Azerbaijani authorities have blocked access to OC Media, an independent regional news website, in the latest restriction of non-state media in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Readers across Azerbaijan reported being unable to access the Tbilisi-based English-language platform without a Virtual Private Network (VPN) since early June. The outlet said its traffic from the country had dropped sharply following the restriction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Azerbaijani government has not commented on the block or provided an official reason for the move.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
OC Media, which was founded in 2017, covers politics, human rights, and social issues across Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Robin Fabbro, the editor-in-chief of OC Media, said the block was “long expected” given what he described as Baku’s growing intolerance of independent reporting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“This is a blow to us,” Fabbro said. “But the fact that the Azerbaijani government considers our reporting dangerous shows that journalists still have the power to hold those in power to account.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He added that he was confident the site’s readers in Azerbaijan were already familiar enough with VPNs and censorship-circumvention tools to continue accessing their coverage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Vienna-based International Press Institute (IPI) condemned the blocking, describing it as another step in the systematic suppression of independent voices in Azerbaijan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Baku began systematically blocking critical news websites in May 2017, when a court order restricted access to several major independent outlets, including Meydan TV and the Azerbaijani service of Radio Free Europe\/Radio Liberty (RFE\/RL). Access to the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) is also restricted in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Press freedom in Azerbaijan has declined further in recent years. In February 2022, President Ilham Aliyev signed a restrictive media law establishing a state-run registry for journalists, a move widely criticised by local and international media watchdogs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dozens of journalists and media workers have been detained or prosecuted in Azerbaijan over the past year as part of an escalating crackdown on independent journalism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Azerbaijani authorities deny that the arrests are politically motivated, maintaining that the individuals held are accused of ordinary criminal offences unrelated to their professional activities.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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