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Joint Declaration adopted at international conference on cultural and ethnic diversity in Shusha

06 July 2026 13:52 (UTC +04:00)

On July 6, the international conference titled "Cultural and Ethnic Diversity: Lessons from History, Modern Challenges" was held at the Karabakh Hotel in Shusha, organized by the Public Union Center for Cultural and Ethnic Diversity in partnership with the Public Union Silk Road Cultural and Historical Research, APA reports.

A joint declaration of the participants of the international conference titled "Cultural and Ethnic Diversity: Lessons from History, Modern Challenges" was adopted at the conclusion of the conference.

The participants of the international conference titled 'Cultural and Ethnic Diversity: Lessons from History and Contemporary Challenges,' representing civil society and researchers from various countries, have declared the following in accordance with the outcomes of the Shusha discussions:

Cultural and ethnic diversity, tolerance, and multiculturalism should be regarded as national assets for every state. No people should be humiliated, discriminated against, or persecuted on the basis of their ethnic or religious identity. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, international obligations on the elimination of all forms of racial discrimination, and UNESCO's principles on the protection of cultural diversity should become effective instruments for safeguarding the fundamental rights of peoples who have been expelled from their historical lands, subjected to mass killings, genocide, and deportations, and who face the threat of losing their historical and cultural heritage and language. Modern forms of colonialism and actions that bring tragedy, slavery, and suffering to peoples must be prevented. The ethnic and religious identity of peoples must not be regarded as a crime or become grounds for collective punishment;

The national dignity and honor of peoples must be respected, the principles of humanism must be upheld, and confrontation and conflict must be replaced by dialogue, cooperation, and an atmosphere of trust.

The forced deployment of ethnic minorities in Russia — Circassians, Lezgins, Avars, Tatars, Kumyks, Chechens, Sakhas, Buryats, and other non-Russian peoples — to the front in Ukraine through coercion, persecution, blackmail, and imprisonment must be stopped. Russia must learn lessons from history, acknowledge the genocides committed against the Circassians and other peoples, refrain from glorifying those responsible for their bloodshed, and make archival materials on historical issues accessible. Chauvinism and xenophobic rhetoric in Russia, as well as attacks and persecution of non-Russians by "skinhead" groups and their various manifestations appearing under new names and in new forms based on their own views, must be brought to an end;

Azerbaijan's exemplary model in preserving ethnic and cultural diversity and promoting interfaith, intercultural, and intercivilizational harmony and dialogue should be recognized. Azerbaijan's historic Victory in Shusha should serve as an example and a symbol of the restoration of historical justice, which is most needed by colonized peoples.

Elgun Ganjimsoy

Shusha Azerbaijan international conference Joint Declaration cultural diversity ethnic diversity multiculturalism tolerance civil society human rights colonialism historical justice UNESCO Universal Declaration of Human Rights genocide dialogue Center for Cultural and Ethnic Diversity