German journalists, engaged in criticism of ut the Azerbaijani authorities, have been denied visa for visiting the country, reports www.azadliq.info.
According to the report, the information was passed on to Azadliq’s Azerbaijani colleagues in Germany by Claudia von Salzen, head of the policy department of the newspaper “Der Tagesspiegel”. Von Salzen herself had been to Baku ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 and had written an article critical of the Azerbaijani government.
Speaking about the way she criticized the Azerbaijani authorities during the Eurovision, the female journalist stressed that oil and politics do not make everything. “If there are problems in the sphere of human rights and democracy, how can you ignore them?”
Claudia von Salzen also spoke about what happened to her Azerbaijani counterpart, Khadija Ismayilova.
“What happened to her, in fact, reveals what’s going on in Azerbaijan. I’ve met Khadija Ismayilova and have written an article about her. Her position makes me feel proud of her. How can I say everything is perfect in Azerbaijan, if I understand what is happening there…”
Von Salzen believes that if journalists write about politics, they must be critical.