The proclamation of the Society of Western Azerbaijan is a belated but necessary step

The community of Western Azerbaijan, created on the basis of the Azerbaijan Refugee Society, which has been operating since 1989, has begun active work in recent days. The address of the community to the government of Armenia and international organizations made on January 12 allows talking about this. Naturally, there is no doubt that the community enjoys the support of the Azerbaijani government. On December 24, at the meeting of President Ilham Aliyev with members of the community, this support was evident. By the way, recently the expressions "Western Azerbaijan" and "Western Azerbaijanis" are often heard in the lexicon of the president and government officials. For example, this issue was raised by President Ilham Aliyev in his last interview with local TV channels. The President said that “Western Azerbaijanis must return to the lands of their ancestors, this is their right, all international conventions recognize this right. And we, as the state of Azerbaijan, must do everything possible to ensure this right. And again, at a meeting with representatives of the community, I said that we want to do this peacefully, and I am sure we will achieve this. Because today in our space, in the Eurasian space as a whole, there are no monostates, and it would be good for Armenia to erase the stigma of a monostate from itself. The best and most fair way for this is the return of Western Azerbaijanis to their native lands.” The appearance of such a policy on the agenda right now arouses considerable interest and questions.

Yasemen Garagoyunlu, a research scientist from Western Azerbaijan, comments on all these issues in an interview with ASTNA.

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Question: As you know, the Azerbaijan Refugee Society, established in 1989, was renamed the Community of Western Azerbaijan in August last year. At the same time, the community was even provided with an administrative building by the state. From this we can conclude that the issue of Western Azerbaijan and Western Azerbaijanis has become a policy pursued at the state level. Were they late in starting this policy? Should this policy be carried out in this form?

Answer: The creation of the Community of Western Azerbaijan on the basis of the Azerbaijan Refugee Society established in 1989 is fundamentally wrong. The activity of the Azerbaijan Refugee Society is unsatisfactory. Because the archive of Western Azerbaijanis has disappeared and there is no information about its whereabouts. The responsibility for collecting and burning the passports of Turkish citizens of Armenia who fled and were deported to Azerbaijan in 1988 is also included in the activities of the refugee society. So far, the refugee society has not submitted to the state and society a report on its field of activity, on the work done. The activity of the Refugee Society is non-transparent and doubtful.

The community of Western Azerbaijan was to be organized in 1988 with the participation of at least 100,000 of the 735,000 refugees of Western Azerbaijan, and the chairman of the community was to be elected by voting on the basis of the will of Western Azerbaijanis.

The real Community of Western Azerbaijan was created by the Presidential Administration, and its chairman was appointed by the Presidential Administration. As a result of these mistakes in the organization of the community, a large number of people working and fighting for Western Azerbaijan did not take part in the work and organization of the community. As a result, this caused discontent among many and caused a split.

But, despite all this, the creation of the Community of Western Azerbaijan is a positive thing. Although this is a very belated step. Western Azerbaijanis must become a serious organization in these 30 years. By now, the legal and political foundations for returning to Western Azerbaijan should have been prepared. Unfortunately, as a result of the wrong policy of the government, nothing of the kind happened, and 80% of the Azerbaijanis expelled from Armenia in 1988, who are citizens of Armenia, went to another world. I think that more successful results could have been achieved if the issue of returning to Armenia had been raised at a time when most of the population claiming legally and politically for Western Azerbaijan was still alive. Unfortunately, it did not happen.

The fact that the government raised the issue of returning to Western Azerbaijan after the 2nd Karabakh war is commendable and this policy should be continued and crowned with success.

Question: When looking at the composition of the community, it is clear that the main posts of the community are represented by people who are or have been in power, deputies, former ministers. Is there discrimination in this matter? Who constantly keeps the problems of Western Azerbaijanis on the agenda, are these represented in this community?

