AW: [governance] news from Baku

Sat Jun 23 08:16:44 EDT 2012

Aye.

Matthias C. Kettemann

Am 23.06.2012 um 20:24 schrieb "Kleinwächter, Wolfgang" <wolfgang.kleinwaechter at medienkomm.uni-halle.de>:

> Aye
>
> wolfgang
>
> ________________________________
>
> Von: governance-request at lists.igcaucus.org im Auftrag von Koven Ronald
> Gesendet: Sa 23.06.2012 10:51
> An: governance at lists.igcaucus.org; salanieta.tamanikaiwaimaro at gmail.com; ms.narine.khachatryan at gmail.com
> Cc: jlfullsack at orange.fr
> Betreff: Re: [governance] news from Baku
>
>
> aye
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Salanieta T. Tamanikaiwaimaro <salanieta.tamanikaiwaimaro at gmail.com>
> To: governance <governance at lists.igcaucus.org>; Narine Khachatryan <ms.narine.khachatryan at gmail.com>
> Cc: Jean-Louis FULLSACK <jlfullsack at orange.fr>
> Sent: Sat, Jun 23, 2012 3:50 am
> Subject: Re: [governance] news from Baku
>
>
> I propose that we as Civil Society issue a Statement. All in favour,
> say AYE and those not in favour saÿ NAY.
>
> Feel free to give reasons if you so wish.
>
> On 6/22/12, Narine Khachatryan <ms.narine.khachatryan at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Dear all,
>>
>> Recently the Azerbaijani parliament restricted the public access to
>> information about the registration, ownership structure and shareholders of
>> Azerbaijani corporations. Justification is to protect the privacy of Azeri
>> president and his family.  Interesting. Henceforth, the general public
>> would be denied such information, since it "contradicts the national
>> interests of Azerbaijan".
>>
>> Azerbaijan: Parliament Throws Veil of Secrecy over Business Sector
>>
>> http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65534
>> June 13, 2012 - 12:00pm, by Shahin
>> Abbasov<http://www.eurasianet.org/taxonomy/term/1358>
>>
>>
>>   - Azerbaijan <http://www.eurasianet.org/resource/azerbaijan>
>>   - EurasiaNet's Weekly
>> Digest<http://www.eurasianet.org/taxonomy/term/3279>
>>
>>   - Azeri Economy <http://www.eurasianet.org/taxonomy/term/3864>
>>   - Azeri Politics <http://www.eurasianet.org/taxonomy/term/3670>
>>
>> Recent legislative efforts in Azerbaijan to protect the privacy of
>> President Ilham Aliyev and his family are coming at the expense of
>> investors, both foreign and domestic.
>>
>> The Azerbaijani parliament voted June 12 to restrict public access to
>> information about the registration, ownership structure and shareholders of
>> Azerbaijani corporations. In addition, legislators granted President Aliyev
>> and his wife, First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, lifetime immunity from criminal
>> prosecution.
>>
>> The immunity provision for the Aliyevs was not unexpected: the proposal had
>> been under consideration for a year. But the corporate secrecy amendment
>> was added to parliament's agenda only after the conclusion of the May
>> 22-26 Eurovision
>> Song Contest <http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65459>.
>>
>> The pop-music festival, which brought unprecedented international attention
>> to Azerbaijan, was preceded by a series of articles by RFE/RL investigative
>> journalist Khadija Ismayilova, who highlighted alleged conflicts of
>> interest involving mining rights granted to a gold-mining
>> company<http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65357>owned <http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65357%3Eowned>
>> by President Aliyev's two daughters, Leyla and Arzu, and Eurovision
>> construction work <http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65389>by <http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65389%3Eby>  a company linked
>> to the two Aliyevas and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva, the head of
>> Eurovision's organizing committee. [Editor's Note: Islamyilova also
>> contributes to EurasiaNet].
>>
>> By law, officials' relatives may own businesses, but members of parliament
>> - the First Lady sits in the legislature for the ruling Yeni Azerbaijan
>> Party - cannot.
