(RSF/IFEX) – According to information released by RSF on 29 April 1998, journalists working for the magazine “Monitor” have been harassed and an issue of the magazine has been seized. On 12 April 1998, Interior Minister Usubov sent a letter to the “Monitor”‘s editorial office to demand a refutation of an article about torture, which […]
(RSF/IFEX) – According to information released by RSF on 29 April 1998,
journalists working for the magazine “Monitor” have been harassed and an
issue of the magazine has been seized. On 12 April 1998, Interior Minister
Usubov sent a letter to the “Monitor”‘s editorial office to demand a
refutation of an article about torture, which was published in the last
issue of the magazine (published at the end of February 1998). The official
threatened to bring the author of the article to court for slander under
article 121 of the Azerbaijan criminal code.
According to editor-in-chief Elmar Huseinov, the harassment of some
journalists from “Monitor” began on 27 February 1998, after the withdrawal
of all issues of the magazine from Baku newsstands by the police. According
to a statement recently released by the police chief of Baku (the capital
city), several articles in the seized issue tended to “misinformation and
complicity in enemy’s propaganda.”
RSF protests against the pressure on journalists from “Monitor.”
Recommended Action
Send appeals to authorities:
to clarify the reason for the seizure of the magazine
Appeals To
Heidar Aliyev
President of the Republic of Azerbaijan
Baku
Fax : +994 12 92 06 25
Please copy appeals to the source if possible.