‘Il Foglio’ newspaper put on trial

Over the past few months the world has been shaken by a whole series  of various scandalous disclosures, revelations and mere hearsay. A hurricane of information, provoked by diplomatic inaccuracies and computer net failures have made all prominent political figures almost helplessly defenseless in the face of a tabloid press always eager for sensation. Seasoned by the Wikileaks US State Department secret cables publications, the yellow press, or better to call it the gutter press, offers its readers whole packs of lies and slanders about respectable and honest public figures. These ‘sensations’ are really helpful if one wants to fix ones financial problems, and a certain amount of time will pass before those they have dishonoured will be able to restore their good names. And that is the case in the provocation by the Italian newspaper ‘Il Foglio’, aimed at country far away from the blessed soil of Italy. Of course, the paper ‘quotes’ today’s top diplomats, not the most popular US figures, however, but less famous German ones. All these absurd tales about supposed secret encounters are not even worth a disclaimer. Widely-known public figures can’t just cross state borders without being noticed by anybody – and that is not to mention the fact that the Belarussian President has not been allowed in to Europe for a long time now.

The victims of this abominable scandal were not chosen by chance: Azerbaijan's First Lady is one of the brightest figures of the political and humanitarian space east of the EU. Distinguished by beauty and intellect, she is involved in various charity activities. 

She became a UNESCO and ISESCO Goodwill Ambassador and her activities are not only directed towards her motherland, but towards the whole world, Europe included. The Heydar Aliyev Fund, headed by Mehriban Aliyeva, contributes greatly to the world’s cultural heritage preservation.  As examples, we can cite two monuments, included in the World Cultural Heritage list, and displayed in Versailles Palace Park, restored with the help of the Fund. 

The public image of an effective and successful woman personifying the renewed and dynamically developing European Azerbaijani, keeps ill-wishers awake at night. There are many of them, not least due to the fact that Azerbaijan is currently doing its best to defend its territorial integrity, regain its occupied territories and restore the rights of the people concerning their native land, being in a state of conflict with neighbouring Armenia. Against this background, the aspiration for smearing and soiling the reputation of an impeccable person who consistently and methodically defends the interests of her native country and shows the best human qualities such as generosity and kindness is so strong, that it has transformed into an attempt to undertake an information campaign aimed at discrediting the public image of this irreproachable woman. Thus, it is quite natural that her protocol service has responded to the provocation of the so-called journalists from Il Foglio with extreme incisiveness. The Il Foglio "journalists" are obviously backed by  forces having nothing to do with the mass media.

The Italian newspaper will be sued for these lies and slanders very soon. Freedom of speech does not imply freedom from responsibility, especially if the speech is full of blatant deceit and provocation.  

Eugeny Krishtalyov, exclusive to VK