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In 2017, Fikret Huseynli, an Azerbaijani-born journalist and Dutch national, traveled to Kyiv, Ukraine, to explore establishing a bureau for the independent online television channel Turan. During his visit, he was attacked by unidentified assailants and was detained by Ukrainian authorities while attempting to leave the country. Faced with the threat of extradition to Azerbaijan, his situation seemed dire--until he received a call from Gulnoza Said, CPJ's Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator.
CPJ: What was your initial reaction when you received a call from Gulnoza?
Fikret: I knew about the Committee to Protect Journalists when I lived and worked in Azerbaijan. CPJ reported about the attack against me on March 5, 2006. But the call I received while in [detention in] Ukraine was something completely different because it came at the moment in my life when I lost all my hope.
At that moment [when Ukrainian authorities detained me on the extradition request from Azerbaijan], I was expecting them to send me to Azerbaijan and my life would end once and for all.
CPJ: What did that support mean to you during and after your detainment?
Fikret: I understood that somewhere they were thinking of me. I thought, "I should continue my journalistic activity because I'm not alone." Perhaps this call and support from New York is routine for CPJ. But in countries like Ukraine, this is a serious warning [for the authorities who want to prosecute a journalist]. The [Ukrainian] prosecutor's office and the court hesitated to proceed with the extradition process after this support from CPJ. Because they knew that if they extradited me to Azerbaijan, it would cause a serious backlash and criticism.
CPJ: What was the impact of having CPJ's international support during your detainment? How did your fellow journalists react when you shared this?
Fikret: International support is always very important. The Azerbaijani authorities want to keep independent journalists in dark prisons forever. They have been fighting against the independent press for years. But they couldn't win. Therefore, they become more aggressive every year. Because of the support of CPJ, the Ukrainian authorities changed their course of actions: the court was ready to rule to extradite me, but, in the morning, a letter of support from CPJ was circulated. And the trial was adjourned. They decided to wait until the situation calmed down and then extradite me to Azerbaijan but because of CPJ and international support, they didn't. This support protected me during my six-monthlong stay in Ukraine.
My Azerbaijani journalist colleagues saw that we are not alone. Today, all journalists in Azerbaijan are happy with the activities of CPJ. Because without organizations like CPJ, independent journalism of Azerbaijan can be destroyed once and for all by the Azerbaijani authorities.
I appreciate CPJ's work very much. I hope that CPJ will always support us as a friend of independent media and independent researchers around the world. On behalf of myself and my friends, I thank everyone who has worked and is currently working at CPJ.
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Committee to Protect Journalists
P.O. Box 2675
New York, NY 10108 - United States
