Prosecutor General’s of Azerbaijan accuses a publisher of a newspaper of corruption and nonpayment of taxes

A criminal charge was brought in Azerbaijan against Shirin Jafari, constitutor of the newspaper “Giundem Khabar” (“News of the Day”). He is accused of tax evasion and abuse of authority. The investigation is being carried out by Directorate of struggle against corruption under Prosecutor General based on an appeal of Press Council.

An official Press service report spread on August, 19, runs that the reason for investigation of the newspaper’s activities was an appeal of Press Council which included “Giundem Khabar” into a “black list” because of “disrespect for the principles of inviolability of personal privacy, publishing information harming the reputation of citizens and regular violations of the journalists’ professional Ethics Code”. 

In the investigation’s opinion, Jafari has not only violated the Law of Mass media but has not observed tax legislation, too. Tax evasion to a large sum of 68 244 manats (about 83 thousand dollars) was established.

At a press conference on August, 23, Jafari himself declared that he got all these news from the press which spread the official report of Prosecutor General’s. He supposes that the instruction of criminal prosecution might have come from Chief of social and political unit of the Administration of President Ali Gasanov. The reason for this Jafari’s assumption was that the Press Council which according to Jafari’s definition was “under control” of Ali Gasanov had initiated investigation of the newspaper’s activities.

Jafari stated groundlessness of the accusation of concealing taxes. According to him, a newspaper selling only 1000 copies could not have concealed such a big sum.