On 1 November 2018 the Azerbaijan Press Council – the journalists’ self-regulatory body – adopted amendments to its Code of Professional Ethics. A new principle titled “Protection of the principle of gender equality and non-discrimination” was introduced.

The Press Council is the first to provide such a comprehensive provision on gender equality and non-discrimination in journalists’ codes of practice in the Council of Europe member states. Most journalists’ codes of practice refer only to the principle of non-discrimination on the basis of gender, without providing further detail of what a sexist stereotype involves. A study of European Press councils conducted in 2009 shows that only 15 of them specifically prohibit gender discrimination. It should be noted that only two out of the 22 members of the Board of the Azerbaijan Press Council, which approved the revised Code of Ethics from a gender equality perspective, are women.

The amendments to the Code of Professional Ethics were developed with the support of the Council of Europe under its project “Gender Equality and Media Freedom in Azerbaijan”. The Organisation will continue to assist the Press Council in promoting the new rules and effectively implementing the ethics code.

Find here the Code of Ethics in English and Azerbaijani language.