Eurovision 2009: Baku continues to deny that voted for the Armenian
song subjected to interrogation
29.08.2009 11:54 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has received
responses from Azerbaijan regarding allegations that telephone voters
in Azerbaijan who voted for the Armenian song in this year’s
Eurovision Song Contest were interrogated by security police.

Ictimai, the EBU’s Azeri Member which broadcast this year’s Song
Contest from Moscow in May, has confirmed its commitment to free and
fair voting. While two individuals had been invited to the Ministry of
National Security, Ictimai said, the Ministry of National Security had
given assurances that nobody had been questioned, either officially or
unofficially, on voting in the competition itself.

The EBU’s Director General, Jean Réveillon, said he took note
of the statements. However, he stressed that the freedom to vote for
any song except the one of the country where you are watching is one
of the cornerstones of the contest. `Any breach of privacy regarding
voting, or interrogation of individuals, is totally unacceptable,’ he
added.

The EBU committee responsible for running the Song Contest will
examine the matter at a meeting in Oslo on 11 September 2009.

Earlier in the Azeri press released information that the Ministry of
National Security of Azerbaijan called for questioning 43 people who
voted in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 for the Armenian singers
Inga and Anush Arshakyan. Azerbaijani officials have denied this fact.