>>
>> In public statements, government officials have asserted that such
>> investigative coverage violated the presidential family's right to
>> privacy<http://www.eurasianet.org/node/62572>.
>> The articles followed earlier pieces that examined the Aliyeva daughters'
>> investments in telecommunications, airport operations and banking.
>>
>> Under the terms of the secrecy amendment, obtaining information about such
>> investments now could prove more difficult. The government will release
>> information about the registrations of for-profit companies only upon
>> request by a court, law-enforcement agency or Central Bank monitors
>> investigating suspected money-laundering or the financing of terrorist
>> groups.
>>
>> Journalists and the general public would be denied such information if its
>> distribution "contradicts the national interests of Azerbaijan in
>> political, economic and monetary policy, the defense of public order, the
>> health and moral values of the people and harms the commercial and other
>> interests of individuals."
>>
>> In addition, corporate records will be provided only if the petitioner has
>> the consent of those individuals named in the data.
>>
>> Information about registered Azerbaijani companies' ownership and
>> shareholders previously had been publicly available on the Ministry of
>> Taxes' website. The ministry was required to provide registry details to
>> citizens within a week of receipt of a written request.
>>
>> All but four of the 103 members of parliament present voted in favor of the
>> restrictions. Another two MPs did not vote; First Lady Aliyeva was not
>> present.
>>
>> President Aliyev is expected to sign the secrecy and immunity amendments
>> into law this week.
>>
>> Government officials have not commented on the amendments, but one senior
>> Yeni Azerbaijani Party MP who backed the new restrictions claimed the
>> measure does not limit Azerbaijanis' right to information. In June 6
>> comments to the Azeri-language service of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty,
>> Ali Huseynly, chair of the parliament's Committee on Legal Policy and State
>> Building, claimed that the amendment "clarifies the frameworks for the
>> right to receive information." The lack of such "frameworks" often leads to
>> "violations," Huseynly added.
>>
>> Parliamentarian Fazail Agamaly, a member of the pro-government Ana Vatan
>> (Motherland) Party, asserted that "[j]ournalists should be satisfied with
>> the information about a company provided by its owner."
>>
>> "Otherwise, the release of some information could create financial problems
>> for businesses," Agamaly reasoned.
>>
>> Civil society and media-rights watchdogs counter that the secrecy
>> amendment, indeed, is designed to prevent problems - namely, for Aliyev's
>> friends and family members.
>>
>> Lawyer Intigam Aliyev [no relation to the presidential family], director of
>> the Legal Education Society, a Baku non-governmental organization that
>> monitors legislation implementation, asserted the amendment is "a response
>> of corrupt authorities to a number of articles in local and foreign media
>> about the large business assets of the ruling family in Azerbaijan and
>> oligarchs."
>>
>> Opposition MP Igbal Aghazade, a member of the Umid (Hope) Party, who voted
>> against the amendment, said the measure only "serves the idea of keeping
>> information about the commercial interests of a group of high-ranking
>> government officials a secret."
>>
>> Restricting the availability of company data from the public can harm the
>> country's ability to fight corruption, noted Media Rights Institute
>> Director Rashid Hajily. In 2011, Azerbaijan ranked 143rd out of 183
>> countries in a corruption index compiled by the international watchdog
>> group Transparency International.
>>
>> "Citizens will be deprived of public [oversight] over officials' links with
>> businesses," Hajily said. "It creates a strong foundation for the
>> proliferation of conflicts of interest."
>>
>> Meanwhile, activists who tried to
>> highligh<http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65388>t <http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65388%3Et>
>> Azerbaijan's spotty civil-rights record during the Eurovision contest say
>> that they will fight back against the "business secrets" amendment. "We
>> will campaign both locally and internationally, will demand in public
>> debates the annulment of this legislation, will raise the issue at related
>> international conferences and in interviews with foreign media," pledged
>> Rasul Jafarov, head of the Human Rights Club, a Baku-based non-governmental
>> organization.
>> Editor's note:
>> Shahin Abbasov is a freelance reporter based in Baku.
