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Amnesty accuses Azerbaijan of restricting freedom of expression online
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Azerbaijan has adopted a controversial law that Amnesty International claims targets online freedom of speech. A new amendment to the country’s defamation law makes “slander” and “insults” on the internet punishable by fines, imprisonment or hard labour.
According to the state news agency APA, those found guilty of slander face a fine of up to the equivalent of €493, as well as one year corrective labour or jail time of up to six months. The punishments are even harsher if the slanderous comments are deemed to have been ‘insulting’.
The changes come shortly before the country’s presidential election in October, leaving human rights groups worried that authorities are trying to silence all critical voices and meaningful debate.
Amnesty International has condemned the move in a press release, calling it a “further attack of freedom of expression in Azerbaijan.”
David Daz-Jogeix, Deputy Director of Amnesty International’s Europe and Central Asia Programme said, “The Azerbaijani authorities’ fear of critical voices has already led them to attempt to keep peaceful protesters off the streets and to muzzle the mainstream media. This new law aims to shut down one of the few last resorts of legitimate protest – the internet.”
Even before the legislative changes, President Ilham Aliev’s regime was regularly criticised by organisations defending human rights. They accuse the government of persecuting independent journalists, attacking political opposition candidates and detaining activists during anti-government protests.
In March 2012 two musicians were arrested and tortured for insulting the President’s late mother in a performance.
Despite the criticism, the President, who has been in power for the past decade – following a decade of his father’s rule – remains the favourite to succeed himself in October’s elections.
More about: Aliyev, Azerbaijan, Freedom of speech, Internet, Press freedom
Copyright © 2013 euronews
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It is World Press Freedom day, with Reporters Without Borders, (RSF), and the United Nations warning there is a world of difference between top of the list Finland, and 179 places further down, Eritrea.
The difference can be fatal. 90 journalists died in 2012 in their work to bring the truth to the public. Hundreds of others suffer persecution, discrimination, and imprisonment. Yet their role in furthering the causes of human rights and democratic accountability is priceless.
“What we see is that even countries that promote press freedom, when it concerns their allies, they do not criticise anything,” said RSF’s Christophe Deloire.
Reporters Without Borders’ website details the past year, reporting failures and successes, like the number of journalists killed, wounded or imprisoned while trying to do their jobs.
“In addition to those who pay the ultimate price, hundreds of journalists have been detained. Many languish for years in brutal conditions as a result of sham trials or trumped-up charges. I condemn all such attacks and repression,” said UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon.
Despite the Arab Spring, the Middle East remains the worst-ranked region, but there are some bright spots, like Myanmar, where the ending of dictatorship has seen the country rise 18 places up the rankings.
More about: Freedom of speech, Press freedom
Copyright © 2013 euronews
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