MASS MEDIA PROGRAM
On
28 September in "Zardabi" Press Center, a press
conference on "Situation with access to firsthand information:
problems and ways of their solution" was conducted.
The press conference was held in the framework of a project
financed by OSI-AF. The head of the Center Ibrahim Mammadli
noted that the recently established organization implemented
some projects in the field of problem solving of Azerbaijan
journalists. According to him today access to information
source is one of the main problems of journalists. Therefore,
in August of this year a poll was conducted among the journalists.
Presenting the poll results I.Mammmadli said that printing
press falls behind with obtaining information: "Today
newspapers give preference to agency information. APA is
the most frequently used information agency. The next two
places belong to "Turan" and "Olaylar".
I.Ibraimov also proclaimed the names of the organizations
friendly to mass media. According to the respondents, the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Central Election Commission
and the Ministry of Communications and Information Technologies
take top three places in providing media with information.
The Ministry of Defence, AZAL State Concern, and Azerchemistry
Sate Corporation are in the worst situation. The respondents
named them as organizations reluctant to give information
to mass media.
The Azerbaijan Hope Party, the New Azerbaijan
Party, the Azerbaijan Popular Front Party, the Azerbaijan
Political Party of Democratic Reforms are among political
parties that give infromation to media.
Among the state officials, the first two
places go to the minister of Education, Misir Mardanov,
and the head of Azerbaijan State Students Admission Commission
(SSAC) Maleyka Abbaszadeh. 39 % of the poll participants
reckon that it is possible to have access to firsthand information.
On
October 27, 2006 the Media Civil Rights Protection Fund
(MCRPF) and the Press Council announced the results of the
competition for the best journalists' articles addressing
women's issues held within the framework of project on "Women
rights protection journalist initiatives" financed
by OSI-AF.
The cchairperson of MCRPF, Metanet Muslimkizi,
pointed out that the competition aimed to draw the attention
of Azerbaijan mass media to the issues of women's development
and the problem of their rights protection.
Women's participation in political life
is an inseparable part of the democracy building process
and development. Mass media plays a sufficient role in highlighting
gender issues, promotion and strengthening women's participation
in all aspects of political, social, and economic life.
We hope that this competition helped increase the quality
and quantity of media coverage of women's issues in Azerbaijan,
- she said.
As a result of the competition seven journalists
were awarded with money and diplomas.
First place-Yasemen Bagirova (the Uch nokte
newspaper- "Pink revolution" ($250)),
Second place-Arzu Soltan (an independent journalist-"Women
searching for job" ($200)),
Third place-Sevinc Telmankizi (the Yeni Musavat newspaper-"Searcher
of happiness oversees" ($150))
Fourth place-Seriyye Muslimkizi (an independent journalist-"Hennaed
finger in trigger" ($100)
Fifth place-Roya Refiyeva (the Express newspaper -"Family
planning is not suitable for …" ($50)
The other two nominees were journalists
who covered more women issues within 3 months from June
01 to September 30. The first place was given to Jevahir
Selimkizi form the Merkez newspaper and the second place
was given to Irada Asadova from the Military Oath newspaper.
The jury made up of 5 persons - Novella
Cafarogli, the chair-woman of the Society for Women's Rights
Protection after D.Aliyeva, Elchin Shikhli, the chairman
of the Azerbaijani Journalists Union and the editor-in-chief
of the "Ayna" and "Zerkalo" newspapers,
the Press Council secretary, Rahim Huseynzadeh, professors
of from the Journalism department of Baku State University
Zeynal Mammedli and Akif Rustamov evaluated journalists'
materials.
The jury members evaluated the stories
according to the following criteria - topicality, factual
basis, presence of experts' opinions, ability to draw the
current situation in Azerbaijan and make a comparison of
it with the outside world, observance of ethic rules, objectivity,
balance and ways out.
Reserved
and Dismissed Officers Public Union, the Center for Struggle
against Corruption in the Armed Forces (CSCAF) and the Center
for Public Interests announced the results of the competition
among journalists called "Army in a democratic state"
The chairman of CSCAF, Yashar Jafarli,
stated that the competition started on June 15 and ended
on October 30. He mentioned that the aim of the competition
was to increase the attention to the army building process,
help solve the problems in army and improve professionalism
of journalist writing in the military issues. According
to the coordinator of the project, Perviz Hajiyev, 18 journalists
presented 53 stories for the competition. Those stories
were published in 14 newspapers and 1 journal.
