On the 24-th of November the National Radio and Television Council (NRTC) adopted a decision not to prolong the term of the license for the biggest independent broadcaster ANS TV channel, which had violated the broadcasting law and disregarded official warnings and fines. On the same day, the employees of the Prosecutor General’s Office, the Interior Ministry and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technologies sealed all broadcasting equipment of ANS Company. (25-NOV-06)

Written by Shahla Ismailova/HRH Baku, on the basis of materials from Turan Info Agency, Today.Az, ANS TV channel, Yeni Musavat Newspaper, Azadlig newspaper, the Institute for Reporter Freedom and Safety; Photos by Turan Info Agency and IRFS.

In addition, all satellite antennas belonging to the company, which was going to celebrate its 15-th anniversary the next week, are under police control now. ANS TV and Radio had been waiting for the renewal of its license since 2003. The announcer of ANS said that the company had not received any official documents about the termination of ANS’ transmission.  The transmission stopped on the 24-th of November, at 3 pm. With the closure of ANS, the broadcasts of Voice of America, Radio Liberty and the BBC have essentially been terminated throughout the country (it was mainly on ANS frequencies that these companies retransmitted their programming).

Statement of ANS Broadcasting Company
ANS Broadcasting Company issued a statement expressing “disagreement” with the decision of NRTC about  terminating the transmission of the programs of ANS TV and radio station ANS FM. ANS Broadcasting says the NRTC’s decision runs counter to the law, because its activity was  stopped without a court decision. Such actions by the NRTC cause damage to Azerbaijan’s international image, as a democratic state. ANS stated that it will try to obtain the restoration of its rights through all means. It hopes that President Ilham Aliyev will intervene on the company’s behalf and find a fair resolution of the problem.

OSCE Office
The OSCE Office in Baku expressed concern  and surprise at the closure of Azerbaijan’s first private TV and radio  broadcaster, ANS. The Ambassador Maurizio Pavesi, Head of the OSCE Office in Baku said: “We are deeply concerned about the closure of a private television and radio broadcaster, which has always been considered by international observers as the most objective in the country – as has clearly been indicated also in the OSCE Election Observation Reports”. “I’m perplexed as to why the decision, which was issued in the absence of any definitive reasoning, should come into force immediately. The usual recourse to appeal seems to have been overlooked,” he added.

Finnish EU-Presidency
The Germany Embassy, on behalf of the Finnish  EU-Presidency issued the statement.  
“The Finnish EU-Presidency attaches great importance to the freedom of the media in Azerbaijan. We are therefore very concerned by the closure of the TV and Radio station ANS and hope that this is only a temporary measure. We are actively seeking an explanation from the Government”, – reads the statement.

U.S. Embassy
On Friday Nov. 24, the U.S. Embassy released the following statement about the closure of ANS: “We are deeply disappointed by the decision not to renew the broadcast license of ANS Television and Radio”. The statement reads “Democracy depends on a vibrant public discourse based on freedom of expression and a diversity of views. The closure of Azerbaijan’s leading independent news broadcaster represents a severe blow to media freedom.   This decision calls into question the Azerbaijani government’s commitment to democratic development and freedom of speech. We strongly urge that this decision be reconsidered in a manner that supports media freedom”.

U.S. Broadcasting Board of Governors
On Saturday the United States’ Broadcasting Board of Governors, which is an independent federal agency which supervises all U.S. government-supported, non-military international broadcasting, released the following statement: “The Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) expressed its dismay and concern at the sudden and forcible closure of Azerbaijan’s first private radio and television company, ANS, which has carried shows produced by the Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL)”.

BBG Chairman Kenneth Y. Tomlinson condemned the action as one which will deprive the people of Azerbaijan of a much needed source of independent news and information.

“This is part of an unfortunate pattern we have seen recently of attempts to deprive U.S. international broadcasting from in-country outlets,” Tomlinson said. “But these efforts will not stop us from carrying out our mission to provide accurate, truthful information to Azerbaijan or other countries around the world.”

RFE/RL Acting President Jeffrey N. Trimble called the closure of ANS “another blow to media freedom in Azerbaijan, which has already been under intense attack over the past few years.” Trimble also called on the government of President Ilham Aliev “to live up to the media freedom commitments embodied in Azerbaijan’s constitution and which have been made to organizations such as the OSCE and the Council of Europe, and return ANS — and RFE/RL’s FM programs — to the air as soon as possible.”