(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has condemned the government’s harassment of the country’s main opposition newspaper, “Yeni Musavat”, which has been hit with such heavy fines that it will almost certainly have to close in the next few days. The paper was dealt what appeared to be a fatal blow on 4 January 2005, when it was […]
(RSF/IFEX) – RSF has condemned the government’s harassment of the country’s main opposition newspaper, “Yeni Musavat”, which has been hit with such heavy fines that it will almost certainly have to close in the next few days.
The paper was dealt what appeared to be a fatal blow on 4 January 2005, when it was given fines totalling nearly 125,000 euros (approx. US$163,200) at the conclusion of six legal cases initiated by persons close to the government, including the Azerbaijani ambassador to Turkey, Mamed Aliev, Defence Minister Safar Abiyev, and the brother of Supreme Court President Rashid Hasanov.
“The government’s hounding of ‘Yeni Musavat’ was prompted by a determination to silence this opposition newspaper. We call on the judicial authorities to reconsider this decision, which strikes a serious blow to pluralism of news and information in Azerbaijan,” RSF said.
Given that the paper’s bank accounts have been frozen since 16 November 2004, the courts, on 4 January 2005, ordered the seizure of subscription earnings from distributors Gaya, Gasid and Metbua Yayimi.
This ruling runs counter to a law that only allows the freezing of the daily’s own accounts. “They have just dealt us the death blow,” the paper’s editor-in-chief Habil Abbasoglu said on 5 January.
In addition, on 30 December, the sale of four other opposition dailies – “Azadlig”, “Babi Habar”, “Bizim Yol” and “Football +” – was banned in subway stations. “Yeni Musavat” has been subjected to a similar ban for the past year.
The Baku government has clearly demonstrated its determination to silence all dissident voices. On 28 December, the president’s uncle, Jalal Aliev, told Parliament that he intended to step up the fight against opposition newspapers.