Member of board of judges, Nadir Rzayev,
complained about this kind of writings. He assured that
in stories presented to competition journalists did not
appropriately use military terms.
However, military expert, Ildirim Mammadov,
said that Azerbaijani media rarely writes about military
issues: "Our media does not write professionally about
military issues. It means that they do not know this field."
Public Relations Director and Mass Media
Program Coordinator of the Open Society Institute-Assistance
Foundation (OSI-AF), Rovshan Bagirov, talked about the projects
implemented by the foundation. He mentioned that OSI-AF
supports the competitions among journalists on transparency
and investigations into problems in civil society development.
Afterwards all the names of competition
winners were announced. The first place was given to Jasur
Mammadov (Ayna, Zerkalo newspapers) and he was awarded with
$300 and adiploma. The second place nominee was awarded
with $200 and the third place with $150.
Y. Jafarli also stated that next year a
Military week will be held on June 26 dedicated to the Armed
Forces day.
TRANSPARENCY OF OIL REVENUES AND PUBLIC
FINANCE PROGRAM
On October 03, in the international Press
Center the presentation of a documentary film called "Oil
is not transparent was held. What about oil revenues?"
the film was produced by the "New Wave" production
center and the Open Society Institute-Assistance Foundation
(OSI-AF). Script writer and project director, Chingiz Sultansoy
said that the situation in two oil countries, Azerbaijan
and Nigeria, is discussed in the film in the personality
of a football player from Nigeria. The film shows that although
both countries produce oil, Azerbaijan is developing. Economy
experts were featured in this 26-minute film directed by
Jabir Rzayev and Iqbal Mammadov.
After Azerbaijani and foreign experts,
representatives of NGOs moderated a discussion around the
presented film.
On
November 08, 2006 the National Budget Group held a round
table on "Open Budget Index for 2006 and Azerbaijan's
position" at the International Press Center. The round
table was participated by government officials, representatives
of international organizations, NGOs and Mass Media.
The Open Budget Index, prepared by International
Budget Project, is a document that reflects public access
to information on budget and financial accountability of
the government. The Index is prepared according to the generalized
answers to 122 questions in Open Budget Questionnarie. The
questions focusing on the contents and timeliness of the
seven key budget documents use criteria based on the generally
accepted practices related to the public financial management.
In the preparatoion of the budget, directives of the international
Monetary Fund and UN's Declaration of Guidelines on Auditing
Precepts were used. However, Open Budget Questionnaire covers
wider information and examines if the government holds public
hearings of budget and governmental audit precepts.
ABI presented results of 59 countries for
2006. The civil society organizations and scientific institutes
of those 59 countries conducted resarch to prepare the index.
The research was conducted to improve the access of journalists,
civil society organizations, investigators and economic
experts to financial reports of geoverment.
In index the public access to 7 main budget
documents was assesed. Reaserch carried out in Azerbaijan
showed that Azaerbaijan takes the fourth place in a 5 group
level measurement. These levels are wide, important, some,
minimal, insignifant and no access.
Azerbaijan was related to the countries
which give minimal information. Our citiznes can get familiar
only with budget offer of the executive branch. However,
imported, middle year, end of year and audit reports are
handled by the goverment are not given to the public. With
these indicators Azerbaijan is in the 45th place among 59
countires. First places were given to France, England, New
Zealand, South Africa Republic, Slovac and the USA.
The National Budget Group is an NGO alliance
established in February 2006 with the financial and institutional
support of Open Society Institute-Assistance Foundation
with the mission of transferring initiatives on effective
usage of budget into the public interest.
ARTS PROGRAM
The
International Visual Arts Festival was held in Ganja from
08 to 10 September 2006. The Festival was organized with
the organizational support from the Baku Arts Center and
the financial support of the Open Society Institute - Assistance
Foundation.
