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AZERBAIJANIS NEED TO WAGE INFORMATION WAR 'UNTIL JUSTICE PREVAILS'
news.az
Nov 14 2011
Azerbaijan
News.Az interviews Yegana Salman, head of Israel's Azerbaijani Cultural
Centre and a member of the board of the Israel-Azerbaijan Association.
Azerbaijan is promoting an image worldwide as a model Islamic
country, where representatives of many nations and religions coexist
peacefully. What is behind the disgusting reaction from Russian
journalist Vladimir Solovev to the refusal to allow a Russian company
employee of Armenian descent, S. Gurjian, to board a plane to Baku,
especially against the backdrop of positive Azerbaijani-Russian
relations?
In my opinion, this incident took place according to a scenario in
the style of contemporary journalism: a character, in this case, of
a certain nationality, provoked a scandal in order not to be allowed
onto the Moscow-Baku flight and to give journalist Solovyev something
to talk about in his program, allowing the latter to "fulfill" his
objective according to a pre-planned scenario.
Nowadays the key objective of journalists, forgive my frankness, is to
increase the ratings of the program and the company they work for. As
bitter as it may sound, people are more interested in scandal. And if
this is about a well-known issue like the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict
over Nagorno-Karabakh, there is no need to be very wise in this
regard because fertile ground has been created for anti-Azerbaijani
propaganda since Soviet times.
The word "Azerbaijani" almost acquired the meaning "a bad man",
"a nationalist", "a religious fanatic", or "pan-Turkist", although,
in fact, we know that all these definitions are not true about the
vast majority of Azerbaijanis. On the contrary, these are features
that can be found in people of your nationality least of all. But,
as the saying goes, "a lie has short legs". The truth will triumph
one day and all the hype about Gurjian was fabricated in order to
attract audiences and carry out the "order".
And the outcome is that everyone began to talk about this radio
station which no one talked about before. And the journalist is
already famous. You know, there's a saying, I don't remember whose,
"When the good fight evil, the audience often wins." This is exactly
what the "customer" of this "show" needed.
How did Israeli nationals, who are natives of Azerbaijan, take
Solovev's remarks?
People from Azerbaijan understood this whole situation easily from
the very beginning. Everyone remembers that "rumours ran ahead of
the events themselves" in the 1990s and anti-Azerbaijani propaganda
and sentiments were clearly pre-planned.
Therefore, it was clear for former residents of various ethnicities
from Azerbaijan that it is impossible to believe any anti-Azerbaijani
remarks. It is clear to everyone that it was one of the stages in an
information war waged solely to harm the good name of the Azerbaijani
people.
Should state agencies interfere in similar incidents to prevent this
happening again in future? Or is the response of public figures and
journalists to such anti-Azerbaijani remarks satisfactory?
I don't think there are mechanisms able to influence such incidents.
Similarly, I don't think it is possible to go back to the times when
there was a censor and each publication in the press was monitored
by the state. I believe journalists and public organizations and
even individuals who may have their say in defence of a person or an
entire nation should make efforts in this regard. People should simply
understand that everyone can make their own input into the defence of
justice. I do not believe that the good should win with their fists,
but they should certainly not be passive.
Armenians and their sympathizers still dominate in the Russian media,
especially on TV. Can it be said that the information war waged by
Armenia against Azerbaijan is not as bad as it was in the first years
of the Karabakh conflict?
Of course, the situation is not as bad as you described it. But the
Azerbaijani people need to work hard to continue to disseminate facts
about the history and roots of the conflict, write books and articles
on the history of the Karabakh conflict based on documentary evidence,
to create literary and artistic works on this subject, to participate
in international festivals and competitions held on all continents.
They need to use all means to promote a good image of the country
and people across the world.
Unfortunately, it is no secret that propaganda is ahead of history,
but people say that rumour runs ahead of a man and it takes great
effort to win a good name back.
Azerbaijani people believe in good and that truth will win finally.
