REPRESENTING AZERBAIJAN AS A TOLERANT COUNTRY Ì FACT DISTORTING REALITY AND PAST HISTORY
29-05-2014 13:24:30 | Armenia | Articles and Analyses
On May 17, 2014, an interview with the Israeli expert in international
relations Arye Gut was published on the website of the Azerbaijani
newspaper Baku Post, where he claims that Azerbaijan “is the most
tolerant country in the world and a true model of intercivilizational
and interreligious dialogue”[1].
This statement by the Israeli expert does not correspond to reality
and the policy pursued by the Azerbaijani authorities not only
in relation to some of its neighboring countries, but also to its
own citizens. This is evidenced by a recent interview with the US
Ambassador in Baku Richard Morningstar given to the Radio Azadlig, who
expressed his dissatisfaction with the policy of the state authorities
for the “violation of human rights, suppression of democratic freedoms,
harassment of civil society in Azerbaijan”[2]. The US Ambassador
criticized the Azerbaijani leadership for litigations, appellate
proceedings and attacks on journalists, inspections and oppression of
people working in NGOs. Mr. Morningstar urged not to “pull the plug”
on civil society, since such a policy increases the likelihood of
recurrence of Maidan, if not right now, then in five or ten years [3].
The numerous reports of authoritative international organizations is
another example refuting the statements about tolerance in Azerbaijan.
According to the international human rights organization Freedom
House, Azerbaijan is a not free country, where people are being
persecuted for participating in anti-government rallies [4], and
journalists are attacked with impunity and imprisoned on trumped-up
charges of drug trafficking, ethnic hatred, treason and hooliganism
[5]. Another authoritative organization Reporters Without Borders
claims that Azerbaijan is the Land of Repression that takes the
160th place out of the 180 countries in the Press Freedom Index [6],
and President Ilham Aliyev is a “predator” of the press freedom,
who eliminated almost all pluralism in the country. “No fewer than
ten journalists, like many bloggers are in prison, and on May 15 a
journalist and human rights activist Parvez Hashimli was sentenced to
eight years’ imprisonment on trumped-up charges of “receiving” and
“illegal sale of arms”[7]. “The statement of the organization also
reports on the correspondent of the independent Azerbaijani newspaper
Zerkalo Rauf Mirkadirov who on April 18, 2014, was arrested on charges
of spying for Armenia, and deported to Azerbaijan from Turkey, where
he has settled down in the last three years [8]. After a search was
conducted by an investigation team on the case of Mirkadirov in the
house of his parents, the journalist’s father Habibulla Mirkadirov,
who was 84 years old, unable to withstand the stress in connection
with the arrest of his son and the search degrading his dignity,
suddenly died [9].
In relation to the case of Mirkadirov, human rights activist Leyla
Yunus and her husband Arif Yunus were detained on April 28 at the
Heydar Aliyev Airport in Baku before boarding the plane right near
the ramp, despite the fact that the Yunus spouses were being escorted
to the airport by the Ambassadors of France and the United States [10].
The detention was carried out during the departure of the Yunus
couple abroad for attendance to an EU event in Brussels [11]. As
a result of the arrest Arif Yunus, whose mother was Armenian, was
brought to a pre-heart-attack condition, and many hours of search of
the Yunus family’s apartment according to the public video statement
of Leyla Yunus posted on YouTube was accompanied by an unprecedented
in the civilized societies in its ferocity watch kept by the police
by the toilet while the lady was in the bathroom, and with promises
in response to her complaints to the Chief of Baku’s Yasamal district
Police Department to “kill Armenian women and drink their blood”[12].
The intolerance of the Azerbaijani state is proved not only in the
given episode, but also in the policy of xenophobia carried out against
the Armenians. The instigation of anti-Armenian sentiments among the
Azerbaijani people recently takes more open misanthropic forms. To
achieve its goals, the Azerbaijani leadership pursues a policy of
massive bribery of foreign experts by financing anti-Armenian actions
and fomenting armenophobic sentiments with public declarations of
the world Armenians as enemies of Azerbaijan and by the praise of
the Azerbaijani state [13].