Artists from Turkey, Iran, Russia, Kazakhstan,
and Georgia participated in the festival together with Azerbaijani
artists. Thematic exhibitions as well as a big exhibition
of Ganja artists and a large number of conceptual art projects
were included in the festival program.
Thus, Ganja residents had an opportunity
to become acquainted with the modern art of Azerbaijan and
other countries. Installations, actions, video art, Land-art
and other kinds of conceptual art were also presented. The
folk music and jazz ensembles performed a special concert
for the event participants within the festival program.
However, the most significant event of
the festival was a retrospective exhibition of Fazil Aliyev,
an artist from Ganja. The graphic and art canvases of this
gifted and skilled artist were kept by his family and never
exhibited publicly. With the artist's "return"
to Ganja, people revived their feeling of self-confidence
of the city's cultural strengths.
For the first time in Gence, samples of
experimental, descriptive art were demonstrated within the
frameworks of festival. Baku artists, Sabina Shikhlinskaya
and Ali Hasanov, presented the video installation in ancient
monument Chokak Hamam (Bathhouse). Artists from Kazakhstan
used trees of Khan Baghi (Garden of Khan) for the demonstration
of their works. Some artists participated in the creation
of painting panels on a concrete fence of the local stadium.
The representatives of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism
of Azerbaijan, the Municipalities of Ganja and the department
of culture and tourism of Ganja also participated in the
event.
A
selection of films from the Margaret Mead Film Festival
was presented in Baku on September 28-29 at the conference
Hall of the State Museum Centre. Ayan-Z Art Management Co.
carried out this initiative with the financial support of
the Open Society Institute-Budapest office.
The program shown in Baku included films
by directors from Sweden, Australia, USA, Mexico, India,
Iran, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan. The screenings
were grouped around four themes: Lost and Found, Street
Life, Life in Its Beauty, Being a Woman. A special program
included documentaries produced in the last few years in
Azerbaijan and Georgia. On September 30, well-known film
critics Rahman Badalov and Ayaz Salayev moderated a discussion
around the presented films.
Margaret Mead Film Festival has been held
in New York by American Museum of Natural History annually
since 1977. The scope of this cultural event named after
a famous anthropologist is to involve people into live a
discussion by means of screening non-fiction films on very
different topics. Since 1992, Margaret Mead Film Festival
has been organized in a mobile form. Every year selections
of Mead Festival travels to universities, community centres,
museums, festivals, and libraries throughout USA provide
communities with access to films that they can see only
in the festival. Over ten years mobile festival has been
presented with a big success abroad.
JOINT PROJECTS
The
training entitled "Toward full participation in the
cultural life of the society" was held on October 16-20,
2006 in Prague, Czech Republic.
The Open Society Institute-Assistance Foundation/Azerbaijan
sponsored the participation of the representatives of the
Public Union of Support to the Disabled Children - "Mushvig",
i.e. Valida Abbasova - the chief of the Union and Turana
Aliyeva, project coordinator, and the representative of
the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of Azerbaijan Republic
- Namiq Gaffarov in this training. According to T. Aliyeva,
series of important questions were discussed during this
five-day training programme. The cooperation between the
governmental structures and NGOs were among the major issues
raised during the visit. In addition, the fifth day of the
training was devoted to the educational issues of the disabled
children.
The training was organized in the form
of visits to various institutions dealing with people with
special needs, where the participants got a chance to get
acquainted with the experience of the Czech specialists
in the sphere of art therapy.
As said T.Aliyeva, there are two major
barriers for disabled people to take part in the open cultural
activities in Czech Republic - the architectural inaccessibility
and the often-discriminatory attitude of the public:
- The disability NGOs are rather active
in organizing cultural events for people with disabilities
and the Ministry of Culture of Czech Republic covers a part
of these expenses. They organize painting, handicraft and
music or theatre workshops for the disabled, also make them
attend cinemas, theaters and concerts. However, disabled
people from the rural regions or those living in institutions
are often deprived of possibility to take an active part
in the cultural life of the society. Old cultural buildings
are not accessible for the disabled, while the new ones
are accessible (according to the law of Czech Republic on
accessibility of new buildings).
