AZERBAIJAN: PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER DISCUSSES THE

C O N F I D E N T I A L BAKU 000879

SIPDIS

DRL FOR A/S DAVID KRAMER, WENDY SILVERMAN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09/16/2018
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM KDEM AJ
SUBJECT: AZERBAIJAN: PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER DISCUSSES THE
GOVERNMENT'S MEDIA DEVELOPMENT PLANS

Classified By: Ambassador Anne E. Derse for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: Head of the President's Socio-Political
Department Ali Hasanov described for the Ambassador a highly
successful and productive visit to the United States in
August, including attendance at the Democratic National
Convention in Denver and meetings in Washington, DC. Hasanov
pledged to improve cooperation and build partnerships with
the USG and NGOs, and stated that "the chapter is closed" on
previous arguments with the National Democratic Institute.
Highlighting his talks with DRL A/S David Kramer, Hasanov
said that Azerbaijan's NGO fund had been successfully
launched and a mass media development program, aimed at
creating a "professional press corps," was being developed.
An additional program to develop political parties would
follow. Hasanov suggested that Azerbaijan's three imprisoned
journalists would be pardoned after the October 15
presidential elections, which he insisted would be free and
fair. ENEMO, however, will not receive an invitation to
observe. End Summary

Bilateral Relations
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2. (C) The Ambassador, accompanied by USAID Director and
Polecon Chief, met September 11 with Ali Hasanov, Director of
the Presidential Administration's Social-Political
Department, to discuss his recent travels to the United
States, where he attended the Democratic National Convention
in Denver and had meetings in Washington with policymakers
and NGOs. Hasanov said that the purpose of his trip, which
he described as highly productive and useful, was to share
information on the current domestic situation in Azerbaijan,
including upcoming presidential elections, and to solicit
views on future cooperation with the United States.


3. (C) Hasanov said further that he hoped to promote
friendlier relations with the United States and build
partnerships. Azerbaijan, he said, is striving to meet "U.S.
standards" on human rights and democracy, and vowed that
Azerbaijan would fulfill its international commitments,
including the conduct of free and fair elections. He asked
for the United States to weigh in more strongly to help
Azerbaijan solve its problems, particularly in light of
recent events in the Caucasus. He applauded his lengthy
discussion with NDI's Ken Wallach, saying "the chapter is
closed" with respect to previous tensions between NDI and the
GOAJ.


4. (C) The Ambassador noted Vice President Richard Cheney's
recent visit to Baku and highlighted his speech on
U.S.-Russia relations at Lake Como. She also pointed to the
recent testimonies of EUR A/S Daniel Fried and DAS Bryza as
key indicators of "where we are right now" in terms of
developments in the region. Regarding Hasanov's U.S. travel,
the Ambassador said that the Embassy encouraged the National
Democratic Institute (NDI) and International Republican
Institute (IRI) to coordinate the visit.

Meeting with Assistant Secretary David Kramer
--------------


5. (C) Hasanov called his Washington meetings "very
important," and highlighted his discussion of democracy and
human rights with A/S David Kramer. In that meeting, Hasanov
tried to emphasize that "Azerbaijan is developing political
parties and a democratic process," with discussion taking
place on a draft law on party organization and financing. He
noted that NGOs and "international donors" are welcome to
contribute to this process.


6. (C) Hasanov called Azerbaijan's state-sponsored NGO fund,
launched earlier this year with Embassy and USAID input, a
success. Multiple organizations -- some friendly towards the
government, others not so much so -- have received small
grants, with $1.4 million distributed in total. Hasanov
noted that Azerbaijan must improve relations between the
government and civil society, and expand outreach to
implementers, including U.S.-based NGOs. He thanked the USG
for its assistance, through USAID, in development of the NGO
program and said he would welcome further support to develop
the media program, as well as a future project on development
of political parties.