A symptomatic example of intolerance and Armenophobia is the phenomenon
of heroization of Ramil Safarov, who on ethnic grounds at night with
cruelty beheaded his sleeping Armenian course mate with an ax during
the NATO “Partnership for Peace” program in Budapest on February 19,
2004, and was awarded for this brutal murder by President Aliyev,
which caused outrage and condemnation of the leaders of a number of
states and international organizations. Particularly, the fact of
heroization of the Azerbaijani ax- executioner was denounced by the
US President Barack Obama [14], and the European Parliament adopted a
special resolution condemning the decision of the Hungarian authorities
to transfer Safarov to Azerbaijan, as well as the pardon and praising
of the killer in his homeland [15].
Other examples of intolerance of the Azerbaijani society are facts of
burning by the crowds of the Azerbaijani writer Akram Aylisli’s book
“Stone Dreams”, and mass demonstrations with the calls to cut the ears
of their compatriot for telling the truth about the Armenian children
and women doused with gasoline on the streets of Baku in 1990 and set
on fire to the applause of the rioters, which were throwing feeble
old men and women from the upper floors of the high-rise buildings
of Baku, in order to seize their apartments and property [16].
Also hardly may the manipulative attempts â~@~R to involve the
Jewish Diaspora in instigating anti-Armenian sentiments by presenting
graves of the slaughtered in 1918 Armenians with the burial of the
Jews massacred by the Armenians – be considered as a manifestation
of tolerance [17]. While residents of Guba in accordance with the
Turkish sources became victims of military expedition in 1918 of
the Caucasian Islamic Army of Nuri Pasha with the engagement of the
Turkish troops and the Caucasian Tatars’ (nowadays Azerbaijanis) gangs,
which resulted in the seizure of Guba, then primarily populated by
non-Turkic peoples of different faiths, and the subsequent massacre
of thousands of the Armenians in Baku [18].
It should also be noted that as a result of intolerant and armenophobic
policy of the Azerbaijani authorities, numbering about 300 thousand
by 1990 the Armenian community of Baku, which cohabited peacefully
with all the national minorities of the city and played a prominent
role in the economic and cultural life of Azerbaijan, due to the
massacres ceased its existence.
Summing up, it should be emphasized that against the background of
the growing anti-democratic and repressive policy of the Azerbaijani
authorities against the political opposition and civil society of the
country, xenophobia in its extremely misanthropic manifestations –
the publications by foreign experts praising the tolerance of the
Azerbaijani authorities not only further reduce the level of democracy
in the country, but also undermine efforts of the international
community to promote peace and stability in the region.
[1] “Ð~PÑ~@Ñ~Lе ДÑ~CÑ~B: Ð~PзеÑ~@байджан
Ñ~OвДÑ~OеÑ~BÑ~AÑ~O Ñ~Aамой Ñ~BоДеÑ~@анÑ~Bной
Ñ~AÑ~BÑ~@аной миÑ~@а, где никогда не
бÑ~KДо анÑ~BиÑ~AемиÑ~Bизма”. 17 маÑ~O,
2014: [2]
“РиÑ~GаÑ~@д Ð~оÑ~@нингÑ~AÑ~BаÑ~@: “Ð~ZÑ~Bо бÑ~CдеÑ~B
поддеÑ~@живаÑ~BÑ~L незавиÑ~AимоÑ~AÑ~BÑ~L
Ð~PзеÑ~@байджана? Ð~ZÑ~Bо, помимо
СШÐ~P и Ð~UвÑ~@опÑ~K?”” 19 маÑ~O, 2014:
[3] Ibid.