Each year cultural activities, events,
and projects carried out by the organizations of persons
with disabilities are funded from the state budget allocated
to the implementation of the National program for the social
integration of persons with disabilities and by donor organizations.
The Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, the Ministry
of Culture and the Ministry of Social Protection of Czech
Republic provide the public organizations with grants.
Nowadays, participation of children with
special need in art is very limited. There are some physical,
economic, and social obstacles that restrict their activities
and participation in art. These words were sounded by the
head of the Public Union of Support to the Children with
Disabilities "Mushvig" PU (SCWD), Valida Abbasova
at a round table held in the office of Youth Help Foundation
on December 13.
The
round table was organized in the framework of the project
supported by OSI-AF's Public Health, East-East, and Art
Programs "Cooperation of "Mushvig" SCWD PU
with Elementary Practice School in the Chzeck Republic."
A representative of the Minsitry of Education of the Chzeck
Republic, Martha Teplan took the floor to present special
education in the Chzeck Republic.
On December 14, the First National Festival
on Integrative Performances called "Life as spectacle
was held in Baku Cultural Center named after Mushvig."
The festival was organized in the framework of cooperation
of the Azerbaijan Ministry of Art and Tourism, the Open
Society Institute-Assistance Foundation and Mushvig SCWD
PU.
Organization working with disabled children
and children with special needs also participated in the
festival. 20 performances were played in the festival prepared
by "Mushvig" SADC PU, the Republican Child Organization,
the "Rainbow" Rehabilitation Center, and nursery
school #20 in Qaradagh district where inclusive education
system is used.
The exhibition of handworks of disabled
children and children with special needs was also shown
in the festival. According to the organizers the festival
the round table was the first step taken to give children
with special needs an opportunity to be engaged in art.
The aim of organizing these events was to reduce stereotypes
and to demonstrate their ability.
With the finnacial support of the Public
Helath Program , the Oil Revenues and Public Tranparency
Program, the National Budget Group of Open Society Institute
and the Economical Reach Center a training on Monitoring
of Helath budget was conducted
20 NGO's specilaized in medical social
science, media representatives and representatives from
private healt institutions aprticiparted in th event.
In 3 days the training participants were
given knowledge on budget, incomes and expences, partcipation
of citizens in budget process, the ways to finnace the budget
and analyses of health budget for 2006 and 2007. The particpants
were informed about the health legislation of Azerbaijan
and the civil right on health.
At the end the particiopants were given certificates.
EDUCATION PROGRAM
Informal
payments in schools have recently increased and it is one
of the issues of concern for Azerbaijani society. Contemporary
Education and Education Aid Centre conducted a survey to
identify and assess the reasons, scale, and forms of informal
payments especially in higher schools and the attitude of
different social groups to this issue.
Monitoring study was held in 11 cities
and 51 villages of Azerbaijan within the framework of the
project on "Education Policy Forum" supported
by the Open Society Institute - Assistant Foundation. SIGMA
International Research and Cooperation Organization conducted
the study included to survey. Surveys have been conducted
in cities of Baku, Sumgayit, Mingechevir, Ali-Bayramli and
regional centres and villages of Khachmaz, Gusar, Lenkeran,
Agstafa, Shaki, Ujar and Saatli.
The aim of the study is to apply international
research methods, pilot survey, and other instruments to
assess the scale of informal payments at schools. The research
results will help examine the problem to work on the research
strategy against corruption in the public sector.
"Informal payments in schools"
involved 2300 people all over the country including 1050
parents, 1050 teachers, 100 school principals and 100 other
stakeholders. In the survey, different methods, such as
a face-to-face interview, questionnaires, and focus group
discussions were used.
The Ministry of Education of Azerbaijan
showed its interest to survey and proved its support at
all stages of the survey. Local executive bodies also created
conditions for conducting the survey. Schoolchildren and
parents also actively participated in the survey.
The survey identified the reasons, scale,
and forms of informal payments and it was found out that
it has, in particular, economic and social aspects. The
survey will help work out education policy recommendations,
which will meet the requirements of the transition period.
The surveys results were presented as an
analytical report to the public in the autumn of 2006 and
deliberated in the Internet Forum of Education Policy Project.