Release of Journalists
--------------


7. (C) The U.S. side, according to Hasanov, showed particular
interest in human rights and alleged political prisoners.
The Ambassador re-emphasized the importance of Azerbaijan's
timely release of three journalists, who are widely believed
to be imprisoned for political reasons, and the continuing
need for action to address the complaints of RFE/RL
journalists in Nakhchivan. Hasanov, as in Washington,
suggested that the journalists would be released after the
October 15 presidential elections. The Ambassador outlined
again USG interest in a presidential statement opposing
violence against journalists and GOAJ action to investigate
cases, as well as a re-examination of the libel law.

Media Fund - USG Welcome to Advise
--------------


8. (C) Responding to the Ambassador's questions, Hasanov said
that President Aliyev had signed a "Mass Media Concept Paper"
in July, and the Government was now tasked with formulating a
media development strategy, including a fund to support
commercial publications and journalists. The "level of
professionalism" within Azerbaijan's press corps "is not
impressive," Hasanov said. The strategy will incorporate
three main principles: 1) the State must create an
environment in which media can work independently and
profitably; obstacles to commercial work must be removed; 2)
Azerbaijan must develop a "professional press corps," with a
"code of conduct based on international principles"; and 3)
the GOAJ must find mechanisms to differentiate "good and bad
media," perhaps by offering incentives or rewards for
responsible journalism.


9. (C) On the final point, the Ambassador noted that the GOAJ
must be careful not to overplay the government's hand by
offering "a seal of approval." Such an effort would
undermine the media's independence and credibility. Hasanov
said he understood, and requested USG assistance in drawing
up the parameters for the mass media fund, as the Embassy and
USAID had for the NGO program. He also noted that
Azerbaijan's Press Council and various editors-in-chief had
drafted the concept paper.

Freedom of Assembly Still Untested
--------------


10. (C) The Ambassador noted that Azerbaijan's new freedom of
assembly law looked good on paper, but its effectiveness
would depend on implementation. The City of Baku earlier in
the week had published a list of eleven sites around the city
where demonstrations could legally take place. Those sites,
however, appeared to be located in remote areas or places
hard to access (septel). The Ambassador suggested that a few
centrally located sites should be designated as a sign of
goodwill. Hasanov said that the published list was
preliminary and that other sites would later be identified.

Elections: No ENEMO Invitation
--------------


12. (C) The Ambassador said that the U.S. Embassy's goal
during the election season would be to provide an objective
assessment of Azerbaijan's October 15 presidential elections.
Free and fair elections, she said, would provide Azerbaijan
with an excellent opportunity to improve its image and build
confidence. The Ambassador asked Hasanov to describe his
discussions in Washington related to the elections, and
requested an update on the GOAJ's thinking on election
monitoring by the European Network of Election Monitoring
Organizations (ENEMO). Hasanov said he had discussed this
issue with NDI, explaining that Azerbaijan had already
invited OSCE/ODIHR as an overall coordinator for
international election monitoring efforts. OSCE in turn, he
said, could invite other groups to participate within the
ODIHR framework, including ENEMO. The Ambassador noted that
ENEMO would not likely fit within ODIHR, as it usually works
independently. Hasanov repeated that ENEMO or other
organizations would not receive a separate invitation for
election monitoring activities. Hasanov also reconfirmed
that the Election Monitoring Center, a domestic NGO, would be
able to participate in election monitoring, even without
official registration.

Comment
--------------


13. (C) Ali Hasanov is one of the prickliest figures that the
Embassy deals with in the President's office. This

uncharacteristically positive meeting with Hasanov, including
his welcome indication that relations with NDI are on a new
track, suggests that his discussions in Washington and
Denver, and perhaps more importantly the attention and
respect paid to him, had an effect. It has certainly changed
his tone dramatically on NDI and its programs in Azerbaijan.
Hasanov may be reflective of broader sentiments in Azerbaijan
-- a discomfort with some Western approaches on democracy,
but with a desire for acknowledgement and affirmation from
the West. It's the Rodney Dangerfield view of the world.
DERSE