But the fact is that the Azerbaijani people should not give up the
information war until justice prevails.
news.az
Nov 14 2011
Azerbaijan
News.Az interviews Yegana Salman, head of Israel's Azerbaijani Cultural
Centre and a member of the board of the Israel-Azerbaijan Association.
Azerbaijan is promoting an image worldwide as a model Islamic
country, where representatives of many nations and religions coexist
peacefully. What is behind the disgusting reaction from Russian
journalist Vladimir Solovev to the refusal to allow a Russian company
employee of Armenian descent, S. Gurjian, to board a plane to Baku,
especially against the backdrop of positive Azerbaijani-Russian
relations?
In my opinion, this incident took place according to a scenario in
the style of contemporary journalism: a character, in this case, of
a certain nationality, provoked a scandal in order not to be allowed
onto the Moscow-Baku flight and to give journalist Solovyev something
to talk about in his program, allowing the latter to "fulfill" his
objective according to a pre-planned scenario.
Nowadays the key objective of journalists, forgive my frankness, is to
increase the ratings of the program and the company they work for. As
bitter as it may sound, people are more interested in scandal. And if
this is about a well-known issue like the Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict
over Nagorno-Karabakh, there is no need to be very wise in this
regard because fertile ground has been created for anti-Azerbaijani
propaganda since Soviet times.
The word "Azerbaijani" almost acquired the meaning "a bad man",
"a nationalist", "a religious fanatic", or "pan-Turkist", although,
in fact, we know that all these definitions are not true about the
vast majority of Azerbaijanis. On the contrary, these are features
that can be found in people of your nationality least of all. But,
as the saying goes, "a lie has short legs". The truth will triumph
one day and all the hype about Gurjian was fabricated in order to
attract audiences and carry out the "order".
And the outcome is that everyone began to talk about this radio
station which no one talked about before. And the journalist is
already famous. You know, there's a saying, I don't remember whose,
"When the good fight evil, the audience often wins." This is exactly
what the "customer" of this "show" needed.
How did Israeli nationals, who are natives of Azerbaijan, take
Solovev's remarks?
People from Azerbaijan understood this whole situation easily from
the very beginning. Everyone remembers that "rumours ran ahead of
the events themselves" in the 1990s and anti-Azerbaijani propaganda
and sentiments were clearly pre-planned.
Therefore, it was clear for former residents of various ethnicities
from Azerbaijan that it is impossible to believe any anti-Azerbaijani
remarks. It is clear to everyone that it was one of the stages in an
information war waged solely to harm the good name of the Azerbaijani
people.
Should state agencies interfere in similar incidents to prevent this
happening again in future? Or is the response of public figures and
journalists to such anti-Azerbaijani remarks satisfactory?
I don't think there are mechanisms able to influence such incidents.
Similarly, I don't think it is possible to go back to the times when
there was a censor and each publication in the press was monitored
by the state. I believe journalists and public organizations and
even individuals who may have their say in defence of a person or an
entire nation should make efforts in this regard. People should simply
understand that everyone can make their own input into the defence of
justice. I do not believe that the good should win with their fists,
but they should certainly not be passive.
Armenians and their sympathizers still dominate in the Russian media,
especially on TV. Can it be said that the information war waged by
Armenia against Azerbaijan is not as bad as it was in the first years
of the Karabakh conflict?
Of course, the situation is not as bad as you described it. But the
Azerbaijani people need to work hard to continue to disseminate facts
about the history and roots of the conflict, write books and articles
on the history of the Karabakh conflict based on documentary evidence,
to create literary and artistic works on this subject, to participate
in international festivals and competitions held on all continents.
They need to use all means to promote a good image of the country
and people across the world.
Unfortunately, it is no secret that propaganda is ahead of history,
but people say that rumour runs ahead of a man and it takes great
effort to win a good name back.
Azerbaijani people believe in good and that truth will win finally.
But the fact is that the Azerbaijani people should not give up the
information war until justice prevails.