Lawyer: "Legislative amendments may lead to the restriction of freedom of expression"

The recent amendments to Azerbaijan's Code of Administrative Offenses and the Law On Information, Informatization, and Protection of Information have sparked worries about potential limits to free speech. Lawyer Fariz Namazlı shared his concerns about these changes, which the Milli Majlis (National Assembly) approved on December 19.

The updated laws introduce penalties for individuals who share content considered offensive to public morality or use inappropriate language and gestures online. Those found guilty could face fines from 500 to 1,000 AZN or be detained for up to 30 days. Repeat offenders within a year could face higher fines of 1,000 to 2,000 AZN or imprisonment for one to two months. The stated goal is to prevent social media content that could negatively affect young people and society and to safeguard national moral values.

Website and social network owners and users also have a new requirement. They must stop the spread of content that disrespects public morality or includes indecent material, like inappropriate language, unethical gestures, or depictions of the human body that go against national moral values. The aim is to prevent such information from being publicly posted online.

Namazlı explained to Meydan TV that the earlier laws did not specifically prohibit these actions, which allowed for greater freedom and open exchange online.

Namazlı believes that the government's move to tighten regulations in this area is a response to recent critical opinions from opposition figures about government officials. He also pointed to growing provocative behavior and actions against moral norms on social networks, particularly during live broadcasts. Existing legal tools were not enough to control or penalize these actions in the online world, which led to the current proposals to ban actions that insult public morality and show clear disrespect for society.

Namazlı pointed out that terms like public morality, national moral values, and indecent expressions are not clearly defined in the law. This lack of clarity could lead to broad and subjective interpretations, which could limit freedom of expression. He noted that the new draft law changed minor hooliganism, previously linked to disturbing public order, to blatant disrespect for society, which is still open to interpretation.

In other news, over 20 Azerbaijanis living abroad who have criticized the government are now facing criminal charges in Baku. Several of these cases are already in court, and some bloggers have been sentenced in absentia. These journalists and bloggers deny the charges, claiming they are being targeted for their critical views.