The rights of Western Azerbaijanis in all areas have been trampled for more than a hundred years. The deportation and resettlement of Azerbaijanis from Armenia (Western Azerbaijan) began after the Armenians settled in those lands and after Tsarist Russia occupied the South Caucasus.
The number of Armenians in the region increased due to migration. This led to oppression of Azerbaijanis and increased pressure on them. It is no coincidence that the first mass of the process began in 1905. Although the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic tried to prevent this, the defense of the Armenians by Bolshevik Russia, followed by the occupation, prevented the Western Azerbaijanis from returning to their homeland. It is true that some of them returned during the USSR, but then it was prevented.
Therefore, the first deportation dates back to 1905-1920. The second stage of forcing Western Azerbaijanis to leave their lands took place in 1948-1953.
This crime was committed by the then head of the USSR, I. It was carried out on Stalin’s instructions. After World War II, the Soviet dictator ordered the forced migration of Azerbaijanis within Azerbaijan, in the Caucasus, even from Armenia. The main reason for this was that they recognized themselves as Turks. Stalin feared that Azerbaijanis’ relations with Türkiye and Iran would be considered Turkish. He saw the way out of this in his exile from his homeland and his move to Central Asia.
The third stage of this crime was committed in 1988-1992. The fact that the first Tsarist Russia coincided with the collapse of Russia, the second with the strengthening of Stalin’s dictatorship, and the last with the collapse of the Soviet Union, shows that optimal conditions were created for deportation.
With the expulsion of Western Azerbaijanis from their lands, the process of Armenianization of all names in the territories and the destruction of historical monuments began. More than two thousand names were changed by numerous decrees of the Cabinet of Ministers of the USSR. This is one of the many facts confirming that Moscow is cooperating with the Armenians in this direction.
The policy of ethnic cleansing against Turks and Azerbaijanis in Armenia has been “successfully” concluded in three stages. Unfortunately, while the Western Azerbaijanis were forced to leave the territory of present-day Armenia, the Armenians settled in the territory of Azerbaijan and held high positions.
In the years 1918-1920, the mass expulsion of Azerbaijanis from the Zangezur region, whose name is now more common, took place.
The Soviets have collapsed and the protection of human rights in the world is one of the main issues. The rights of Western Azerbaijanis have been violated for more than a hundred years. Restoring the rights of almost 300,000 West Azerbaijanis, whose civil, ethnic and property freedoms were violated over the past 35 years, is one of the priority areas of the State of Azerbaijan.
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev In his speech at the opening ceremony of the monument to Ashiq Alasgar, he said the following on this issue: “Western Azerbaijanis who have been subjected to the third wave of ethnic cleansing will return to their ancestral lands.”
Speaking about the deportations of Azerbaijanis in the 20th century, he said: “The first deportation took place in 1918, the second in the 1940s-50s and the third in the late 1980s and early 1990s. After a certain period of time after the After two deportations, the people of Azerbaijan have returned to their ancestral lands, that is, a large part of them, if not all, have returned. This gives us confidence, rightly, that Western Azerbaijanis. , who were subjected to the third wave of ethnic cleansing, will return to their ancestral lands.”
Many did not believe that the lands occupied by Armenia, including Shusha and Khankendi, would be freed from occupation, that the claim of the so-called “Lachin Corridor” would not be carried out, and that Russian peacekeepers would not leave Azerbaijan. But these things happened. There were quite a few who did not believe that the inhabitants of the Eastern Zangezur economic region (Jabrayil, Kalbajar, Lachin, Gubadli and Zangilan regions) would not return to their homes, and even that the region under this name would be formalized. And that happened.
It is also possible to restore the violated rights of Western Azerbaijanis (in the third stage). Many of their houses in western Azerbaijan are uninhabited.
The Armenian authorities want to accommodate the Armenians they consider repatriated in these houses. Attempts are being made to tempt Armenians from Lebanon, Syria, Russia, Iran, Türkiye and other countries to settle in lands that do not belong to them.
The repatriation law has not yet been adopted in the country. However, Armenians resettled in Armenia from different parts of the world are granted citizenship. The granting of citizenship to those Armenians has been simplified. If the repatriation law is passed, Western Azerbaijanis will also be able to benefit from it. However, Armenians are trying to apply this law only to ethnic Armenians. This is a violation of the rules.
However, even under these simplified conditions, those people who have no ties to Armenia do not want to be “repatriated” to the country. In late 2023, Zara Sinanyan, chief commissioner for diaspora work under the government of the Prime Minister of Armenia, stated during amendments to the law “On military service” that the diaspora limited repatriation and acquisition of citizenship of the Armenians. According to him, this creates obstacles to the “return” of Armenians to Armenia. It is natural that they do not want to serve in the Armed Forces of Armenia, because this country is neither a homeland nor a state for them. On the other hand, the settlement of so-called “repatriated” Armenians on the territory of Western Azerbaijan is a threat to the state security and defense capabilities of Armenia.
When the right of repatriation and return of Western Azerbaijanis is mentioned, some understand it as a territorial claim on Armenia. However, this is nothing more than restoring the violated property rights of almost 300,000 Azerbaijanis. Their return to Western Azerbaijan and the restoration of their rights can be one of the guarantees for the security of this country. Therefore, the repatriation of Western Azerbaijanis is one of the main provisions of the document aimed at completing the normalization process with Armenia and signing the peace agreement.
Information Agency “Informe”
