Nariman Narimanov, Georgian Azerbaijanis and the Orthodox Church

He noted that the ethnic origin of Narimanov in this case has nothing to do with it. Narimanov was a Bolshevik, one of the leaders of communist Azerbaijan in the early 1920s. During the period of the national liberation movement, the monuments of the Georgian Bolsheviks were demolished one after another, like the monuments of traitors. Why is it necessary to make an exception for Narimanov, only because he is Azerbaijani by birth?

 It is right. Soviet symbols are officially banned in Georgia, and the monument to the prominent Bolshevik leader can be considered as such. According to this logic, preserving the bust of Narimanov is against the law. The perpetuation of the memory of the Bolsheviks is difficult to defend from moral considerations.

However, as always, the problem is in context and in detail. The bishop presented the mayor of Marneuli Zaur Dargalli, on the initiative of which the bust was restored, an ultimatum. He gave him a “reasonable time” for the demolition of the monument - however, without specifying how much this period is and what he, Father George, is going to do if his demand is not met.

The priest has the right to respond to any social events. However, he cannot speak with the democratically elected mayor of the city in the language of ultimatums. Perhaps this is just empty rhetoric, but it also expresses a tendency. Many representatives of the church say that secular authorities are obliged to fulfill their requirements. The power itself in such cases is squeezing and keeping silent.

In addition, it is doubtful how consistent the Georgian church is in the struggle against the Soviet legacy. There is a Bolshevik leader, and the attitude of the church towards him is very ambiguous. This is Joseph Stalin. I do not know what Vladyka George Djamdeliani thinks of Stalin, but Patriarch Elijah the Second is known for his very favorable remarks about him. After 2012, new busts of Stalin began to appear in various regions of Georgia, but we did not hear any protests from church leaders.

All this makes us think that when it comes specifically to the bust of Narimanov in Marneuli, his Bolshevik biography is far from the most important thing. The priest also said, “Narimanov contributed to the violation of our territorial integrity” - although it is not entirely clear what he had in mind. The most extreme nationalists (or, according to many, the Nazis), openly solidified with the aggressive statements of Bishop George, as one of the leaders of the "Georgian March" Sandro Bregadze or Nikoloz Mzhavanadze, who was close to him in his views. I will not engage in debates about whether these people should be considered professional provocateurs, but when they express support for something, this is a very bad sign.

Supporters of the preservation of the monument emphasize that for them, Narimanov is, first, not a politician, but a significant Azerbaijani writer, enlightener and public figure. He died under not very clear circumstances in 1925 and, although, no doubt, managed to sin a lot, his name is not connected with the main atrocities of the Bolshevik system. In addition, he is a native of the Marneuli municipality. For many locals, he is an iconic figure, whom they, the Azerbaijani natives of Kvemo Kartli or, as they themselves say, Borchalins, can be proud of. From their point of view, the requirement to demolish the monument is a sign of disrespect for the Azerbaijani community of Kvemo Kartli as a whole.

As usual, the silence of the authorities is part of the problem. Mayor Dargally does not respond to journalists and does not express his point of view. We did not hear any comments from representatives of the ruling party. The strategy is clear: they will talk about and forget about the monument. During the elections, the support of both church patriots and Azerbaijanis is needed. It is better to hide temporarily head in the sand.

However, there is a problem. It is not good to erect (or restore) monuments to Bolshevik leaders, even if they were both talented writers. On the other hand, Azerbaijani Georgians should feel that the Georgian state and society not only respects their rights as individual citizens, but also recognize them as bearers of Azerbaijani culture. How to achieve this? This is a topic for not existing conversation.

The opinions expressed in the sections “Position” and “Blogs” convey the views of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the position of the editorial board.