STILL RESENTFUL OF MISTREATMENT, BEDIKYAN DISMISSES AZERI EXCUSES
Fulya Ozerkan

Turkish Daily News , Turkey
Dec 28 2006

Bedikyan, a successful pianist sharing the same stage with Turkey’s
leading jazz musicians and who also plays in Sertab Erener’s band,
says he is not planning to return to Baku for any concerts unless
Azerbaijani authorities offer an official apology

Well-known jazz pianist Burak Bedikyan says he was refused entry
to Azerbaijan after being subjected to ill treatment at the airport
because of his Armenian descent and denies Azerbaijani claims that
he was to address thousands during a two-day performance last week
together with Sertab Erener, Turkey’s winner of the 2003 Eurovision
song contest.

"I went to Azerbaijan not to give an outdoor public concert attended
by 10-15,000 people but to perform on two special nights at Baku’s
Gulistan Palace attended by only a VIP audience," Bedikyan told the
Turkish Daily News in an interview.

Turkey formally sought information both from the Azerbaijani Foreign
Ministry and the Azerbaijani Embassy here with regard to Bedikyan’s
allegations. Ankara’s move came after the young pianist filed verbal
and written complaints with the Turkish Foreign Ministry. "It’s
really ridiculous that [Azerbaijani authorities] give the lack of
a visa as a justification for their refusal to grant me entry, but
everyone knows that a passport is sufficient for all citizens of the
Turkish Republic to enter Azerbaijani territory," Bedikyan said.

Azerbaijani Embassy officials here were not immediately available
to comment on Bedikyan’s charges, but news reports earlier said
Azeri officials refused to issue a visa to the pianist, arguing that
Bedikyan’s name being announced during a concert attended by 10-15,000
could have sparked an incident because Azerbaijan and Armenia were
in a state of war.

Azerbaijan and Armenia, both ex-Soviet republics, are at loggerheads
over Nagorno-Karabakh, an Azeri territory occupied by Armenian
troops. The region’s final status remains unresolved, and years of
talks under the auspices of international mediators have brought few
visible results.

Turkey has close ties with Azerbaijan, with which it shares an ethnic
and linguistic heritage, but it severed diplomatic relations with
Armenia due to Yerevan’s unsettled dispute with Azerbaijan.

Bedikyan, a Turkish citizen, accused Azerbaijani authorities at Baku
Airport of mistreating him and refusing him entry upon arrival for
a concert on Dec. 19. He was forced to return to Istanbul and could
not join his band, insisting that he was singled out and mistreated
despite his Turkish citizenship.

"We were taken to the VIP section upon our arrival at Baku Airport
and waited for passport checks. Erener was given priority in her
entry procedure and then sent to her hotel. Azerbaijani authorities
called me, demanded my identity card and then asked for my surname. I
answered them but later they again asked my surname. I again told
them my surname was Bedikyan, and they asked my nationality. I said
I was a Turkish citizen as set out in my passport and identity card
and that I was of Armenian descent. Later they talked to one another,
and the only words I could make out from their conversation were
‘Christian and Armenian’," he said.

"Almost 15 minutes later three Azerbaijani officials took me from the
airport," continued Bedikyan, "and made me get on a bus and took me to
another part of the airport. They did not answer my questions, though
I asked calmly and respectfully, and they rebuked me when I continued
to insistently seek an explanation. They even threatened me. I waited
for almost three hours. I was not allowed to drink water or make
a call. They approached me in a very unfriendly and hostile way. In
fact, I was sent back to Istanbul before realizing what had happened."

Bedikyan said he was refused entry without reason after being
mistreated, just like an enemy, despite the efforts of production
manager Serkan Guney, who was also threatened by Azerbaijani officials
with being taken to the police station if he insisted on objecting.

"It took me two to three days to get my luggage after arriving in
Istanbul. I later informed the Foreign Ministry both verbally and in a
written complaint, and thankfully the ministry took up the incident,"
he added.

Despite the absence of Bedikyan, Erener gave her concerts in Baku.

The pianist says more could have been done and that Erener could have
stood up for him, but he declined to elaborate further to avoid a
battle of words.

"I’m a jazz musician. I am not the only pianist in Erener’s band.

I’m accompanying Erener in her concerts together with another pianist,
Tulug Tirpan; however, if I were the only pianist, the incident in
Azerbaijan could have been more serious because it would not have
been possible to perform the concert with only Erener and a guitar,"
he said.

Bedikyan, who shares the same stage with Turkey’s leading jazz
musicians, said he was not planning to travel to Azerbaijan again for
a concert unless Azerbaijani authorities offered an official apology.

"First of all, I certainly don’t take the incident personally, but
I see it as disrespect and a mistake against the Turkish Republic,
of which I’m a citizen," he said.

But Bedikyan said he harbored no hostility against Azerbaijan, adding
that he could go again after everything was settled amicably.