EAST-EAST: PARTNESHIP BEYOND BORDERS
PROGRAMM
A 5-day visit of Azerbaijani NGO representatives
to Romania was organized to learn the experience of Romanian
charity organizations; acts of charity, collecting charitable
contributions and mobilization of people to work voluntarily.
"Women and Modern World" Social Charity Center
and "Integration of Romania to Europe and Democracy
Association" organized the visit within the framework
of East-East: Partnership beyond Borders Program project
of OSI-AF. The project was called "Charity activity
strategies for NGOs of Azerbaijan and Romania".
The representatives of three organizations won the open
competition to participate in the training in Romania.
Now, the participants of this exchange
program are holding the second part of the project in Azerbaijan.
They will share their knowledge with other participants
of the project in trainings to be held in regions of Azerbaijan
in January and February 2007.
In Azerbaijan, 2-day trainings are planned
to be held in Shamakhi, Aghsu, and Ismayilli. Two trainers
from "Integration of Romania to European and Democracy"
Association will also hold trainings together with Azerbaijani
trainers. 25 people were selected to participate in the
training and the used language will be Azerbaijani.
On January 25, 2001 Azerbaijan was accepted
to European Union as a competent member. Thus, Azerbaijan
also joined economic, cultural, and political integration
rapidly going in Europe. However, limited access to information
bases and channels impedes the speed of this process. For
example our local and regional NGO representatives need
to increase their knowledge and reinforce the skills in
charity organizations. It is important to learn the charity
experience of the developed organizations of the eastern
European countries and implement them in Azerbaijan adjusting
them to the local level. Especially, regional NGOs need
to learn this kind of experience. Project "Charity
activity strategies for NGOs of Azerbaijan and Romania"
was designed to help put this initiative into practice.
WOMEN PROQRAMM
At
the end of December, Azerbaijan Gender Association "Symmetry"
support of Women's Network Program of the Open Society Institute
elaborated an alternative report on the Implementation of
Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination
against women (CEDAW) covering the period from 2001 to 2005.
In December 1979, the General Assembly
of United Nations Organization adopted a Convention on the
elimination of all forms of discrimination against women
(CEDAW). In July of 1995, the Republic of Azerbaijan joined
this convention without any proviso. The Convention on the
elimination of all forms of discrimination against women
is a key international document on the rights of women and
it obliges the member countries to take necessary measures
for ensuring the practice of these rights and maximum involvement
of women in all spheres of activities equally with men.
A year later after the signing of the Convention, in 1996
Azerbaijan presented its initial report to the UN Committee
on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against
women.
State Committee for Affairs of Women worked
out the second and third joint report in accordance with
the provisions of the Convention from 1996 to 2004. The
report briefly describes positive changes, related to the
legislative basis of the country concerning the development
of equal legal status of women and those practical achievements
which took place during report period.
According to the head of Azerbaijan Gender
Association "Symmetry" Kamilla Dadasheva, the
country does not have an alternative report on the measures
and situation connected with implementation of the Convention.
At the same time, the presentation of an alternative report
allows to clarify the actual situation concerning the implementation
of the provisions of the Convention from the point of view
of non-governmental organizations involved in the protection
of the rights of women and promotion of gender equality.
The purpose of the report was to contribute
to the promotion of all women's rights and gender equality
in the Azerbaijan by studying the situations related to
conditions of women.
The Alternative report has been worked
out on the basis of the statistical data and information,
experience of governmental institutions and NGO's and the
results of the conducted survey.
In order to review and comment report prior
to publication it was sent to more than 50 organizations
involved in women and legal issues via e-mail. The alternative
report was also presented to the State Committee for the
affairs of Family, Women, and Children, which made some
comments on it.
CIVIL SOCIETY PROGRAM
On December 25, in the International Press
Center, translation of the book called International Financial
Reporting Standards was presented. A practical Guide, a
project implemented by the Social Economic Investigation
Center with the support of the Open Society Institute -Assistant
Foundation. The representatives of the parliament (Milli
Mejlis), the Azerbaijan Republic Taxation Ministry, the
Azerbaijan Republic Auditing Palate, the Azerbaijani representatives
of the World Bank, the representative of the local and international
NGO's, the business organizations, audits, and financial
workers participated in the presentation of the book. The
participants were presented the Azerbaijani translations
of the International Financial Reporting Standards. A practical
Guide.