>>
>> On Thu, Jun 21, 2012 at 1:53 PM, Jean-Louis FULLSACK
>> <jlfullsack at orange.fr>wrote:
>>
>>> Dear members of the list
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> latest news from Baku published by IPS
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> Jean-Louis Fullsack
>>>
>>>
>>> After the Curtain Call, a Crackdown Begins
>>> By Shahla Sultanova <http://www.ipsnews.net/author/shahla-sultanova/>
>>> Republish
>>> |
>>>
>>> BAKU, Jun 19 2012 (IPS) - As the attention of the world faded away from
>>> Azerbaijan after the recent Eurovision song contest, police began
>>> targeting
>>> some young activists and a journalist involved in protests here last
>>> month.
>>>
>>> The Eurovision song contest was as much a moment of enjoyment for music
>>> lovers as it was a fierce contest between the Azerbaijani government and
>>> its opponents to highlight the 'reality' of a politically turbulent
>>> country; with the former presenting a respectable image to the West, and
>>> the latter struggling to expose human rights violations and government
>>> suppression of basic civil liberties.
>>>
>>> More than ten protest rallies were organised on the eve of the contest.
>>>
>>> Human rights defenders and activists had anticipated a post-Eurovision
>>> crackdown, when the spotlight had turned away from the country and the
>>> government would be free to punish those who had dared to educate the
>>> world
>>> about the grave situation on the ground in Azerbaijan.
>>>
>>> On Jun. 6, the Institute for Reporters' Freedom and Safety (IRFS), a
>>> media
>>> rights watchdog, was notified by the Sabail District Police Office that a
>>> photo journalist named Mehman Huseynov, an IRFS member, had allegedly
>>> insulted police officers during a protest on May 21.
>>>
>>> The district police office has now opened a criminal case against
>>> Huseynov
>>> under Article 221.2.2 of the Criminal Code of the Azerbaijan Republic.
>>> If
>>> found guilty, Huseynov will face five years in prison.
>>>
>>> Huseynov (23), said the accusation is related to his work, which for many
>>> years has entailed photographing events that depict government
>>> wrongdoings
>>> and disseminating them via social media.
>>>
>>> Several months prior to Eurovision, Huseynov actively joined the Sing for
>>> Democracy Campaign.
>>>
>>> "I was media coordinator within the campaign. My photos and videos were
>>> shared in international media.  Of course, they showed the reality of
>>> Azerbaijan, (which) is unfortunately not very positive. That is why I am
>>> a
>>> target now," he told IPS.
>>>
>>> Over 30 human rights organisations joined Sing for Democracy in an effort
>>> to pressure organisers of the contest to demand greater democracy in
>>> Azerbaijan.
>>>
>>> The campaign called for the release of political prisoners, freedom of
>>> expression and assembly, protection of property rights and the
>>> independence
>>> of courts.
>>>
>>> IRFS head Emin Huseynov, Mehman Huseynov's older brother, links the
>>> accusation against the latter with his profession. "It is the start of
>>> the
>>> post-Eurovision crackdown. It is revenge against the IRFS for actively
>>> informing foreign journalists and international media on the eve of
>>> Eurovision about many harassment cases in Azerbaijan. Besides, during
>>> seven
>>> years of work, we investigated many cases of pressure on journalists.
>>> Now,
>>> they want to punish us."
>>>
>>> Before the song contest, Leyla Yunus, director of the Institute of Peace
>>> and Democracy, had often warned of a serious backlash after the
>>> Eurovision-fuelled tourist season died down. She believes Mehman Huseynov
>>> is the first victim of that campaign.
>>>
>>> "Mehman's work has been shared and discussed recently. Besides, he is
>>> working for IRFS, which is critical of the government. By arresting him
>>> they want to (blacklist) a good photo journalist and put pressure on his
>>> brother Emin."
>>>
>>> Various other activists were also brought into police stations this week.
>>>
>>> Beyim Hasanli, a member of the opposition Popular Front Party's Youth
>>> Committee was called in to the Sebayil district police station on Jun. 9.
