"With the state's refusal to regulate the activities of the media and giving opportunities to democratic mechanisms, the establishment of the Press Council in Azerbaijan for the first time in the CIS ensured the establishment of civil principles in the life of newspaper and magazine editors in our country."
MP Mazahir Afandiyev said this in the article he wrote on the occasion of National Press Day.
Fakt Yoxla examined the MP's claim regarding the establishment of the Press Council in Azerbaijan for the first time in the CIS.
The Press Council of Azerbaijan was established on March 15, 2003.
The institution was established at the 1st congress of Azerbaijani journalists with the establishment of about 180 mass media.
However, among the former Soviet republics, there are countries that established the Press Council before Azerbaijan. For example, the Press Council in Armenia was established in 1995.
In Belarus, the Press Council was established in 1995, which is 8 years before Azerbaijan.
Press Councils were established in Kazakhstan and Ukraine before Azerbaijan. This event took place in Kazakhstan in 1997. In Ukraine, the Press Council was established in 2001.
Table: Years that Press Councils started to operate in the CIS countries:
Fakt Yoxla concludes that MP Mazahir Afandiyev’s claim is False.
