Civilnet
The world of sports is not immune to political games. The UEFA Champions League final on May 24 between rivals Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid was played amidst charges of harsh authoritarianism and clampdowns on freedoms. Azerbaijan sponsors Atletico Madrid and athletes of the team wear jersey’s that read, “Azerbaijan, Land of Fire,” parroting the country’s tourism slogan. Reporters Without Borders, however, called Azerbaijan the “Land of Repression,” and said that viewers should not be “fooled by the propaganda.”
Azerbaijan is ranked 160th out of 180 countries in the World Press Freedom Index. Reporters Without Borders stated that Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev “is a predator of press freedom who has eliminated all pluralism in the country.” Almost two dozen reporters and bloggers continue to languish in Azerbaijani prisons for their outspoken statements against the regime that has clamped down on press freedoms, intimidated and harassed opposition voices and has also come down hard on civil society organizations and civic activists.
Ironically, on May 14, Azerbaijan assumed the rotating presidency of the Committee of Ministers of Europe’s largest human rights organization -- the Council of Europe. Reporters Without Borders has called on the Council of Europe’s 46 member states to “remind Azerbaijan’s president of his duties as regards respect for freedom of information.”
General Secretary Christophe Deloire of Reporters Without Borders issued an open letter to President Francois Hollande on the occasion of his official visit to Azerbaijan on May 9. Deloire states: “In a media sector already largely controlled by the authorities, the crackdown on journalists, bloggers and independent news outlets continues to intensify.A biased regulatory authority, dubious acquisitions and the manipulation of the advertising market have given the authorities complete control over the broadcasting sector. The main foreign stations such as the BBC and Radio Free Europe have been barred since 2009. A handful of independent newspapers struggle to survive.”
Using its vast reserve of oil and gas money to promote the country and garner political favors from statesmen around the world is not a new phenomenon for Azerbaijani officials. Caviar Diplomacy and Azerbaijan have become synonymous.
A report by the European Stability Initiative entitled, “Caviar Diplomacy, How Azerbaijan Silenced the Council of Europe,” states that while gift giving is part of traditional Azerbaijani culture, it comes with the expectation of being paid back some time in the future. According to the report, Azerbaijani officials referred to this practice in private as caviar diplomacy. It states: “It began in 2001, not long after Azerbaijan joined the Council of Europe – the continent’s club of democratic nations. It gathered speed after Ilham Aliyev, who had served in the Council of Europe’s parliamentary assembly (PACE), became president of Azerbaijan in 2003. Once the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline was completed in 2005 and the Azerbaijani state coffers were awash in oil revenues, the ‘caviar policy’ shifted into top gear.”
On May 23, Anne Brasseur, the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, while in Baku accused Azerbaijan of intimidating and silencing its critics. In light of Azerbaijan taking up the chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers, Brasseur said, “In certain areas, such as freedom of expression, freedom of association and freedom of assembly, the situation appears to have deteriorated and this has to be addressed urgently.”
Stories