Candidate for Economic Sciences, head of
the Social Economic Investigation Center, Rufat Efendiyev,
mentioned that the name of the book translated into Azerbaijani
is the same as in English. The book includes all the standards
accepted by the International Accounting Standards Council.
That was the first translation of the book.
The translation process was run under the supervision of
Natiq Huseynov, an expert on audit and financial accounting
in the Social Economic Investigation Center and under the
supervision of a professional translators' team. As the
International Financial Reporting Standards has no official
translation into Azerbaijani, some terms were placed with
terms in Azerbaijani and some were left in the same order
to keep the meaning of the standard. The license was given
to the Social Economic Investigation Center by the World
Bank for the translation of the third publication.
The book was written by Hennie van Greuning
and Marius Koen and was first published as the Financial
Reporting Standards in 1999.
In first publication explanations to standards
published by International Financial Reporting Standard
Committee until 31 October 1998 were gathered. In 2 years,
the authors prepared a new edition according to the comments
of the Committee on Comments of Standards. The third edition
efficiently differs from the previous ones, as its size
is twice as big and covers all the standards used until
2004. Changes in context influenced the change of the book
name.
PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM
On September Public Health Program of Open Society Institute-Assistant
Foundation announced grant competition on awareness campaign
in fighting against AIDS in cities and regions of Azerbaijan.
According to terms of competition awareness work should
have been done in crowded places such as IDP and refugee
communities, bus and railway station, prisons and etc.
17 projects were selected from 37 ones on October 3. Awareness
work was planned to be done in 18 cities and regions of
Azerbaijan including Baku and its surrounding. Starting
from November 25 some organizations already started awareness
work.
In November, the World Health Organization started the implementation
of the project "HIV/AIDS Awareness in Barda".
The aim of the project was to improve awareness of Barda
region population. The project was implemented in the framework
"Improving response to HIV/AIDS in Azerbaijan"
project of the Global Fund supported by Open Society Institute-Assistant
Foundation.
By December 1, the International Day against AIDS, awareness
materials were spread, posters in different formats were
glued to the Public buildings and public transportation
in Barda. On December 1, a regional event under the name
"Our safety depends on us" was organized in Barda
Olympic Center.
The representatives from the ExCom, Health and Sport Ministry,
Barda Education department and Barda Central Hospital participated
in the event. Schoolchildren and region population were
also involved in the event. In the formal part of the event
the messages about the results of HIV/AIDS causes were given
to the audience and they were informed on how to prevent
HIV/AIDS.
Drawing the competition followed a formal part. 5 best pictures
were selected and winners were awarded with presents and
diplomas.
Audience with interest welcomed the performance played
by the Aghdam State Theatre. Through the performance schoolchildren
were informed about the fatal results caused by HIV and
how it is important to fight against it.
On December 8, a championship on Kickboxing was organized
in Barda Olympic Center. 5 teams and 70 athletes from Barda,
Tartar and Aghdam joined the competition. The championship
was held to raise the interest of young people in sport
and demonstrate solidarity in struggle against HIV/AIDS.
Barda took the first place in the competition, followed
by Tartar and Agdam. The winning teams were awarded with
cups.
Also, in the framework of this project 75 active young people
from 15 secondary schools and colleges were brought together
and experts trained them on HIV/AIDS. A 3 day seminar gathered
30 people each day and they were expected to have trainings
in secondary schools.
With the financial support of the Public Health Program
, the Oil Revenues and Public Tranparency Program , the
National Budget Group of the Open Society Institute and
the Economic Reach Center a training on Monitoring of Health
budget was conducted.
20 NGO's specilaized in medical social science, the media
representatives and the representatives from private health
institutions participarted in th event.
In 3 days the training participants were given knowledge
on budget, incomes and expenses, partcipation of citizens
in budget process, the ways to finance the budget and analyses
of health budget for 2006 and 2007. the particpants were
informed about the health legislation of Azerbaijan and
civil rights on health.
At the end the particiopants were given certificates.