[4] “Azerbaijan Sends Pro-Democracy Activists to Prison”. May 4, 2014:
[5] “Freedom in the world 2013: Azerbaijan”:
[6]”2014 World Press Freedom Index”:
[7]”Do you
know who Atlético Madrid’s real sponsor is?” May 22, 2014:
,46334.html
[8]”Well-known journalist arrested on
spying charge after deportation”. April 23, 2014:
,46181.html
[9]”СконÑ~GаДÑ~AÑ~O оÑ~BеÑ~F РаÑ~CÑ~Dа
Ð~иÑ~@кадÑ~KÑ~@ова”. 24 маÑ~O, 2014:
[10]
Ð-. РаÑ~AÑ~CДзаде: “Ð~_оÑ~AоД ФÑ~@анÑ~Fии
в Ð~PзеÑ~@байджане: “Ð~[ейДа
ЮнÑ~CÑ~A обÑ~@аÑ~BиДаÑ~AÑ~L к нам””. 30
aпÑ~@еДÑ~O, 2014: [11]
Ð . Ð Ñ~CÑ~AÑ~Bамов: “Ð~_Ñ~@авозаÑ~IиÑ~Bник
обÑ~JÑ~OвДена Ñ~AвидеÑ~BеДем по деДÑ~C
РаÑ~CÑ~Dа Ð~иÑ~@кадÑ~KÑ~@ова”. 30 апÑ~@еДÑ~O, 2014:
[12] “Leyla Yunusa qarÅ~_i polisin tE~Yzyiqi”. Obyektiv.tv, 28
апÑ~@еДÑ~O, 2014:
[13] “First, our main enemies are Armenians of the world…”.Ilham
Aliev, President of Azerbaijan, Closing Speech by Ilham Aliyev
at the Conference on the Results of the Third Year Into The “State
Program On The Socioeconomic Development Of Districts For 2009-2013”,
February 28, 2012: [14] “President
Obama is deeply concerned by today’s announcement that the President
of Azerbaijan has pardoned RamilSafarov following his return from
Hungary”.The White House. Office of the Press Secretary.
Statement by NSC Spokesman Tommy Vietor on
Azerbaijan’s [15]Decision to Pardon Ramil Safarov, August 31, 2012:
[16] European Parliament resolution on Azerbaijan: the
case of Ramil Safarov (2012/2785(RSP)). September 11, 2012:
[17] Ð . Ð Ñ~CÑ~AÑ~Bамов. “ХаÑ~Dиз Даджиев
пÑ~@иказаД оÑ~BÑ~@езаÑ~BÑ~L Ñ~Cхо
Ð~PкÑ~@амÑ~C Ð~PйДиÑ~AДи”. 11 Ñ~DевÑ~@аДÑ~O, 2013:
[18]”Ð~PÑ~@мÑ~OнÑ~Aкие поДиÑ~BоДоги пÑ~@оÑ~Bив
поДиÑ~Bики кÑ~AеноÑ~Dобии Ð~XДÑ~Lхама
Ð~PДиева: кÑ~Bо же захоÑ~@онен
в ДÑ~Cбе?”. 2 Ñ~DевÑ~@аДÑ~O, 2014:
Hayk Torosyan, Research Fellow, Institute for National Strategic
Studies, Ministry of Defense, Republic of Armenia, PhD in Political
Science, Master of Global Journalism, MAGJ â~@~R Orebro University,
Sweden
– Articles and Analyses News from Armenia and Diaspora – Noyan Tapan –
See more at:
http://bakupost.az/siyaset/20140517121746061.html
http://www.radioazadlyg.org/content/article/25389663.html
http://freedomhouse.org/article/azerbaijan-sends-pro-democracy-activists-prison#.U4L8ovmSypA
http://freedomhouse.org/report/freedom-world/2013/azerbaijan#.U4McI_mSypB
http://rsf.org/index2014/en-index2014.php
http://en.rsf.org/azerbaidjan-do-you-know-who-atletico-madrid-s-22-05-2014
http://en.rsf.org/azerbaidjan-well-known-journalist-arrested-on-23-04-2014
http://www.zerkalo.az/2014/skonchalsya-otets-raufa-mirkadyirova/
http://haqqin.az/oldage/21453
http://www.zerkalo.az/2014/genprokuratura-nezakonno-ogranichila-svobodu-peredvizheniya-leylyi-yunus/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHEPYyB96Ks
http://en.president.az/articles/4423
http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2012/08/31/statement-nsc-spokesman-tommy-vietor-azerbaijan-s-decision-pardon-ramil-
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=MOTION&reference=B7-2012-0444&language=EN
http://www.zerkalo.az/2013/hafiz-gadzhiev-prikazal-otrezat-uho-akramu-aylisli/
http://www.regnum.ru/news/1589098.html#ixzz32kXCbqQh
http://www.nt.am/en/news/195153/#sthash.Tk5fj3QF.dpuf