Patrice Lalond: European Parliament oppresses Azerbaijan too much

Paris. 18 January. REPORT.AZ/ "I think that the European Parliament (EP) oppresses Azerbaijan too much," member of the European Parliament Patricia Lalonde said. Western European Bureau of Report News Agency informs that she was commenting on the anti-Azerbaijani discussions in the structure that she leads. 

"I have visited Azerbaijan several times within the mission on women's rights. All the time, I witnessed Azerbaijan's efforts in the field of women's rights. We are wrong by being so tough to the countries which defend some, though not all, values of the European Union, women's rights, fight against radical Islamism, and defend minorities. When you visit Baku, you can see synagogues and churches, besides mosques. Certainly, there are some problems related to media in Azerbaijan. However, sometimes restrictions on freedom of the press in various countries in order to fight radical Islamism are understandable. Naturally, this cause negativism, since it contradicts our values. We are far from this problem, in any way it has been as such until today. I do not speak about arrests, even if we try to silence any journalist, it will be accepted negatively," Lalonde said.