Ethnic minorities in Azerbaijan face pressure-Ara Papyan

The ethnic minorities in Azerbaijan are facing pressure nowadays without any right to protect their identity, an Armenian historian and orientalist said today, condemning the Azerbaijani authorities’ policy of discrimination.

At a round table devoted to the 28th anniversary of the Armenian pogrom in Sumgait, Director of the Modus Vivendi Center Ara Papyan said that dialogues with those people are necessary at times to raise their understanding of their rights.

“We have published books to raise their understanding; debates of the kind are an opportunity for the Talish intellectuals to express themselves.

They are barred from that in Azerbaijan where they are oppressed to eventually express the idea that there are other peoples they can collaborate with,” he said.

The round table, entitled “Natives of Azerbaijan: Reality and Perspective”, was organized by Modus Vivendi in collaboration with the Institute for the Caucasus and the Caspian Region.

Mr Papyan said he isn’t aware of any official statistics as to the number of the ethnic minorities residing in Azerbaijan.

“The Azerbaijanis claim the Talish [population] is 200,000; the US records suggest that there is an estimated 1.5 million of them, whereas the Talishes themselves claim that their number is up to 2 million,” he said.

“Talish men are not able to fight for their families, children, women, the poor and what can actually be for men.

Currently, the Talysh in Azerbaijan fail to maintain their culture, more recently, the parliament has adopted a law by which the name “Talish” is included on the black list.

It is impossible to live like this anymore, so Talyshistan should become independent, should fight to the victorious outcome.

I need to say that the number of our supporters is not small,” he concluded.