533{background-image: url(https://www.indexoncensorship.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/MMF_report_2016_WEB-1-1A.jpg?id=85872) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_custom_heading text=”Freedom of Expression Awards Fellowship” font_container=”tag:h3|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2Ffellowship%2F|||”][vc_separator color=”black”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row equal_height=”yes” content_placement=”middle” css=”.vc_custom_1488975007999{margin-bottom: 100px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1/2″][vc_column_text]Through the Index Awards Fellowship we work with our winners – both during an intensive week in London and the rest of the awarding year – to provide longer term, structured support.
The goal is to help winners maximise their impact, broaden their support and ensure they can continue to excel at fighting free expression threats on the ground.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″ css=”.vc_custom_1488974966097{background-image: url(https://www.indexoncensorship.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/donate-heads-slider-490w.jpg?id=85882) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}”][/vc_column][/vc_row]
28 Feb 17 | Academic Freedom, Campaigns -- Featured, Press Releases
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Leading international freedom of expression organisation Index on Censorship and the Freedom Project at Wellesley College, Boston, are pleased to announce the launch of a new partnership to promote awareness of censorship.
The partnership includes a series of events at Wellesley College in early March and an annual Freedom of Expression keynote lecture, which this year will be given by Danish journalist and editor Flemming Rose on Thursday 9 March. Mr Rose, the editor who commissioned cartoons of the prophet Mohammed that sparked international controversy in 2006, is an international advocate for free speech and is the author of several books about his experiences with censorship and threats of violence. In 2015 Rose was awarded the prestigious Publicist Prize from Denmark’s national press club and received the Honor Award for defending free speech from the Norwegian Fritt Ord Foundation. In 2017 the University of Cape Town withdrew its invitation to Mr. Rose, who was set to give its annual TB Davie Academic Freedom Lecture for fear of “security risks” and the possibility of provoking conflict and further polarisation on campus.
As part of the new partnership, three students each year will enjoy a two month internship at Index on Censorship at their UK headquarters.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_icon icon_fontawesome=”fa fa-times-circle” color=”black” background_style=”rounded” size=”lg” align=”right”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_custom_heading text=”The inaugural Freedom of Expression keynote lecture on 9 March will be given by Danish journalist and editor Flemming Rose.
” font_container=”tag:h3|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Index on Censorship is partnering with Wellesley on this project because we believe that the notions and principles of free speech are being eroded in traditional liberal democracies – as well as remaining under continued pressure in authoritarian states – and that this has enormous implications for the future development of all democracy. Our aim is to encourage greater debate about this central value, and particularly with an academic community, where these traditions and principles ought to burn brightest. I will be travelling to Wellesley for the lecture and taking part in debates and seminars with students in connection with this new annual lecture, which we hope will become a globally recognised fixture.
At Index, we believe this new lecture could help to bring greater international prominence to current free speech questions and, as a non-profit dedicated to the promotion of free expression, push back against a rising tide of censorship world-wide.
About Index on Censorship
Index on Censorship is a UK-based freedom of expression charity that campaigns against censorship and promotes free expression worldwide. Founded in 1972, Index has published some of the world’s leading writers and artists in its award-winning quarterly magazine, including Nadine Gordimer, Mario Vargas Llosa, Samuel Beckett and Kurt Vonnegut. It also has published some of the greatest campaigning writers from Vaclav Havel to Elif Shafak.
About Wellesley College
Since 1875, Wellesley College has been a leader in providing an outstanding liberal arts education for women who will make a difference in the world. Its 500-acre campus near Boston is home to some 2,400 undergraduate students from 49 states and 58 countries.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
15 Feb 17
[vc_row equal_height=”yes” css=”.vc_custom_1487955099221{margin-right: -15px !important;margin-left: -15px !important;}”][vc_column css=”.vc_custom_1487955108553{margin-right: 15px !important;margin-bottom: 15px !important;margin-left: 15px !important;background-color: #ffffff !important;}”][vc_custom_heading text=”SUPPORT FREE SPEECH.” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:center” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_custom_heading text=”SUPPORT THE INDEX FELLOWSHIP” font_container=”tag:h1|text_align:center” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_column_text]
Help give a voice to those battling to use theirs.
By donating to the Freedom of Expression Awards Fellowship you help us support individuals and groups at the forefront of tackling censorship.
These unsung heroes are the champions of free expression.
Your donation helps us to provide a year-long package of support that includes media training, digital security coaching, and fundraising advice to promote and amplify the impact of our winners’ work.
