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Azerbaijani Human Rights Commissioner Elmira Suleymanova issues statement on days of occupation of Shusha, Lachin and Kelbajar

03 May 2011 09:29 (UTC +04:00)

The statement reads that periodical occupation of Azerbaijani lands by Armenia was a result of chauvinist policy of Russian tsarism at first and later the policy of former Soviet empire and their support to the Armenian vandalism. â€œAs a result of military aggression of Armenia against Azerbaijan for more than 20 years, more than 20 000 Azerbaijanis were killed, 50 000 wounded, 4 500 become missing, old people, women and children were taken hostage, tortured, one million Azerbaijanis became refugees and internally displaced persons and more than 1000 settlements were destroyedâ€, the Ombudspersonâ€™s Office told APA.

19 years have passed since the occupation of Shusha, the cradle of culture of Azerbaijan, center of its classic music, the city, which has historic strategic importance for Azerbaijan, as well as Lachin region, said the Commissioner. 92 percent of Shusha population was Azerbaijanis before the occupation. The occupation of Shusha and Lachin is a part of Armeniaâ€™s aggressive policy and violation of international law.
â€œThe Armenian armed forces occupied Shusha with 289 square km of territory and 24 900 population on May 8, 1992. As a result of the occupation of Shusha 193 local citizens became martyrs and 102 turned into disabled persons. 267 residents of Lachin region became martyrs in the frontlines of Karabakh war, 105 turned into disabled persons, 66 were taken hostage. More than 60 000 Lachin residents live as the internally displaced persons in 59 cities and regions of Azerbaijan now. As a result of occupation of this region, the town of Lachin, one settlement, 125 villages, 48 industrial, 63 agricultural, 142 healthcare, 217 education, 460 commercial facilities, 101 schools, kindergartens, theater of folklore, museum of history and more than 200 historic monuments were destroyed.

On April 2, 1993, the region of Kelbajar, which was a wall between the Nagorno Karabakh and Armenia, the region with 174 000-ha territory and 52 000 population, was occupied by the Armenian armed forces. Fall of Kelbajar led to implementation of further occupation plans of Armenians - annexation of Nagorno Karabakh by Armenia, occupation of other regions around Nagorno Karabakh â€“ Aghdam, Jabrayil, Fuzuli, Gubadli and Zangilan, occupation of the richest lands of Azerbaijan with total extension of 17 000 square km.

Shusha Museum of History with five thousand exhibits, branch of national carpet museum, decorative art museum, Karabakh state museum, Agoglan temple in Lachin region, the monument of Paleolithic age - Azikh cave, Asgaran fortress in Khojaly, Kelbajar museum of history and other cultural monuments, irreplaceable exhibitions of the art gallery were destroyed and looted, shrines and mosques were destroyed, ancient manuscripts were burnedâ€.

More than 100 000 cultural pieces were plundered and destroyed in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, about 500 historic and archeological monuments and 22 museums were destroyed, the statement reads. The Ombudsperson said Armenian terrorists and their supporters must be brought to justice soon.

The statement was addressed to UN Secretary General, Deputy Secretary General, Secretary Generalâ€™s Special Representative on Children and Problem of Armed Conflict, UN High Commissioner on Human Rights, OSCE, Council of Europe, International and European Human Rights Commissioner Institutions, Asian Human Rights Commissioner Association, International Peace Bureau, Universal Peace Federation, human rights commissioners of other countries, Azerbaijani embassies abroad, foreign embassies in Azerbaijan and Azerbaijani Diaspora organizations.