Epress.am News from Armenia
National Television and Radio Council (NTRC) of the Republic of Azerbaijan expressed dissatisfaction with ANS ChM radio due to the fact that the station broadcast Armenian songs in its program "The Caucasus Top 10" for the second month. According to NTRC President Nushiravan Meherremli, NTRC employees have been instructed to contact the management of ANS ChM to clarify the matter, as such broadcasting is not allowed — because, in Meherremli's words, it hurts people's feelings.
"Armenia and Azerbaijan are at war; therefore, we should be very careful in such matters. The logic of the ANS ChM management that 'culture has no boundaries' is wrong. By this logic, in Azerbaijan, Armenian films should be shown , Armenian goods sold, and exhibitions of their artists held," said Meherremli.
According to head of the Examination, Programming, and Monitoring Division of NCTR Tavakkyula Dadasheva, a notice was sent to ANS ChM "about [the fact] that ANS ChM broadcasts Armenian songs, and the host openly declares this. Measures will be taken in accordance with the law."
"We don't pursue political objectives"
In an interview with ANS TV, Vice-President for Production of the ANS Group of Companies Mirshahin Agayev said within the scope of the project, "broadcast on air of the radio station named after national hero of Azerbaijan, journalist Chingiz Mustafayev is the hit parade of songs of the Caucasus."
"And, naturally, as a representative of the peoples of the Caucasus, a representative of the Armenians also participates. Always progressive, ANS this time as well has come out ahead of all its colleagues and, considering residents of Nagorno Karabakh to be citizens of Azerbaijan, has also included their representative's song in the hit parade. This is simply a radio program, and its creators pursue no political objectives," said Agayev.
"On the contrary, by broadcasting Armenian songs on air, a private Azerbaijani radio station debunks Armenia's long-standing policy on the people of Azerbaijan being wild, Armenophobic, and cruel," he adds.
With this step, according to the ANS VP, the radio station shows the world that Azerbaijanis are a "civilized, cultured people who are capable of separating a people from its culture."
"Why do we need Armenian-language programs?"
In an article on ANS Press with this headline, author Chingiz Rustamov explains in detail the purpose of hit parades with Armenian songs.
Published on the ANS website is the Russian translation of the article with minor cuts and amendments. Epress.am presents its own translation from the original Azerbaijani, unabridged and, where possible, while maintaining style. (Note, the English translation below was translated from the Armenian translation, which, in turn, was translated from the Russian.)
"In Soviet times, in the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic there were around 500 Azerbaijani secondary schools, but the Armenian language was not taught in any of them. Although Armenians attributed this to the lack of staff, knowledgeable people of Western Azerbaijan — Iravan [Yerevan], Geycha, Zangezur, and Agbab [referring to Armenia and its settlements] — associated this with insidious Armenian politics. They said, 'The enemy doesn't want us to master its language.'
"Today, seeing the protest of our compatriots on broadcasting a few Armenian songs on ANS radio's Caucasus Hit Parade, I, as a Turk who grew up in Geycha, remember those days. I see one of the reasons of our defeat to the Armenians in the First Karabakh War in this. While, we, growing up surrounded by Armenians, didn't master the Armenian language, the Armenians succeeded in introducing in Agdam as a mullah an uncircumcised spy who grew up in Iravan.
"In the Armenian SSR then, the Armenians communicated with us in the Turkish language; they sang Turkish songs at their weddings; they were aware of every detail, even about the childhood memories of our writers and cultural workers. And Armenians in Azerbaijan mastered our language at the same level as us. Armenian teenagers' hearing was acclimatized to the Turkish language — all were raised as potential scouts, spies, and provocateurs.
"Despite the fact that 20 years have passed, Alexei Manvelyan, who grew up in Ganja, has an excellent command of Azerbaijani-Turkic and prepares reports on the daily lives of Armenians. It's possible that Manvelyan is respectful toward Azerbaijan, but the reality is his reports significantly mollify the anger in Azerbaijan toward Armenians and pour water on the flames of the feeling of vengeance. And thus, he serves Armenia. From his reports it appears that ordinary Armenians living in Iravan are tolerant people far from politics and nationalism, who are very tolerant of Azerbaijan and its culture. But we, those who grew up in Armenian SSR, know that's not the case. It is under the influence of the propaganda machine run by Armenians in the Armenian, Azerbaijani-Turkic, and Russian languages that some Azerbaijani writers do not refrain from trips to Iravan and write novels in which the main protagonists are Armenians. The propaganda is so powerful that even our journalist from the Jabrayil region captured by Armenians, who has a fairly large audience, apologizes to Armenians. The fact of our defeat to the Armenian propaganda machine in this area is obvious.
"So where is our propaganda machine? Over the years, how many journalists who speak Armenian normally have we raised who will be capable of keeping their hands on the Armenians' pulse in the way that Manvelyan is able to convince us? Armenians who grew up in Karabakh in the last 25 years are far from Azerbaijani culture, music, and mentality. Did we ever try to break the information blockade around Nagorno-Karabakh established by the bogus regime? Outside, it's the 21st century, and we can hardly achieve anything with a few information programs, with the host's tone guided by the Armenian language of the 60s. We can master the brains of Nagorno-Karabakh youths through interesting show programs. Naturally, first with the help of the most fashionable, apolitical Armenian songs… once a certain audience is gathered, it will be necessary to include Azerbaijani and Turkish music. And only after that will it be possible to tear down the ideological wall erected by the bogus regime. In general, all TV channels and radio stations in Azerbaijan should produce show programs in the Armenian language. In any case, more than 150,000 Armenians live in Azerbaijan, and sooner or later, they will feel the need for a product of our information space. It is not so difficult to persuade through fair speech residents of the concentration camps having an area of 15,000 square meters established in Nagorno-Karabakh.
"Our Turkish brothers, who have greater experience in statehood than we, understood this before we did. One of the most well-known representatives of the Bozkurtlar [Grey Wolves] of the Nationalist Movement Party, Sinan Oğan, in conversation with the author of these lines in Baku in 1968, suggested going to Ankara and taking part in the establishment of an Armenian-oriented website. My paltry knowledge of Armenian upset him greatly. A native of Western Azerbaijan, journalist Ghafar Chakhmagli also repeatedly stressed the importance of training journalists in Azerbaijan who are fluent in the Armenian language. It is noteworthy that during those days the Turkish-Armenian dictionary authored by Ghafar Chakhmagli was published in Turkey.
"Hey you, my patriotic brothers and compatriots, who are ready at any moment to give your lives in the name of Karabakh! Let's support the first steps in this direction of the radio station that bears the name of National Hero Chingiz Mustafayev who sacrificed his life for Karabakh. Remember, the conquest of Karabakh begins with cleaning out the garbage that's filled the brains of Karabakh youths over the past 25 years."
Photo credit: kavkaz-uzel.ru