OSCE Office in Baku launches training sessions for journalists and press officers

BAKU, 9 December 2009 - The OSCE Office in Baku, with the support of Azerbaijan's Presidential Administration, launched a series of training sessions for journalists and government press officers today. 

The three-day training sessions for editors and journalists from various media outlets will focus on journalistic standards of truthfulness, accuracy, objectivity, impartiality and public accountability, as well as on the use of official information according to Azerbaijan's 2005 Law on the Right to Obtain Information. The sessions will make use of practical exercises and real-life examples to examine these topics with the active involvement of participants.

Following this, the Office will organize another three-day training session for working-level government press officers. The workshop will train press officers in the practical skills they need to fulfill their roles, with a special focus on drafting press releases, arranging press conferences and responding to information requests under the 2005 law. In addition, the sessions will train officers in the timely identification of opportunities to enhance their organization's message.

"Access to official information is essential to the health of democracy for two primary reasons. First, it enables citizens to make responsible and informed choices. Second, it serves a 'monitoring function' relative to Government, by providing citizens and the media with the means to ensure that elected representatives uphold their oaths of office and carry out the wishes of those who elected them," said Ambassador Bilge Cankorel, the Head of the OSCE Office in Baku.

"I hope that these training sessions will provide significant benefits to both the Government and the media by emphasizing professional values and the responsible use of official information."

The Law on the Right to Obtain Information provides legal grounds for securing information freely and without any impediments, reflecting the principles of open society and good governance. It further provides opportunities for citizens to monitor the performance of public officials.

The training sessions will be led by international experts. The participants will receive certificates for completing the sessions.