V Congress of World Azerbaijanis: Unity or PR?

Baku/21.04.22/Turan: The V Congress of World Azerbaijanis will be held in Shusha on 22 and 23 April. Fuad Muradov, head of the State Committee for Diaspora Affairs, says that about 400 representatives of the Azerbaijani diaspora from 65 countries will attend the event.  The first such congress was held in Baku in 2001.

After the official opening ceremony, there will be a report on the activities of the State Committee for Diaspora Affairs, discussions on "Challenges facing the Azerbaijani diaspora in the post-war period", "The contribution of the Azerbaijani diaspora to the restoration and reconstruction of Karabakh".

Describing the event as a "Victory Congress", Muradov pointed out that holding the event in Shusha, as a symbol of historic victory, is a significant historical event of great political significance, an unforgettable holiday.

However, the programme does not say whether Azerbaijanis living in the world will discuss problems of the diaspora during the congress.

However, such problems arise regularly. Azerbaijani activists are arrested in Iran, and during the coronavirus and the Russian-Ukrainian war Azerbaijani citizens were kept at the Russian-Azerbaijani border for days and weeks and not allowed into their country.

Will these issues be discussed at tomorrow's congress? Does the Azerbaijani government need such congresses for propaganda, or are the problems of Azerbaijanis in the world really being addressed?

Javid Osmanov, an MP and member of the board of the Yeni Azerbaijan Party, told Turan that national leader Heydar Aliyev always met with Azerbaijanis living in these countries during his visits to independent Azerbaijan. "This was usually part of his itinerary. When meeting Azerbaijanis living far away from his homeland, the great leader took interest in their problems and gave them instructions and recommendations to bring the truth about Azerbaijan to the world.

He said the order of Heydar Aliyev of May 23, 2001 'On holding the First Congress of World Azerbaijanis' was a very important contribution to the organization of world Azerbaijanis. "At the first congress 103 members of the Coordination Council of World Azerbaijanis were created, 23 members were elected to the Council, 5 important documents were adopted. All this proves that world Azerbaijanis organization and diaspora building is linked to the name of nationwide leader Heydar Aliyev.

According to the deputy, services of President Ilham Aliyev, who successfully continues Heydar Aliyev's political course in all spheres, are undeniable. "According to the relevant orders of the President, the II Congress of World Azerbaijanis was held on 16 March 2006, the III Congress on 5-6 July 2011 and the IV Congress on 3-4 June 2016. Speaking at each of the congresses, President Ilham Aliyev gave important instructions and recommendations for the continuous organisation of the world Azerbaijanis and the establishment of diaspora activities based on modern requirements.

Osmanov stressed that many important decisions and appeals reflecting the realities of Azerbaijan were made at the world Azerbaijani congresses. "As a result of the development and implementation of the new Strategic Roadmap in 2018, many achievements have been made in this area. According to the roadmap, the application and development of information and communication technologies in diaspora activities is one of the main objectives. Over the past 4 years, 14 Coordination Councils covering 31 countries and 18 Houses of Azerbaijan in 12 countries have been established as a result of targeted activities.

He said First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva and the Heydar Aliyev Foundation led by her have also made important contributions to organizing Azerbaijanis living in the world and expanding diaspora activities. "On the initiative of First Vice-President Mehriban Aliyeva, Azerbaijani schools have been established for minors abroad, and over 250 Azerbaijani children now study in their native language in these schools," he said.

According to him, the organization of Azerbaijanis all over the world and the permanent control of the state over the activities of the diaspora, the implementation of necessary work in this direction gave successful results during the Great Patriotic War. "V World Azerbaijanis Congress will also make its future contribution to coordination of activity of our compatriots living abroad, existing organizations, realization of the idea of national solidarity and unity".

U.S.-based political observer Arastun Orujlu believes that all these measures serve to promote the government itself.

He said that if the Azerbaijani government undertakes any activities with the Azerbaijanis of the world, it should first adjust the government's policy towards all Azerbaijanis. "If human rights, employment, education, health and life are not ensured in Azerbaijan, what is the purpose of such measures?" In other words, in order to engage the Azerbaijanis of the world, to make statements about the diaspora, human rights and freedoms within the country must first be ensured.

The political scientist noted that without doing so, the government cannot speak of protecting the rights, culture and language of Azerbaijanis around the world.-0-