The education system of Azerbaijan is saturated with anti-Armenian sentiment. The formation of the image of Armenians as an enemy occurs through all possible platforms and means. The most effective method is through the curricula at public schools and kindergartens. Azeri children learn from a very young age that Armenians are the enemy, and that Karabakh and Armenia are “occupied Azerbaijani historical lands” that must be returned. This is the germination of Armenian hatred and inhumanity. As the main priority of state propaganda, this type of education is prevalent across a variety of statewide programs and extracurricular activities. Particularly disturbing is when the propaganda of falsifications, lies and Armenian hatred becomes the plot and content of Azerbaijani fairy tales.
In 2011, under the auspices of the National Assembly of Azerbaijan, the first theater festival for children and youth was organized with a primary theme of patriotism. One of the winners of the festival was Sh. Xeyrulla’s mono performance “My Hostile Toy” about the great Armenian military leader Andranik Ozanyan. In addition to the dehumanization and depersonalization of Ozanyan, the performance discredited the Armenian hero with the goal of discrediting the whole nation.
Armenians are also promoted as enemies through fairy tales. In “The Tale of Ilham,” for example, Ilham is a kind and hardworking blacksmith, who is killed by treacherous Armenians for no reason. The qualities of treachery are attributed to Armenians and Russians. In “Bad Neighbor,” Rovshan is the protagonist, while Vardan the Armenian is the antagonist, portrayed with the worst human qualities, including jealousy, which compel him to throw poor Rovshan into a well. The “Innocent Woman” includes an Armenian girl named Siranush, an imposter sent from Armenian land who abuses the Shah’s trust.
Socialization begins through fairy tales, along with recognition of the artistic world. Such fairy tale series’ should not become the right way of raising a generation.
The perpetuation of Armenian hatred is systematic and planned, starting from the primary level of general education. In history, geography, literature and language textbooks, the image of hostile Armenians is taken to the extreme. In contrast, Armenian elementary education generally does not include stories or poems that refer to Azerbaijanis or Turks with hatred, enmity and aggressive content. Morning exercises in the public schools of Azerbaijan include the message “Karabakh is Azerbaijan.” Schoolchildren loudly repeat the phrase three times; they’re also instructed to repeat “Armenians are enemies” (dushman). These hostile messages and images are everywhere.
After the 44-day war, books were published with great intensity in which both Artsakh and Armenia were presented as part of Azerbaijan, and Yerevan and Lake Sevan are presented as occupied territories of Azerbaijan. The illustrated book “Shushi” is intended for preschool children, as well as children of primary school age and adolescents. The poems of Ruslan Novruz, unfortunately, are included in the methodological literature for teachers, which they use at their discretion during lessons, activities and events organized with children.
In the poem “Armenians” by Novruz (accessed through the Wayback Machine Internet Archive), one can find the following lines:
If he sleeps in the cradle
Don’t hold the knife too long
Find a sharper one and slit his neck.
He is a dirty Armenian.
In this poem, the Armenian is the son of Satan.
There’s also a poem by Novruz about “The three-year-old soldier.”
As soon as he wakes up from sleep,
He immediately takes his weapon,
Every day my little grandson
Slaughters, kill the enemy.
He wears a soldier’s clothes,
Wears a soldier’s hat
Like a real soldier
He is dressed and ready.
And all of a sudden with full force
He shouts “Hurray!”
And passes with victory
Through Shushi and Khojaly.
And the child soldier passes
Through Mrav Mountain,
Kalbajar is free from fascists.
The little brave fights
He fights in place of the elders.
My child, fight!
Maybe the elders will be ashamed while looking at you.
And sooner or later, not only Karabakh,
But also the den of blood – Yerevan, must be occupied.
The following lines can be found in an Azerbaijani language textbook for second graders:
The Armenians didn’t let Santa Claus and the Snow Maiden
To enter Kalbajar and Lachin.
My dream is to have Santa Claus
Cover all the mountains with snow
And next year, invite us to Karabakh…
(Translated by Angela Elibegova and Hovik Avanesov).
Thematic materials saturated with aggression find their place in all subjects and programs. In the 8th grade curriculum, there’s the song “Mother’s Instruction to her Son,” written by Mirza Bayramov with music by Uzeyir Hajibayli (O. Rajabov, N. Kyazimov, A. Babaeva, Music, textbook, Baku, 2017, 96 pages).
….You are brave,
And your name went far and wide
A worthy mother gave birth to you, be a worthy son.
The news about Azerbaijani brave men spread all over the world.
At the top of each mountain is the Kyurogli fortress,
The arrogance of the bloodthirsty enemy will soon be quenched.
The fields will be his grave
And his foul breath will blow.
Take your dagger and pierce his eye and let him drown in blood.
The forging and falsification of history is a state-sponsored initiative in Azerbaijan. Generations of Azerbaijanis are being raised, educated and socialized based on lies, hatred, aggression and intolerance, leaving no room in their mental world for humanity and truth. These destructive human qualities reveal themselves in Azerbaijan’s ongoing human rights violations, violence and terrorism against Armenians in the 21st century.