Press Council urges Turkish media not to spread biased information about Azerbaijan
The Press Council of Azerbaijan is monitoring with serious concern the biased information, distorted materials, and campaigns aimed at manipulating public opinion that are being disseminated against our country in a number of media outlets and on social media platforms in Turkey.
This was stated in a statement issued by the Press Council.
The Council notes that presenting certain events that have taken place recently in Azerbaijan out of context, the deliberate politicization of discussions related to our country's internal matters, and the dissemination of unconfirmed claims as facts absolutely contradict the fundamental principles of professional journalism.
The Press Council of Azerbaijan particularly emphasizes that the highest task of journalism is not to set societies against one another, but to uncover the truth, convey accurate information to the public, and contribute to mutual understanding. However, it must be noted with regret that in recent days the complete opposite of this has been observed in some media outlets in Turkey. Thus, the decision to introduce a single school uniform in general education institutions of our country is being distorted by being taken out of context, and completely groundless claims are being spread that a "hijab ban" is allegedly being applied in Azerbaijan and that Islamic values are being infringed upon. In addition, this issue, which is related exclusively to internal education rules, is being artificially shifted into the plane of religious and ideological confrontation, thereby attempting to form a negative image of our country.
The distortion of issues related to freedom of religion, education policy, and the social and cultural life of our society, the use of old or fake photo and video materials unrelated to the topic, as well as the presentation of the radical opinions of individual marginal persons as the position of Turkish society as a whole, pursue the goal of misleading public opinion. Such an approach corresponds neither to the principles of objective journalism nor to the spirit of the existing strategic relations between the two brotherly countries.
Another worrying point is that this smear campaign is not limited to the social media segment, but is also being waged by some traditional media outlets in Turkey. In these materials, the boundaries of criticism and freedom of speech are openly overstepped, and on social media accounts a platform is provided for dangerous calls aimed at the violent change of the constitutional order in the Republic of Azerbaijan and the illegal seizure of power.
Relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey are based on a common history, language, culture, spiritual values, and unshakable mutual trust. The principle of "One nation, two states" expresses the equal cooperation and brotherhood of our countries as independent states. This sacred principle cannot be used as a tool of justification for interference in the domestic and foreign policy of any country, for drawing society into ideological confrontation, or for making unfounded accusations.
The Press Council calls on media structures, journalistic organizations, editorial offices in Turkey, and persons influencing public opinion on digital platforms to verify information about Azerbaijan on the basis of reliable sources before publishing it. The Council calls for preventing the distortion of facts and the dissemination of fake footage and footage taken out of context, refraining from insults, slander, and hate rhetoric against the state and people of Azerbaijan, promptly correcting and refuting false information that has been identified, as well as demonstrating a principled position against any manipulative campaigns capable of damaging relations between the two countries.
The Press Council of Azerbaijan states that it will continue to demonstrate its principled position against the distortion of the truth, the spread of disinformation, and the use of media capabilities for the purpose of undermining trust between our countries.
