The Institute for Reporters' Freedom and Safety denounces recent statements made by Presidential Administration head Ramiz Mehdiyev that are intended to mislead the local and international public about the press freedom situation in Azerbaijan and to deflect blame by making entirely false claims about other nations, and also condemns the high-level government cover-up, including actions tantamount to censorship, that followed one of Mehdiyev's comments.

On May 7, while attending the "For the sake of Democracy and Stability" conference in Baku, Mehdiyev claimed that the statements released by international organizations are not based on facts, and also said that there are 90 journalists imprisoned in England in connection with their professional work[1].
 
In response to this, IRFS notes that over the past year countless local and international organizations, including the OSCE, CSCE, Council of Europe, European Union, State Department, President of the United States, Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International and so on, have released statements about the deterioration of press freedom in Azerbaijan. And any suggestion that all of these respectable organizations, who have offices and representatives in country and/or regularly visit Azerbaijan on fact-finding missions, could be incorrect in their assessment of Azerbaijan's press freedom situation, while Mehdiyev and the government of Azerbaijan – who have a genuine interest in suppressing dissenting press to conceal their own corruption and crimes – are right, is completely preposterous.
 
IRFS concurs with Reporters Without Borders that Mehdiyev's 7 May statement is a "clumsy attempt to distort reality attempt to minimize the gravity of the situation in Azerbaijan by crudely exaggerating press freedom violations in western Europe.[2]"
 
IRFS also notes that UK's Foreign Office Minister for Europe Jim Murphy has responded to Mehdiyev's comments. Murphy said, "Any suggestion that there are journalists in British prisons is rubbish, ill-informed rubbish.[3]"
 
While Mehdiyev's statement has been widely condemned, one underreported aspect of the May 7 incident is a high-level cover-up that took place to conceal Mehdiyev's comment that there are 90 journalists in prison in England.
 
IRFS become aware of Mehdiyev's 7 May statement through a news brief running on APA News Agency. In that press release, APA incorrectly reported that Mehdiyev said, "A PACE representative, who recently visited Azerbaijan said obviously that it was possible to keep any person in custody for 90 days in England with no reason. British Parliament has passed a certain draft law in this regard[4]." And APA was not alone, countless other press institutions, mainly those fulfilling the orders of Azerbaijan's government, also misrepresented Mehdiyev's words. IRFS only learned that Mehdiyev's comments were intentionally being distorted by some local press outlets, when it listened to a fragment of Mehdiyev's comments in Azerbaijani on the website "Contact."[5] 
 
According to the 10 May 2008 edition of "Azadlig" Newspaper, several hours after Mehdiyev made the remark that 90 journalists are imprisoned in England, calls were made from the Presidential Administration to all press that was present at the conference and the mass media was asked not to publish or put on the air Mehdiyev's comment.
 
To IRFS, this government-orchestrated cover-up is further evidence that Azerbaijan's government censors and manipulates the press, and even condones ethical transgressions when they are in their favor. While Mehdiyev could have come forth, admitted his error and clarified his position, he instead compelled the press to give false reports.
 
In addition to Mehdiyev's 7 May 2008 comment, Mehdiyev also made inflammatory and inaccurate remarks to the press on 3 May 2008. On that day, in response to a journalist's question about the naming of Azerbaijan as a "top jailer of journalist" in a statement released by U.S. President George Bush on World Press Freedom Day[6], the head of the Presidential Administration said, "Press freedom in Azerbaijan is very good. In comparison with the early 90s, in Azerbaijan press freedom is very widespread. The people claiming that the press is oppressed want to exert pressure on Azerbaijan in this manner." 
 
This is another example of Mehdiyev misrepresenting the truth and once again evading blame. In response to this, IRFS notes that Azerbaijan is and remains a top jailer of journalists not just in the region, but in the world. Despite the release of six journalists from prison last December; five through a pardon decree and one through an appellate court decision; four journalists; Sakit Zahidov, Ganimat Zahid, Eynulla Fatullayev and Mushfig Huseynov; remain wrongfully imprisoned in Azerbaijan. And while it's true that the government has managed to fabricate criminal cases against these four journalists in an attempt to make it appear as though they were arrested not in connection with their professional work, is clear to all of society, except for perhaps the government's own minions, that all four of these journalists were imprisoned in attempt to put an end to their critical articles.
 
IRFS asks Mehdiyev and Azerbaijan's government, how can the press freedom situation be good, and even better than in the early 90s? In the 90s there was not nearly as many imprisoned journalists, or other means, such as administrative sanctions, through which the press was oppressed. In the early 90s not nearly as many mass media institutions were being sued in court, not nearly as many mass media institutions were facing crushing fines that may result in their closure, and journalists were not beaten and even murdered like they are now in Azerbaijan.
 
IRFS recommends that officials from the government of Azerbaijan be much more careful when making statements to the press, stop manipulating the press to serve its own interests, and take concrete steps to resolve the issues facing the media instead of deflecting blame. IRFS also recommends that the international community not be deceived by misleading comments, react sternly and swiftly to false comments made by the government of Azerbaijan, and continue to pressure Azerbaijan's government to resolve the dire issues facing journalists and the press in Azerbaijan. IRFS has attached to this statement its 2007 report on press freedom, and also has extensive material on the cases of Azerbaijan's four imprisoned journalists available, and welcomes a dialogue with government officials about the validity of statements it and other international organizations release. 
 

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[1] Translation of Presidential Administration Head Ramiz Mehdiyev's 7 May 2008 comments about the press at the 'For the sake of Democracy and Stability" conference in Baku:
Journalist: We are seeing statements from international organizations about the press freedom situation in Azerbaijan. Reporters Without Borders gave a statement, the government of Azerbaijan…
Ramiz Mehdiyev: (interrupting the journalist) Last time I said, you know these statement...ahhh... let's basically say it like this, are statement given on the basis of orders. I assess it this way, because these are not statements supported by real facts. If we take say the internal relations between European nations and the press, Azerbaijan is no different from the European government in this sense.
Journalist: There are no imprisoned journalists in European nations, Ramiz sir.
Ramiz Mehdiyev: Who said there aren't? Recently a representative of the OSCE from England was here. He openly stated that at this moment there are up to 90 journalists in prison in England.
Journalist: Because of their professional work?
Ramiz Mehdiyev: Yes.
Journalist: Is there anything about a decision to pardon Azerbaijan's three imprisoned journalists?
Ramiz Mehdiyev: The situation is such that these journalists were not arrested for their professional work. They were imprisoned through a court decision for crimes they committed. Now they must resolve this through the courts.
[2] http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=26929
[3] http://www.contact.com.az/video.php?video_name=Britaniya%20naziri%20Cim%20Morfi%20.mp3
[4] http://en.apa.az/news.php?id=48408
[5] http://www.contact.com.az/upload/videos/Ramiz%20Mehdiyev%2090%20nefer.mp3 
[6] http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/05/20080501-9.html#