>>>
>>> She was asked how she got information about the May 21 protest action and
>>> why she attended it. Hasanli was also asked if she ever noticed a media
>>> representative being rude to the police.
>>> Related IPS Articles
>>>
>>>   - Sex and Censorship in
>>> Azerbaijan<http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/05/sex-and-censorship-in-azerbaijan/>
>>>   - Arab Spring at Azerbaijan's
>>> Door<http://ipsnews.net/2011/04/arab-spring-at-azerbaijanrsquos-door>
>>>   - Azerbaijan and Israel: The Enemy of My Enemy Is My
>>> Friend<http://ipsnews.net/2012/02/azerbaijan-and-israel-the-enemy-of-my-enemy-is-my-friend>
>>>
>>> "After that they showed me a video in which I was trying to help a woman
>>> dragged by police. There were many journalists, including Mehman, who
>>> tried
>>> to film it but police would not let them do so. It also showed Mehman
>>> (swearing) when he was not allowed to film."
>>>
>>> After that Hasanli was asked to write a report on what she saw on video.
>>>
>>> A week ago, her father was called in to the Absheron district Main Police
>>> Office and asked to sign a statement promising to be responsible for his
>>> daughter's activities.
>>>
>>> Hasanli claims all this was done to intimidate and discourage her from
>>> being an activist.
>>>
>>> Natig Adilov, a journalist with the opposition Azadlig newspaper and
>>> activist with the Popular Front Party, was called in to the Sabirabad
>>> police station on Jun. 13, where he was "advised" to get involved in
>>> better
>>> activities than participating in protest rallies.
>>>
>>> "They do it to scare people so that they stop their public activity. For
>>> autocratic regimes like this, intimidation is very important to manage
>>> their (stronghold). It is also related to me being very active during
>>> Eurovision," said Adilov.
>>>
>>> Ehsan Zahidov, spokesman for the Ministry of Internal Affairs, said the
>>> recent slew of interrogations against activists and journalists has
>>> nothing
>>> to do with their activity during the Eurovision song contest or their
>>> political background but pertained to them violating "rules".
>>>
>>> "To advise people (on how to behave) is part of the job of police
>>> officers. They do not care about the political activity of citizens.
>>> Natig
>>> Adilov was just advised not to violate public order. That is it," he told
>>> IPS.
>>>
>>> For Arzu Abdullayeva, human rights defender and co-chair of the Helsinki
>>> Citizens Assembly, recent pressure on journalists is not limited to
>>> Eurovision activity.
>>>
>>> "Activists have always been a threat to the Azerbaijani government. By
>>> (putting) pressure on activists, journalists, by arresting them, the
>>> government (lets potential dissidents) know that they will have the same
>>> future."
>>>
>>> Human rights organisations like Amnesty International and Human Rights
>>> Watch condemned the accusation against Huseynov.
>>>
>>> The authorities should "drop the bogus charges against Huseynov and
>>> ensure
>>> that he can exercise his right to freedom of expression", Human Rights
>>> Watch said in its recent report.
>>>
>>> Amnesty International's statement mentions that Huseynov's arrest comes
>>> amid a worrying rise in police harassment of young activists who
>>> participated in protests around Eurovision.
>>>
>>> According to Max Tucker, Amnesty International's Azerbaijan campaigner,
>>> Mehman's arrest signals the start of the widely predicted government
>>> crackdown on those they consider responsible for negative publicity
>>> during
>>> Eurovision.
>>>
>>> (END)
>>>
>>>
>>>
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>>
>>
>> --
>> Media Education Center
>> Yerevan, Armenia
>>
>> www.mediaeducation.am <http://www.mediaeducation.am/>
>> www.safe.am <http://www.safe.am/>
>> www.immasin.am <http://www.immasin.am/>
>>
>
>
> --
> Salanieta Tamanikaiwaimaro aka Sala
>
> Tweeter: @SalanietaT
> Skype:Salanieta.Tamanikaiwaimaro
> Cell: +679 998 2851
>
>
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