Azeri officials have said they will ensure the safety of the Armenian contestants at Eurovision 2012 in Baku. But given the tumultuous history of the feuding Caucasus neighbors, will that quell fears among the delegation from Yerevan?
Araz Azimov, Azerbaijan’s deputy foreign minister, told 1.news.az that officials will guarantee the safety of Armenian contestants at the event. “If there is any conference held in Baku, Armenians will participate in it,” he said.
But Gohar Gasparyan, the head of Armenia’s Eurovision delegation, doesn’t seem to buy it. He has said publicly that participating in 2012 has “not yet been discussed with the European Broadcasting Union,” and that Armenia “will raise the issue” of security with the European Broadcasting Union before making a decision. An Azeri guarantee is simply not enough.
The ongoing conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region has spilled into Eurovision in recent years. In 2009, the Armenians used the Eurovision vote call as a chance to lay claim to the disputed territory. Azeris subsequently summoned all Azeris who voted for Armenia’s Inga & Anush to police stations. During the Junior Eurovision 2010, Azerbaijan cut the signal to the live broadcast when it became clear Armenia’s Vladimir Arzumanyan had won the contest.
In response to an article claiming gays and lesbians would not be welcome in Baku, Azerbaijan’s ambassador to Britain said the city would welcome “all fans.” Here’s hoping that includes Armenians and gay men alike.
I HATE YOU ARMENIAN…!!!!!!!!!!
QARABAG – KARABAG. QARA-KARA -BLACK OR DARK . BAG-GARDEN .KARABAG THESE WORD`S MEANING ONLY WE KNOW AZERBAIJANI AND TURKISH BECAUSE THESE WORDS TURK WORDS.MAYBE OTHER TURK CONTRIES KNOW THESE WORDS.INSTANCE FOR TURKMENISTAN,UZBEKISTAN, KIRGIZISTAN ,UYGUR TURKS ,KAZAKISTAN,TATARS AND OTHERS. KARABAG-DARK GARDEN OR KARABAG-BLACK GARDEN.
i really feel very sorry that there is a conflict between azerbaijan and my country. Armenia just wants freedom for Karabaj.
I honestly think Armenians have a point here: there’s so much conflict going on here to just jump happily to the pool praying there’s water on it. But Azerbaijanis also have a point: It can be done. They just need to put some effort. Call me naïve, but I still hope this is an opportunity for conciliation instead of conflict. I know, maybe somehow they’ll realize the other people are that: PEOPLE (something we tend to forget when we don’t like someone). And maybe in twenty years from now we will be complaining about block voting between Armenia and Azerbaijan.… Read more »
there are many racist groups in azerbaijan that will cause many problems for Armenians, FOR SURE! NO ONE CAN GUARANTEE ANY THING! WE CAN NOT BELIEVE YOU!