(CPJ/IFEX) – In a letter dated 29 October 1999, CPJ expressed that they are deeply disturbed by the closing and continued harassment of the Baku independent station Sara TV and Radio. ** Updates IFEX alert of 15 October** At 11:30 a.m. on 9 October, some 15 police officers, along with officials from the Baku City […]
(CPJ/IFEX) – In a letter dated 29 October 1999, CPJ expressed that they are
deeply disturbed by the closing and continued harassment of the Baku
independent station Sara TV and Radio.
** Updates IFEX alert of 15 October**
At 11:30 a.m. on 9 October, some 15 police officers, along with officials
from the Baku City Prosecutor’s Office, the Baku and Yasamal district police
departments and the Ministry of the Interior entered the offices of Sara TV,
halting all broadcast transmissions and demanding that staff evacuate the
office immediately.
According to Rasul Rauf, the station’s director, the police stated they were
operating under orders from President Heidar Aliyev’s office, but were
unable to provide documentation to that effect. Five hours later, at 4:30
p.m., the police finally produced a Ministry of Justice order annulling the
station’s registration on the grounds that its foreign-ownership status
violated Azerbaijani law.
In addition, ministry officials claimed Sara TV had violated its broadcast
agreement by televising political programs, rather than confining itself to
culture and entertainment. A number of staff were injured during the
subsequent forced eviction by the police, including one pregnant employee
who had to be hospitalized.
Since 18 October, 14 employees have been on a hunger strike to protest the
government’s aggressive campaign against the station. Three of them were
recently hospitalized.
CPJ believes it is no coincidence that authorities shut down Sara TV the
morning after it broadcast an interview with Nizami Suleymanov, an
opposition leader and chairman of the Independent Azerbaijan Party. During
the interview, Suleymanov called on the public to take part in an
anti-government demonstration.
In a statement provided to CPJ, Rasul Rauf says that according to
Azerbaijani law, the decision to revoke a broadcasting license can only be
taken by a court. However, there are no apparent legal grounds for revoking
Sara TV’s license, as the station was legally registered with the Ministry
of Press and Information in 1994, and is owned by local representatives of
the Turkish-based ICBC Television.
Having been shut down, Sara TV was then fined 250 million manat (US$58,000)
by the Baku City Court for violating the “honor and dignity” of Husein
Huseynov, head of the Azerbaijani Motor Transport Agency. Sara TV had
implicated Huseynov in a corruption scandal during a broadcast in early
September.
Sara TV’s court hearing is scheduled for 2 November in Baku. CPJ believes
that these legal actions are a mere pretext for a politically-motivated
effort to shut down the station.
Recommended Action
Send appeals to authorities:
broadcasting violates all the Azerbaijani government’s international
commitments to press freedom
Azerbaijan
charges against the station are dismissed
national origin be removed from both the current Azerbaijani media law, as
well as the new draft law that is expected to undergo its final hearing in
parliament later this month
Appeals To
His Excellency Heidar Aliyev
President of Azerbaijan
19 Istiglaliyat Street
Baku, Azerbaijan 370066
Fax: + 994 12 92 06 25
E-mail: president@gov.az
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.
