Epress.am News from Armenia
“We understand this film festival aims to promote an appreciation for tolerance, multiculturalism and the expression of diverse views and opinions,” said US Embassy in Armenia Public Affairs Officer Karen Robblee, when asked by Epress.am to comment on the outcry in response to a festival of Azerbaijani films to be screened in Yerevan from Nov. 2–4.
“These are important values for any democratic society. We thought the film festival was a good idea when we decided to support it and we still do,” said the US Embassy spokesperson.
Recall that the festival is organized by the Caucasus Center for Peace-Making Initiatives NGO, with the support of the US Embassy in Armenia. An event page created on Facebook resulted in a backlash of numerous hateful and nationalist comments (mainly in Armenian). Some Facebook users even threatened festival organizers, calling them traitors to the nation.
Asked whether the festival will be postponed or even cancelled completely, Robblee said they hoped that won’t happen.
“We expect the project to go forward as planned,” she said.