Answer: All well-known activists of Western Azerbaijanis are not represented in the Community of Western Azerbaijan. Pro-government people are simply represented here, which already now leads to discrimination in the activities of the community. Why is there no Yasemen Garagoyunlu, Gazanfar Ahmedov, Kochari Nagiyev, Firudun Jalilov, Tapdyg Farhadoglu, Pasha Hasanli, Ali Insanov, Etibar Mammadov, Ali Mustafa, Qalandar Mukhtarli, Ali Omarov, Avaz Zeynalli, Agil Samedbeyli, Shahveled Chobanoglu who are imprisoned in the Community of Western Azerbaijan , Idayat Orudjova. I believe that the community should not consist only of people close to the authorities and the ruling EAP. The community was supposed to unite all activists of Western Azerbaijanis, regardless of political views. The community should not interfere in the internal political processes in Azerbaijan, the only goal of the community should be to ensure and organize the return of Azerbaijanis who are citizens of Armenia to Armenia. Of course, the community should carry out the process of returning to Armenia in accordance with the will of the Azerbaijani state and the government's policy on Western Azerbaijan, but at the same time, it should play an active role in determining the government's policy towards Armenia.

Question: The President spoke several times about the return of Western Azerbaijanis to their homeland. Naturally, this is their right. But won't it be hard to prove it to the world? Because as a result of the policy pursued so far, these persons have been citizens of Azerbaijan for many years.

Answer: The fact that the president puts on the agenda the issue of returning to Western Azerbaijan can only be welcomed. The legal, historical and political base and the right to substantiate this return are in Azerbaijan. These lands are the historical lands of Azerbaijan. Armenians were resettled to these lands by Tsarist Russia and Soviet Russia. Documents about this resettlement are in the archives. Today, 1.5 million Armenians who settled in Western Azerbaijan are not natives, but are Armenians who have been resettled to these lands over the past 200 years. And the local Azerbaijanis, expelled, exiled and forced to migrate from their lands, from Western Azerbaijan in 1905-1907, 1914-1920, 1948-53, 1988. The Armenian state was created not on Armenian soil, but on Azerbaijani soil, and local Azerbaijanis were subjected to resettlement and genocide. If the Azerbaijani state, having made public the archive of the last 200 years, proves to the whole world that these lands are Azerbaijani land, achieves the transformation of the problem of Western Azerbaijan into an international problem, then a legal basis and procedure for returning to Western Azerbaijan will arise, and this problem will find its solution. The state, government, the Community of Western Azerbaijan, the Azerbaijani diaspora and media structures should move to coordinated activities and bring the issue of the return of Western Azerbaijanis to Armenia, to their homeland, for discussion at the UN.

Question: The community of Western Azerbaijan appealed to the government of Armenia and international organizations with a request to create conditions for returning to their homeland. Is such a policy realistic? Or does this policy pursue other goals?

Answer: It is very good that the Community of Western Azerbaijan turned to international organizations with a request to provide support in creating conditions for the return of Azerbaijanis to their homeland. Such steps and actions should be strengthened. I believe that this policy will have a positive result. We must put the return to Western Azerbaijan on the agenda of world politics.

Question: What steps should be taken to return Western Azerbaijanis to their homeland?

Answer: Azerbaijan faces 3 tasks: 1. Restoration of Azerbaijan's sovereignty over the entire territory of Karabakh. The withdrawal of Russian peacekeepers from Karabakh. Determination of citizens of Azerbaijan of Armenian origin and granting them Azerbaijani citizenship. 2. Return of Azerbaijanis who are citizens of Armenia to Armenia. 3. Ensuring the security of Azerbaijani citizens of Armenia returned to their historical lands, to Armenia.

Each of these tasks requires a certain conceptual political and legal approach and procedures. For example, how will the security of the Azerbaijani Turks, who will be returned to Armenia, be protected? This is a very serious matter. You can't rely on the Armenians in any way. They violate and do not comply with the agreements of the Batumi Conference, signed 100 years ago, the agreement of November 10, signed 100 years later. That is why, in order to ensure the safety of Armenian citizens of Turkic origin returning to their lands, a unit of the Turkish army should be deployed in Armenia. The Turkish army and its military base located in Armenia must ensure the security of Azerbaijanis who are citizens of Armenia. As you know, the 102nd military base of Russia is located in Armenia. What has happened over the past 200 years has shown that neither the army of Tsarist Russia, nor the army of Soviet Russia, as well as the current Russian Federation, protected the Turks in Armenia. Together with the Armenians, the Russians participated in the genocide of the Turks. The Khojaly genocide was also carried out jointly with the Armenians by the Russian 366th Motorized Rifle Regiment. That is why, while the Russian 102nd military base is in Armenia, there can be no question of protecting the security of Western Azerbaijanis. Either the Russian units of the 102nd base should be withdrawn from Armenia, or the Turkish army should also enter Armenia and protect the rights and security of Azerbaijanis who are citizens of Armenia.