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Azerbaijani student gives fact-based answers to separatists in Armenian-organized event â€œMonuments in Nakhchivanâ€ in US

02 November 2007 13:11 (UTC +04:00)

The only Azerbaijani in the debates, master at Harvard University Kennedy School of Government:, Bakhtiyar Hajiyev told APA that the event was financed by Armenian Research Center in the US and an Armenian company in Canada. Professor of Harvard University for Armenian research, Armenian Dr. James R. Russel made a keynote speech. Making â€œhis remarksâ€ on etymology of Nakhchivan he claimed that â€œOver 30,000 Armenian monuments were destroyedâ€. Armenian Agram Ayvaziyan and Steven Sim from Scotland also claimed that â€œThere are a lot of cultural monuments in Nakhchivan, like in other regions of Armeniaâ€.
Ayvaziyan said they even prepared six-seven volume book about Nakhchivanâ€™s history and lead the film shootings.
The territory of Nagorno Karabakh was shown as Nagorno Karabakh Republic on the map on the screen and marked with different color. The territory of Nakhchivan is marked red. The participants even showed historical Azerbaijani monuments recognized by the world as Momune Khatun, Khudaferin bridge as Armenian monuments.
â€œThey said Azerbaijan misappropriated these monuments and tries to include them into the list of UNESCO cultural heritage. Armenians became so angry that they even demanded resignation of UNESCO Secretary General and expressed their discontent that the world community does not react to them,â€ he said.
Steven Sim from Scotland was called â€œthe person who last witnessed the monuments in Nakhchivanâ€. The Armenian, nervous about the brotherhood of Turkey and Azerbaijan, said that he had taken photos of the establishments of strategic importance.
â€œFollowing this, he began to show the ram-like figures as Armenian monuments. There was writing in Arabic on one of the figures. I asked when Armenians used Arabic alphabet. Confused with the question, Sim said he also took the photos of Azerbaijani and Seljuk monuments when he was in Nakhchivan and this photo was mistakenly copied to the disc. He confessed that these figures do not belong to Armenians,â€ he said.
Our compatriot, who wanted to express his position, met with Armeniansâ€™ severe reaction. Bakhtiyar Hajiyev said he tolerated two-hour speeches of Armenians and regretted that they were not polite enough to listen to him for two minutes.
â€œWhat culture are you speaking about, if you can not do it? I asked them. Harvard University Davis Center was one of the organizers of the event, and as the student of the university I have the right to express my position and ask a question. Only after that, the presenter of the event spoke with Ayvaziyan and said:
â€œPlease, express your opinion briefly, ask your short question. I have the right interrupt you in any time,â€ he said.
I mentioned Armenian youthâ€™s speech on forgetting Nagorno Karabakh conflict and Nakhchivanâ€™s being related to Armenia in one of international events several years ago and stated that we know that these events are held purposely. I said that it is not first time that Armenians present several issues and areas not concerning them as their own. They steal our meals, musical instruments, songs, everything. Then I showed the auditory article published in â€œV Novom Sveteâ€ newspaperâ€ in New York and childrenâ€™s photos there as the last sample of Armenian falsification. Though these are Azerbaijani childrenâ€™s photos killed during Khojaly genocide, they presented it as the photos of the children killed during the so-called Armenian genocide and underlined that though our Diaspora and Embassy appealed, newspaper leadership did not refute regarding these photos. When I started to speak about massacres committed by Armenians in Khojaly they protested again, but I asked Russell why he spreads false information as a professor of Harvard University using his image, why academician directs people to false side?
Russell thought that I intended something about historical facts when I said â€œfalse informationâ€ and said â€œI am historian, not political figure. There is a history in everything I present, is not it so?â€
â€œNagorno Karabakh Republicâ€ was written in the map you used. And you pretended that this map concerned B.C.. Was there any Nagorno Karabakh Republic B.C.? Is it a historical fact? There was not country named Nagorno Karabakh Republic in the history and it will never be,â€ I replied.
Noise started in the salon again. Steven Sim calmed auditory and asked â€œDo you admit your country leadershipâ€™s destructing Armenian monuments in Nakhchivan as a student and clever person?â€
â€œAs a clever man I prefer information source. If professor who took a photo of prohibited buildings, violates rules of the country he visits and speaks proudly in front of such auditory says it, naturally I can not believe to what he said. If you want to know our countryâ€™s position and historical facts, I can give you information covers prepared by Azerbaijani Embassy in America and Foreign Ministry,â€ I said that and distributed covers to participants.
I got acquainted with a youth who stated that he is a journalist at the beginning of the meeting. I asked him to send me photos they took in the meeting. I wanted to give my e-mail address to that boy. But the boy â€œdonâ€™t you see that I work for Armenian newspaper? Why did you do it? You came here to spoil everything, did not you?â€ said and moved to tears. I asked whether he will send photos or not and he started to cry.
Hajiyev stated that official opening of the exhibition will be held today. We will also react in any form when Azerbaijani students studying in Boston will negotiate with Davis Center where the exhibition will be held.
Hajiyev also mentioned that Armenians started their propagations on the so-called Armenian genocide in academic circles, Universities.
â€œThen this issue was debated in the level of Foreign Affairs Committee of the Congress. Most of the teachers of Harvard University gave directions to people in Congress and representatives of White House, state representatives in various themes. Armenians try to contact with influential professors. Therefore we should start investigation programs regarding Azerbaijan in such Universities, have intercourse with these Universities, and achieve our studentsâ€™ to study in such Universities,â€ he said. /APA/