The issue of changes and amendments to the mass media law was discussed at the parliament on Friday. According to APA, Chairman of the Parliament’s Commission for Cultural Issues Nizami Jafarov reported about the amendments.

He said according to the amendments, if foreigner or uneducated person was appointed to the post of editor of any publication, the executive authorities have a right to file lawsuit against him if he received administrative punishment for abusing freedom of media or rights of journalists and repeated this action within a year after the administrative punishment, to ban the publication for two months.

Member of the parliament Agil Abbas urged to adopt the mass media law again. He said there were newspapers threatened national security of the country and spread ideas of different religious sects. “Authority of the Press Council should be extended, struggle against the racket journalists and measures of penalty should be strengthened”.

MP Baba Tagiyev said he supported the amendments to the law and appreciated non-allowance to the foreigners to found the publications as a positive step. “There are some people among us who are far from the national spiritual values. Azerbaijani information space should be protected from the outside influences. We should protect our national spiritual values and identity in our press”.
MP Igbal Agazadeh said this measure had a reactionary character and nobody could restrict the ownership activity.
MP Siyavush Novruzov said some press organizations didn’t observe the ethic norms and insulted any person. “It is not acceptable”.

After the discussions, the document was adopted.
Baku. Elbrus Seyfullayev–APA