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/3″][staff name=”2018 Digital Activism Fellow” title=”HABARI RDC, Congo” profile_image=”99851″]Launched in 2016, Habari RDC is a collective of more than 100 young Congolese bloggers and web activists, who use Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to give voice to the opinions of young people from all over the Democratic Republic of Congo. Their site posts stories and cartoons about politics, but it also covers football, the arts and subjects such as domestic violence, child exploitation, the female orgasm and sexual harassment at work. Habari RDC offers a distinctive collection of funny, angry and modern Congolese voices, who are demanding to be heard.[/staff][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][staff name=”2017 Campaigning Fellow” title=”ILDAR DADIN, Russia” profile_image=”84882″]A Russian opposition and LGBT rights activist, Ildar Dadin was the first, and remains the only, person to be convicted under a notorious 2014 public assembly law. Aimed at punishing anyone who breaks strict rules on protest, the law was enacted to silence dissent after a wave of demonstrations following Putin’s last election victory. Dadin’s crime was to stage a series of one-man pickets, often standing silently with a billboard, attempting to duck the cynical law and push for free expression. For his solo enterprise, Dadin was arrested and sentenced to three years imprisonment in December 2015. In November 2016, website Meduza published a letter smuggled from Dadin to his wife, exposing torture he claimed he was suffering alongside fellow prisoners. The letter, a brave move for a serving prisoner, was widely reported. A government investigation was prompted, and Dadin was transferred – against his will – to an undisclosed new location. A wave of public protest led to Dadin’s new location in a Siberian prison colony being revealed in January 2017. In February 2017, Russia’s constitutional and Supreme Courts suddenly quashed Dadin’s conviction, ruling he should be released and afforded opportunity for rehabilitation.[/staff][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/3″][staff name=”2016 Journalism Fellow” title=”ZAINA ERHAIM, Syria” profile_image=”82702″]While journalists and citizens fled, Syrian-native Zaina Erhaim returned to her war-ravaged country and the city of Aleppo in 2013 to ensure those remaining were not forgotten. She is now one of the few female journalists braving the twin threat of violence from both ISIS and the president, Bashar al-Assad. Erhaim has trained hundreds of journalists, many of them women, and set up independent media outlets to deliver news from one of the world’s most dangerous places. In 2015 Erhaim filmed a groundbreaking documentary, Syria’s Rebellious Women, to tell the stories of women who are helping her country survive its darkest hour.[/staff][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row equal_height=”yes” css=”.vc_custom_1474531377622{margin-right: -15px !important;margin-left: -15px !important;}”][vc_column width=”1/3″ el_class=”text_white” css=”.vc_custom_1487957370833{margin-right: 15px !important;margin-bottom: 15px !important;margin-left: 15px !important;background-color: #f21400 !important;}”][vc_column_text]
A gift of £100
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A gift of £500
funds travel for a winner to the awards for a week of training and support
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A gift of £1000
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[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row equal_height=”yes” content_placement=”middle” css=”.vc_custom_1487172040880{margin-top: 15px !important;margin-right: 0px !important;margin-bottom: 15px !important;margin-left: 0px !important;background-color: #ee3424 !important;}” el_class=”text_white”][vc_column width=”1/2″ css=”.vc_custom_1478508145989{padding-top: 60px !important;padding-bottom: 60px !important;background: #000000 url(https://www.indexoncensorship.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/art-and-the-law-banner.jpg?id=80742) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: cover !important;}”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″ css=”.vc_custom_1474534568795{padding-top: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_custom_heading text=”Sponsor the Awards” font_container=”tag:h2|font_size:24|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes”][vc_column_text]If you would be interested in sponsorship of our annual Awards Fellowship programme please contact Helen Galliano – [email protected][/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row equal_height=”yes” content_placement=”middle” css=”.vc_custom_1487172040880{margin-top: 15px !important;margin-right: 0px !important;margin-bottom: 15px !important;margin-left: 0px !important;background-color: #ee3424 !important;}” el_class=”text_white”][vc_column width=”1/2″ css=”.vc_custom_1525791192908{padding-top: 60px !important;padding-bottom: 60px !important;background: #ffffff url(https://www.indexoncensorship.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/2018-fellows-1000.jpg?id=100251) !important;background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: contain !important;}”][vc_row_inner css=”.vc_custom_1487609333823{background-position: center !important;background-repeat: no-repeat !important;background-size: contain !important;}”][vc_column_inner][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][vc_column width=”1/2″ css=”.vc_custom_1474534568795{padding-top: 0px !important;padding-bottom: 0px !important;}”][vc_custom_heading text=”Freedom of Expression Awards Fellowship” font_container=”tag:h2|font_size:24|text_align:left” use_theme_fonts=”yes” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indexoncensorship.org%2F2017%2F07%2F2018-freedom-of-expression-awards-fellowship%2F|||”][vc_column_text]Celebrate the courage and creativity of some of the world’s greatest journalists, artists, campaigners and digital activists[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
