16:49, 6 May 2015

Khadija Ismayilova receives Barbara Goldsmith Award

Khadija Ismayilova. Photo by Aziz Karimov for the "Caucasian Knot"

The awarding in absentia of Barbara Goldsmith Award to the arrested Azerbaijani journalist Khadija Ismayilova was held in New York on May 5.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in April Khadija Ismayilova was awarded the above Barbara Goldsmith Award "Freedom to Write" of the American PEN Centre.

As noted by Susan Nossel, the head of the American PEN Centre, during the ceremony, Khadija Ismayilova could not receive the award personally, because she is in custody in Azerbaijan.

The Barbara Goldsmith Award is presented annually to individuals arrested and persecuted for their professional activities. Since 1987, 39 people were awarded, and 35 of them subsequently were released.

Khadija Ismayilova has been working in professional journalism for more than 15 years. She is known for her investigative journalistic reports about corruption in the highest echelons of power in Azerbaijan. In April 2013, Ismayilova was one of 10 laureates of the "Hero of the Caucasus-2012" contest, held by the "Caucasian Knot".

Khadija has been accused of incitement to suicide attempt of her former colleague Tural Mustafaev, of a large-scale embezzlement, illegal entrepreneurship and abuse of power.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.