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EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT URGED TO ACT ON NAGORNO-KARABAKH DAM THREAT
Sys.con Media
June 21 2013
By PR Newswire
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --
Azerbaijan has called on the European Parliament demanding that
Armenia carry out essential maintenance on a dilapidated dam in
occupied Nagorno-Karabakh that engineers agree is at risk of failure
with potentially catastrophic results.
It has also called on the European Parliament to condemn Armenia
for arresting 11 people near the Tartar River in May who had been
protesting the dam issue. Azerbaijan says the demonstrators have
reportedly been illegally detained and beaten by Armenian soldiers.
At the heart of the protesters' concerns - and those of Azerbaijan -
is the 125 metre high Soviet-built Sarsang dam, which straddles the
Tartar River. It is allegedly long overdue for essential safety checks
and maintenance. According to Azerbaijan, "a remote study made by the
experts of the Department of Water Affairs and the Suyapi company of
Turkey during the spring of 2013 showed that there is a significant
risk of spillage and accident".
The study found that in the event of collapse more than 30 villages
would be flooded, some more than 45 kilometres away from the base of
the dam. Tens of thousands of people live in the areas at risk.
"We call on the Armenian authorities to permit immediate repairs
and maintenance to the Sarsang Dam and Reservoir in order to avoid a
disaster," the Azerbaijan Association for Civil Society Development
said in its plea to the European Parliament.
Of the protest, Azerbaijan said that on May 25 a group of "about 30-40
soldiers attacked and illegally arrested the Azeri citizens". It said
they were punched and kicked with one villager burned with a cigarette.
The letter to the European Parliament calls on it to "condemn the
arrests and torture perpetrated by the Armenian occupiers against
the delegation of Azeri villagers from the Tartar area of Azerbaijan".
Separately, Azerbaijan says an environmental disaster is being
perpetrated by Armenia, which refuses to allow dam water to irrigate
the regions downstream.
"All experts agree that the grave situation of the flora and fauna
of the region, which has been gravely destroyed in the last decade,
is traced to the lack of water and the blockage of the dam by Armenian
authorities," the letter states.
Armenia has yet to respond to the charges relating to the dam and
the recent protest.
http://www.sys-con.com/node/2709650
From: A. Papazian
Sys.con Media
June 21 2013
By PR Newswire
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 21, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --
Azerbaijan has called on the European Parliament demanding that
Armenia carry out essential maintenance on a dilapidated dam in
occupied Nagorno-Karabakh that engineers agree is at risk of failure
with potentially catastrophic results.
It has also called on the European Parliament to condemn Armenia
for arresting 11 people near the Tartar River in May who had been
protesting the dam issue. Azerbaijan says the demonstrators have
reportedly been illegally detained and beaten by Armenian soldiers.
At the heart of the protesters' concerns - and those of Azerbaijan -
is the 125 metre high Soviet-built Sarsang dam, which straddles the
Tartar River. It is allegedly long overdue for essential safety checks
and maintenance. According to Azerbaijan, "a remote study made by the
experts of the Department of Water Affairs and the Suyapi company of
Turkey during the spring of 2013 showed that there is a significant
risk of spillage and accident".
The study found that in the event of collapse more than 30 villages
would be flooded, some more than 45 kilometres away from the base of
the dam. Tens of thousands of people live in the areas at risk.
"We call on the Armenian authorities to permit immediate repairs
and maintenance to the Sarsang Dam and Reservoir in order to avoid a
disaster," the Azerbaijan Association for Civil Society Development
said in its plea to the European Parliament.
Of the protest, Azerbaijan said that on May 25 a group of "about 30-40
soldiers attacked and illegally arrested the Azeri citizens". It said
they were punched and kicked with one villager burned with a cigarette.
The letter to the European Parliament calls on it to "condemn the
arrests and torture perpetrated by the Armenian occupiers against
the delegation of Azeri villagers from the Tartar area of Azerbaijan".
Separately, Azerbaijan says an environmental disaster is being
perpetrated by Armenia, which refuses to allow dam water to irrigate
the regions downstream.
"All experts agree that the grave situation of the flora and fauna
of the region, which has been gravely destroyed in the last decade,
is traced to the lack of water and the blockage of the dam by Armenian
authorities," the letter states.
Armenia has yet to respond to the charges relating to the dam and
the recent protest.
http://www.sys-con.com/node/2709650
From: A. Papazian