The speech made by International Relief Society (IRS) and the interview given by adviser to the Defense Minister of Armenia Hayk Kotanjyan has started to become major topics for discussion in the regions of Artsakh. Recently, activists of the Artsakh movement, participants of the war, handicapped people and women who had served in the defense army took part in the discussions organized in the city of Hadrut in Karabagh.
The people gathered came to one conclusion: the speech and H. Kotanjyan’s plan are not acceptable for the people of Karabagh. As stated during the discussion, in 1988, when the people of Karabagh raised the issue of liberating Karabagh from Azerbaijan which was leading a white genocide politics (as in Nakhijevan), the Azeri government kicked the Armenians of the Shahumyan and Getashen regions out. That was all done in front of peacemaking forces that were sent to Karabagh in order to keep the peace. They have witnessed how Azeri villagers killed a 5 year-old boy’s family in front of his eyes.
The participants of the seminar decided to write about this to the director of the Caucasus project of the IRS Sabina Fraizer who guarantees the security of hundreds of thousands of Karabagh residents. There are many people who have seen what that small boy has seen. According to the people present, if the peacemakers enter Karabagh, that will only start a war because they have learned from the past that the peacemakers are involved in “manhunts”. The participants were shocked to see how interested the international organizations were about this issue. How can the International Relief Society be responsible for the lives of the people of Karabagh in case the liberated lands of Karabagh be returned to Azerbaijan? How can it be responsible when national security issues are being brought up in the center of Europe? “It would be nice if Mrs. Frazier met with people whose destines she plans on easily deciding,” said one person during the seminar.
In regard to the announcement made by adviser to the Defense Minister of Armenia Hayk Kotanjyan about organizing another referendum, the people present stated that he doesn’t have the right to make decisions for the people of Karabagh.
President of Shushi’s “Karabagh Refugees Committee” NGO Sanasar Saryan also said a few words about this: “Unfortunately, the ideas expressed by Mr. Kotanjyan are similar to the International Relief Society’s orientation, especially the part about organizing another referendum. However, what I am happy about is the fact that the issue concerning the return of refugees is not discussed. Let’s recall that the speech made by the IRS eloquently does not mention anything about half a million Armenian refugees from Azerbaijan, as well as the necessity to show some help to all the people who suffered from the Karabagh war and had to move-despite nationality and geographical location. Is it because the authors of the speech believe that Armenian refugees have no right as humans? Or perhaps they consider it impossible for the Armenian refugees to return to the lands where they used to live in Azerbaijan, where the anti-Armenian hysteria is growing and turning Armenians into the most hated people of the Azeri people.”
Mr. Kotanjyan suggests not rushing into the issue concerning the return of refugees. “We prefer the former permanent residencies of the “two-side voluntary return” version.” According to S. Saryan, the Refugee Committee has consistently tried to remind the world about the necessity to reestablish of rights of Armenian refugees from Azerbaijan. “We can not always remain in this state of politics and legalities. If Azerbaijan refuses to discuss the issue with the people of Karabagh, then we the refugees will secure ourselves with the right to populate the lands controlled by Karabagh for a little while as citizens of Karabagh. The Armenian refugees and temporary residents living in Karabagh for the past 15 years have the right to integrate into the Karabagh society. Nearly 100 thousand of the half a million Armenians who escaped from Azerbaijan took refuge in Karabagh and got some help with money. However, at the present, the Azeri government is the one to blame for the situation that we are in. Now they want to start a war with the Armenian population. The world will play a major role here by pressuring Azerbaijan, just like reestablishing political rights, as well as helping the refugees and temporary residents with moral and materialistic compensation,” said Mr. Saryan.