Azerbaijan: Man Armed With Knife Attacks Ayten Mammadova, Warns Her Against Journalistic Investigation And Coverage Of Minor Girl’s Murder

Location:Azerbaijan, Baku        
Date: May 10, 2022

Journalist Ayten Mammadova was threatened to death by an unidentified man on May 8, 2022. The perpetrator barged inside the elevator of her apartment building while she was in it and held a knife to her throat, threatening her against her journalistic investigation and coverage of a minor girl’s murder. The Coalition For Women In Journalism condemns the attack on Ayten and demands immediate legal action against the perpetrator. The authorities must trace and locate the attacker and eliminate threats to her life.

Around midnight on May 8, Ayten, who has diligently been following the ongoing murder trial was attacked in the elevator of her apartment building in Baku. Holding a knife to her throat and threatened her and her daughter with death if she continues to report on the murder of 10-year-old girl. The attacker asked the journalist “to be wiser” and hurled curse words at her, insulting both Ayten and her daughter, according to news reports. 

Ayten has been investigating the murder of Narmin Guliyeva, a 10-year-old girl, who went missing in November 2019. The minor’s body was found with burn injuries near a village in Tovuz region. Several powerful people, including the former police chief have been implicated in the case. Ayten has been following, and actively reporting, the ongoing murder trial.  

Right after the attack on her, she informed the police authorities in Baku and registered a complaint. The journalist told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) that the attacker grabbed her jaw with one hand and put a knife to her neck with the other. She said the knife went deep into her skin. Later, the attacker removed the knife but then put it back to her neck again and left a cut. 

Ayten elaborated on the attack further at a press conference hosted by human rights organization, Protection Line, after the attack. “All these cases are a political order, designed for the forced silence of the media in the country. If the attack on Ayten Mammadova, as well as the named crimes, is not disclosed, all responsibility will fall on the government of Ilham Aliyev, who has committed to ensuring freedom of the press to international organizations,” noted journalist Shamshad Aga. Speaking at the press conference, he stressed on the number of unresolved murder cases of journalists. 

Support for the journalist also came from her colleagues and public figures who issued a statement condemning the attack.  “We emphasize once again that the attack on Ayten Mammadova is an attack on freedom of speech and the press. The knife put to her throat is put to the throat of all journalists. In this regard, we demand from the head of state and law enforcement agencies to ensure the safety of all journalists, the immediate detection and punishment of the criminal and the persons behind him for the safe continuation of their professional activities by journalists,” they wrote.  

The Coalition For Women In Journalism is horrified at the attack on Ayten Mammadova and calls for immediate measures to ensure her safety. The authorities must probe the attack on her and hold the perpetrator of the violation, and its masterminds, if any, accountable. We emphasize that impunity for such crimes against women journalists only leave them more vulnerable to worse attacks and compromise their safety further. The authorities and the news media industry must work collectively to ensure safer working conditions for women journalists.

The Coalition For Women In Journalism is a global organization of support for women journalists. The CFWIJ pioneered mentorship for mid-career women journalists across several countries around the world and is the first organization to focus on the status of free press for women journalists. We thoroughly document cases of any form of abuse against women in any part of the globe. Our system of individuals and organizations brings together the experience and mentorship necessary to help female career journalists navigate the industry. Our goal is to help develop a strong mechanism where women journalists can work safely and thrive.

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