16:55, 28 January 2022

Mijatović urged Aliev not to sign new media law

Dunja Mijatović, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights. Photo: Gunnar Vrang https://ru.wikipedia.org/

Dunja Mijatović, the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights, has sent a letter to the Azerbaijani President, Ilham Aliev, urging him not to sign the law "On Media" recently adopted by the parliament and return it for revision. According to Ms Mijatović, the new law is contrary to the principles of the freedom and independence of the media.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on December 14, the Azerbaijani Parliament adopted a bill "On Media", which caused serious criticism from journalists and experts. On December 30, the MPs adopted the law "On Media" by ignoring the journalists' demands.

Dunja Mijatović has expressed her serious concern that the new law falls short of international standards on human rights, the freedom of expression and the freedom of the media.

Khalid Agaliev, the head of the Media Rights Group, has pointed out that the document empowers a state body to limit opportunities for journalistic activities.

Mekhman Aliev, the director of the "Turan" News Agency, believes that the new law is abstract, cumbersome and completely subordinates journalism to the state regulation.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on January 27, 2022 at 06:00 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Faik Medjid

Source: Caucasian Knot