Tweet
ORDINARY GENOCIDE: NEW DOCUMENTARY SHEDS MORE LIGHT ON ETHNIC CLEANSINGS AGAINST ARMENIANS IN AZERBAIJAN
By Gohar Abrahamyan
ArmeniaNow
23.03.12 | 13:40
Marina Grigoryan (center), Larisa Alaverdyan (right)
A documentary telling about ethnic cleansings of Armenians in
Karabakh has been produced within the framework of the Ordinary
Genocide project by the Public Relations and Information Center of
the president's staff. Its director says the film is "a condemnation
of crime against humanity".
Enlarge Photo
The infamous operation Ring, better known as Koltso, was plotted and
implemented by the Soviet army and Azeri militia task force, OMON,
from April 1 to August 20, 1991, with the purpose of displacing the
Armenian population from as many of their settlements in and around
Karabakh as possible, and at the same time spread fear and suppress
the national liberation movement.
Marina Grigoryan, creative director and author of the documentary
titled Artsakh, which is the first part of the "Operation Ring:
April-August, 1991" film, says the operation was the last
crime Azerbaijan perpetrated against the civilians of Artsakh
[Nagorno-Karabakh] and Armenia, before the start of active hostilities.
In the process some 100 people were killed in the villages of
Nagorno-Karabakh, around 10,000 were displaced, more than 600 were
taken prisoner, abused and tortured, part of whom went missing and
their fates remain unknown.
Grigoryan says the film has unique video fragments that have not been
shown anywhere until now.
"A number of international organizations have documented records of
the events of the operation Ring; there are also many testimonies of
foreign eyewitnesses. All these records, documents, as well as rare
archive video footages, interviews with eyewitnesses are featured in
this documentary," she says.
Project co-author, MP Larisa Alaverdyan says with regret that many in
Armenia and Arstakh do not know about this operation, but hopes that
the film will serve as a good source of information to raise public
awareness of the tragic events.
"At the] time of such unrestrained information war, we have to find
our word and have our say in it, too. Films such as this can serve
that very purpose, so we have to use this opportunity and voice the
truth so that the world can see it," says Alaverdyan.
Ara Saghatelyan, in charge of the Public Relations and Information
Center, says the project is of great importance and will be continuous,
translating these films and making them reach as large an audience
as possible.
"These documentaries create a proper ground both for our diplomatic
representatives in other countries while advocating and presenting
the Armenian position, the Armenian side of the events, and for
non-governmental structures to present our position and the truth in
other countries and to uninformed circles," says Saghatelyan.
This is the fourth film of the series produced as part of Ordinary
Genocide project, the other three being "Baku, January, 1990",
"Sumgait, February, 1988", and "Maragha, April 10, 1992".
The next documentary will be Pat II of operation Ring, telling about
Soviet Armenia, since the operation covered not only Nagorno-Karabakh,
but also the border regions of Soviet Armenia.
The premier of Part I will be on March 29, aired right after midnight
(12:10 a.m.) by H1 Public TV, which besides Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh
and Javakhk (Georgia), is broadcast in Europe, North America and
Australia.
By Gohar Abrahamyan
ArmeniaNow
23.03.12 | 13:40
Marina Grigoryan (center), Larisa Alaverdyan (right)
A documentary telling about ethnic cleansings of Armenians in
Karabakh has been produced within the framework of the Ordinary
Genocide project by the Public Relations and Information Center of
the president's staff. Its director says the film is "a condemnation
of crime against humanity".
Enlarge Photo
The infamous operation Ring, better known as Koltso, was plotted and
implemented by the Soviet army and Azeri militia task force, OMON,
from April 1 to August 20, 1991, with the purpose of displacing the
Armenian population from as many of their settlements in and around
Karabakh as possible, and at the same time spread fear and suppress
the national liberation movement.
Marina Grigoryan, creative director and author of the documentary
titled Artsakh, which is the first part of the "Operation Ring:
April-August, 1991" film, says the operation was the last
crime Azerbaijan perpetrated against the civilians of Artsakh
[Nagorno-Karabakh] and Armenia, before the start of active hostilities.
In the process some 100 people were killed in the villages of
Nagorno-Karabakh, around 10,000 were displaced, more than 600 were
taken prisoner, abused and tortured, part of whom went missing and
their fates remain unknown.
Grigoryan says the film has unique video fragments that have not been
shown anywhere until now.
"A number of international organizations have documented records of
the events of the operation Ring; there are also many testimonies of
foreign eyewitnesses. All these records, documents, as well as rare
archive video footages, interviews with eyewitnesses are featured in
this documentary," she says.
Project co-author, MP Larisa Alaverdyan says with regret that many in
Armenia and Arstakh do not know about this operation, but hopes that
the film will serve as a good source of information to raise public
awareness of the tragic events.
"At the] time of such unrestrained information war, we have to find
our word and have our say in it, too. Films such as this can serve
that very purpose, so we have to use this opportunity and voice the
truth so that the world can see it," says Alaverdyan.
Ara Saghatelyan, in charge of the Public Relations and Information
Center, says the project is of great importance and will be continuous,
translating these films and making them reach as large an audience
as possible.
"These documentaries create a proper ground both for our diplomatic
representatives in other countries while advocating and presenting
the Armenian position, the Armenian side of the events, and for
non-governmental structures to present our position and the truth in
other countries and to uninformed circles," says Saghatelyan.
This is the fourth film of the series produced as part of Ordinary
Genocide project, the other three being "Baku, January, 1990",
"Sumgait, February, 1988", and "Maragha, April 10, 1992".
The next documentary will be Pat II of operation Ring, telling about
Soviet Armenia, since the operation covered not only Nagorno-Karabakh,
but also the border regions of Soviet Armenia.
The premier of Part I will be on March 29, aired right after midnight
(12:10 a.m.) by H1 Public TV, which besides Armenia, Nagorno-Karabakh
and Javakhk (Georgia), is broadcast in Europe, North America and
Australia.