H. E. Haidar Aliyev
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan
Baku
Azerbaijan

Vienna, 7 August 1996

Your Excellency,

The International Press Institute (IPI), the global network of editors and media executives from newspapers, magazines, broadcasting organisations and news agencies in 85 countries, is deeply concerned about the escalation of press freedom violations in Azerbaijan.

On 26 July 1996, Metin Yasar Oglu, a journalist for the newspaper Mukhalifat, was arrested on unknown charges while covering a demonstration in front of the Russian Embassy in the capital city, Baku, at which citizens were protesting against the mistreatment of Azeris in Moscow and other Russian cities. Yasar Oglu was detained and his camera confiscated as local police dispersed the rally.

On 31 July 1996, censors banned the latest issue of the opposition paper Azadlig. We understand that in early July presidential censors had demanded the addresses and telephone numbers of all employees working for Azadlig and threatened to ban the newspaper until the information was supplied. The paper’s editor, Gunduz Tahirli, condemned the request and refused to comply with the order.

On 1 August 1996, the Minister of Information and the Media, Nariman Hasanzade, ordered the closure of the independent daily Avrazia, complaining about six stories with politically sensitive topics. We are informed that since 3 August 1996, Avrazia has ceased publication for an indefinite period.

IPI fears that a renewed government crackdown on the independent and opposition press in Azerbaijan is underway and urges Your Excellency to ensure that Avrazia and Azadlig are allowed to resume publication. We strongly urge you to secure the immediate and unconditional release of Yasar Oglu and to allow members of the independent media in Azerbaijan to operate without further harassment.

We thank you for your attention.

Yours sincerely,

Johann P. Fritz
Director