AMP statement on the European Parliament resolution

The Azerbaijan National Platform of the Eastern Partnership Civil Society Forum has adopted a statement on the European Parliament's Resolution of March 10, 2022 "On the destruction of historical and cultural monuments belonging to Armenians."

İt is said in the statement:

As members of the Azerbaijan National Platform, we protest against the European Parliament's Resolution "Destruction of Armenian Cultural Heritage" adopted on March 10, 2022. We declare that as a result of the aggressive policy pursued by Armenia to date, the ancient cultural heritage of our people has been completely destroyed. Before adopting this resolution, the European Parliament had to consider that these territories have been occupied by Armenian forces since 1993 for nearly 30 years. Four UNSC resolutions (822, 853, 874 and 884) were adopted to demand an immediate withdrawal of the invader forces from all occupied territories of Azerbaijan. During the occupation of our lands, the Azerbaijani state was deprived of the opportunity to explore its historical and cultural heritage, carry out archeological excavations and study cultural heritage. 
During the years of occupation, the Armenians destroyed and looted the cultural heritage, historical, cultural and religious monuments, archeological sites, libraries, museums and their exhibits, rare manuscripts, cemeteries that belonged to indigenousAzerbaijani inhabitants of Karabakh. 98% of mosques were destroyed and the remaining sites were turned into barns and pigsty. The destruction of these mosques is an insult not only to Azerbaijan, but to the Islamic world in general. 
On the other hand, it worth highlighting that, unlike neighboring Armenia, Azerbaijan is home to many ethnic groups. Azerbaijan as a state and its people cherish and protect national, historical, cultural heritage and rights of all the ethnicities living in the country. To date, no similar confrontations or tensionswere registered with any other ethnic group in Azerbaijan. In addition, along with other places of worship, the Armenian Churches were restored in Baku and Ganja and has been preserved to this day.
It is truly saddening to see that the European Union and the European Parliament have not yet adopted any resolution on the Azerbaijani cultural heritage destroyed in the formerly occupied territories of Karabakh. This casts a shadow on the fairness of the European Parliament in its approach to the issue asthe adoption of the resolution undermines confidence in European values. As Azerbaijan National Platform, we bring to the attention of the European Parliament and its member states that for the last three decades Armenian military forces and civilians have destroyed 13 world-famous (6 architectural and 7 archeological) monuments, 292 national (119 architectural and 173 archeological) and 330 locally important sites (270 architectural, 22 archeological sites, 23 gardens, park, monumental and memorial monuments, 15 unique examples of decorative art). In addition to these massive and indiscriminative barbarism, the occupying forces have completely destroyed 63 of the 67 mosques (13 in Shusha, 5 in Agdam, 16 in Fizuli, 12 in Zangilan, 5 in Jabrayil, 8 in Gubadli, 8 in Lachin) and seriously damaged 4 mosques.
Numerous photos and videos, witness statements, etc. have been submitted to a number of international organizations confirming the facts of the destruction and vandalism.
Due to the occupation of Azerbaijani territories for about 30 years, local historians, research institutes and academic circles have not been able to conduct any research in these areas. If Armenia has any claims regarding the destruction of cultural heritage, steps must be taken to restore relations by signing a peace agreement. After that, a working group consisting of both sides can be established to investigate the cultural heritage damaged during the occupation.
It should also be noted that UNESCO and other specialized international organizations have requested to organize visits to these areas to assess the state of cultural heritage.
Azerbaijan National Platform of Azerbaijan is deeply concerned of and condemns the said Resolution of the European Parliament and urge MPs to demonstrate genuine interest and due professionalism in assessing such sensitive issues and to investigate the issue more deeply. At the same time, we propose that the European Parliament mobilize a fact-finding mission to eye-witness and assess on ground the condition of historical and cultural monuments in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan. This will definitely help all parties concerned to see the truth in the state of the cultural heritage that has been subject to massive destruction since early 1990s. We invite a delegation from the entire spectrum of political parties of the European Parliament to organize a fact-finding mission in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan.


Share