NO RECONCILIATION IN INFORMATION SPACE POSSIBLE WITHOUT LIBERATION OF LANDS
news.az
May 20 2010
Azerbaijan
News.Az interviews Elchin Shikhli, chairman of the Azerbaijan’s
Journalists Union.
Today the negotiation process on the Karabakh settlement has entered
the final stage. Don’t you think that it is time for the mass media
of Azerbaijan and Armenia to stop hostilities, mutual insults and
propaganda of war in the information space and start preparing their
people for peace?
I have tried not to insult in my statements. It is just necessary
to behave in line with some cultural frameworks. As for propaganda,
I think we cannot stop in this situation. I can only stop in the case
when the Karabakh conflict is settled, that is when our lands are
freed, people return to their homes and after it I will be calm down.
But I am always ready to speak and discuss problems and I think
people should really not insult each other. However, in the reality,
I do not believe that the parties will abstain from such events at
the current stage.
Considering the fact that this conflict will be settled one day and
our people will have to co-exist anyway. Would be expedient in this
connection to pose a moratorium for the propaganda of war?
I think we have a full right to make such statements unless this
problem is not settled. But when it is settled within the framework
of the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, we will be able to impose
moratorium and fraternize with each other. Then it will be normal.
Is it true that we, Azerbaijanis and Armenians, hamper the peaceful
co-existence of growing generations by cultivating hatred in them?
Would it not be more expedient to abstain from sharp statements at
the current stage?
The matter is that in this situation it is Armenians who should stop.
I know by examples that they merely bring up their children in the
spirit that when they asked "who is your enemy?", the answer will
immediately be "Turks". It means that I have nothing to do with
it. I do not bring up my children in hatred to anyone, including to
Armenians. I have just taught my children to be strong. But it does
not mean that they must hate everything.
Can a moratorium be imposed on insulting publications or propaganda of
appeals for war? Is it possible that all mass medias will observe it?
I agree with you. This is really unreal, since there is a social order
and it has not become so mature yet to say: "alright, let’s forget
that Armenians have occupied 20% of our lands, that there is not a
single Azerbaijani in Armenia, that over 600,000 of our citizens are
displaced persons". Unless there are these realities, it is unreal
to speak of reconciliation as there is a social order. For example,
I was lucky to live in Baku. My house is not occupied, I do not live
in tents and so on. But let’s think of those people who lost everything
and those children who were born and brought up tents. They will merely
not understand me if I speak of the propagandist reconciliation. But
when I am able to help them return to their native lands, there
will be a different social order to me. Then they will say: "Well,
everything can happen in this life, let’s forgive them".
But today about a million of my countrymen (that is refugees from
Armenia and displaced persons from occupied Azerbaijani lands) who
directly suffered from the conflict live in Baku. They have relatives
who were not affected by the war directly. Therefore, I think imposing
of a moratorium in these conditions is incorrect.