Azeris protest at Russian singers’ concert on Karabakh’s independence day
ANS TV, Baku
7 Sep 04
[Presenter Natavan Babayeva] The Azerbaijani Ministry of Culture has
sent a letter of protest to the Russian Ministry of Culture and Mass
Communications with regard to some Russian singers’ participation in
celebrations of Nagornyy Karabakh’s independence day.
[Correspondent, over archive footage of Russian singers] Russian
singers Nadezhda Babkina, Soso Pavliashvili, Katya Lel, Valentina
Legkostupova, Aleksandr Peskov, Irina Otiyeva and the Chay Vdvoyem
band performed their last concert in Azerbaijan some time ago. To
be more precise, this concert was staged in Stepanakert in Nagornyy
Karabakh. But why was it the last concert? The leader of Nagornyy
Karabakh’s Azerbaijani community, Nizami Bahmanov, believes that
nobody invited them to Nagornyy Karabakh.
[Nizami Bahmanov, in his office] Generally speaking, this move has
offended the Azerbaijani people. They received money and sang, but
achieved nothing. If you remember, when a Georgian chess player took
part in a chess tournament there, our chess federation appealed against
this and they [presumably, the Georgian chess federation] offered
official apologies. Let us wait and see. Polad muallim [Azerbaijani
Minister of Culture Polad Bulbuloglu] will probably receive a written
reply from the Russian Ministry of Culture and Mass Communications.
[Passage omitted: MPs say this move damages Russian-Azerbaijani
cultural relations]
[Correspondent] Polad Bulbuloglu, who is accompanying Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev in his French visit, has appealed to the heads
of the public organizations and agencies, as well as legal entities
and individuals, involved in organizing concerts in Azerbaijan. The
appeal strongly condemns the Russian singers’ recent concert in
Nagornyy Karabakh, which is Azerbaijan’s integral part, and insists
that relevant bodies should never invite the aforesaid singers to
our country again.
[Polad Bulbuloglu, on the telephone] Look, these people do not
respect us. They eat our bread here and get money, we offer our
hospitality to them, but on the other hand, they go there via Armenia
and give concerts.
[Correspondent] As a native of Sushi [town in Karabakh], the minister
believes that the Russian singers’ visit to Stepanakert via Armenia
without the authorization of Azerbaijan’s state, public or private
bodies to hold a concert in Nagornyy Karabakh pointed to complete
disrespect for the Azerbaijani people.
[Polad Bulbuloglu] Some of them say that they did not know why they
were going there. Are they kids, do they go to a kindergarten? Any
person living in this world knows that there are big unresolved
problems around Nagornyy Karabakh. If a person describes himself
as a friend of the Azerbaijani people, he should not do things like
this. But if he disrespects us, what can we do in this situation? We
have to show our disrespect too.
[Correspondent] The Azerbaijani Ministry of Culture has sent an
official letter of protest to Russian Minister of Culture and Mass
Communications Aleksandr Sokolov over the issue. The Azerbaijani
Foreign Ministry has said that many of the aforesaid Russian
singers have repeatedly visited Azerbaijan and they are well aware
that Azerbaijan and Armenia are at war. They understood quite well
where they were going and why. That is why their visit to Nagornyy
Karabakh without taking Azerbaijan’s sovereignty into account should
be described as disrespect, end quote.
The organizers of Soso Pavliashvili’s planned concert in Baku have
already terminated the reached agreement. But I also regret that the
aforesaid Russian singers will never see Baku again. Only because
they will never see these witnesses of the Karabakh Armenians’
attitude to pieces of art and culture.
[Video showed traces of bullets on sculptures of Azerbaijani composer
Uzeir Hacibayov, singer Bulbul and poetess Natavan brought from Susa
to Baku].
Leyla Hasanova, Sehrac Azadoglu for ANS.