EBU investigates facts of interrogation of Azerbaijanis voted for Armenia in Eurovision

PanARMENIAN.Net - Last week the Azeri press disseminated information that the Ministry of National Security of Azerbaijan interrogated 43 citizens voted in favor of the Armenian singers Inga and Anush Arshakyan at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009. In this regard, the European Broadcasting Union EBU started their own investigation of these cases.



As Diana Mnatsakanyan , adviser to Executive Director of Armenia's Public TV told a PanARMEINIAN.Net reporter, in order to know the phone numbers of voters, there must be an official document issued with the permission of EMU and the Digame company, responsible for counting the votes. Permission to declassify the numbers of citizens participated in voting may be given in case of criminal proceedings against these people.



"Action of the Azerbaijani Government are ridiculous. 1065 mobile text messages from Armenia were sent in favor of Azeri singer's song and no one went as far as to call KGB," Diana Mnatsakanyan said.



Diana Mantsakanyan yesterday sent a letter to European Broadcasting Union with a request to inform whether the Azeri side has provided any official document to request declassification of phone numbers of Azerbaijani citizens, voted in favor of Armenia.



In her letter, Diana Mnatsakanian also asked the EMU representatives, to say whether this situation means that Armenia will never get votes from Azerbaijan due to intervention of Azerbaijani state agencies in the song contest and whether the voting has turned to be unfair?



The adviser to the executive Director of the Armenia's Public TV received a reply from European Broadcasting Union, saying that the executive head of the Eurovision contest Svantes Stokcelius is engaged in investigating the incident, and they cannot comment until its completion.