ArmInfo. The work of journalists in the conflict zone is quite legitimate. Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan stated this at a briefing on October 1, referring to the OSCE's statement on freedom of speech in response to the statement of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry regarding the activities of the media in hot spots.
"As a Human Rights Defender, I have never commented on the statements of state agencies. But since we are talking about journalists, I must say that the statement of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry is unacceptable from the point of view of international requirements, and a gross violation of international humanitarian law," Tatoyan said.
He said that the message of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry says that the Armenian authorities ignore the obligation to ensure the safety of the media by sending them to the conflict zone, in addition, the Foreign Ministry strongly recommends that the international media, before arriving in the NKR settlements, first obtain the consent of the Azerbaijani authorities.
In this vein, the Ombudsman said that it became known from the Azerbaijani media that Azerbaijan refuses foreign journalists to cover the hostilities from the scene. "This is a violation," he stressed. In contrast, Armenia and Artsakh do not prohibit the activities of international media in conflict zones, which indicates the interest of the Armenian side in objective coverage of military actions both on the Line of Contact and in settlements, as well as in covering the situation for the international community. In addition, he noted that the protection of journalists is ensured by the fact that their status during hostilities is equal to the civilian population.
"I would like to emphasize once again that the work of journalists in conflict zones is legitimate and it sets itself the task of providing guarantees for the protection of human rights and helping to prevent hostilities," Tatoyan said. It should be reminded that today as a result of the shelling of the city of Martuni in the Republic of Artsakh, representatives of foreign media, including the French edition of Le Monde, were injured, the condition of one of which is assessed as serious. According to the Ombudsman, the opposing side fired at the area near the city municipality, in the area of which the journalists were.