Cultural Genocide in Azerbaijan

Ever since the Nagorno-Karabagh war, Azerbaijan adopted a policy of cultural genocide. The Armenian churches of Karabagh and Nakhichevan suddenly became "Albanian churches" to the eyes of the Azerbaijani government, even though Caucasian Albania was located in the north-east of Azerbaijan. Then, Azerbaijan continued by destroying traces of Armenian life in Nakhichevan (an autonomous Azerbaijani exclave). Recently, Azerbaijani troops proceeded by destroying the Armenian khachkars of Jugha/Julfa. They attempted doing this in 1998 and 2000, and now, in 2005.

The Armenians of Jugha were known as rich merchants who traded in India, Holland, and elsewhere. These khachkars were as rich as those Armenians. Some of the stone-crosses were 600 years old. Infortunately, most of them were destroyed last  week.

Here's a video: http://www.hairenik.com/Haireniktv/HA_TV_Clip04.htm

Here are some pictures: http://www.cathcil.org/v04/doc/Photos/Pictures109.htm

Note that it was carried out in an organized way. There were trucks, hammers, and other tools... It was also done during the day, and not during the night. They surely didn't intend to keep this a secret. 

They aren't able to take on the living, so they're disturbing the dead? 

Is this something that the world is supposed to ignore?

ArmenianSurvival,

The funny thing is that they still have claims over Karabagh and Syunik (which is the Armenian province seperating Nakhichevan from Azerbaijan proper). How could the inhabitants of Karabagh live under Azeri rule? It's obvious that the Azerbaijanis would gladly crush Armenians, instead of stone-crosses. 

DayI,

The major Muslim power in the Caucasus was the Safavid Empire, not the Ottoman Empire. Most of the Islamic buildings in Armenia were built by Iranians, not by Azeris (who had more of a tendency to destroy).

As you see in these pictures, Armenians preserve Islamic cultural monuments:

The mosque in Shushi, Karabagh:

Mosque in Yerevan:

But what we get in return is seen in that video.

Let's not hear any of this b/s ok? These "mosques" were nothing more than churches converted into mosques. What happened to all the churches in Turkish Thrace and Western turkey? Of course these are ripped down, just like mosques in Greece were.

Well Infact  half true,I am at Akda�madeni,Yozgat, and here I can see(with  eyes, didnt interest much with number of mosque or church) two mosque, and two church.

One of this church is converted to mosque, other one is a hospital.

They are not used as church, because there are not any christian here, but they are not ripped down too.(Infact I heard  some greeks come here, If can find some, you can ask them)

You can still find a lot church in Turkey, some of them  maintained and turned other building, like mosque, hospital. other notmaintened, but they are hunderds still here, after 100 year.There were not a systamatic destruction against churchs. I cannot say this for greece, how much mosque you have there?

Artaxiad safavids iranians were also turk, and  If looked safavid areas,  you can see most numerous ethnic at safavids are azeris.

I think as much as we own ottoman heritage,  azeris also have safavid heritage.

The Armenian churches of Karabagh and Nakhichevan suddenly became "Albanian churches" to the eyes of the Azerbaijani government,

Just  like azeris mosques becomed persian mosque

By the way, only two mosque? What azeris did is worse than what armenians did,  but armenians also destroyed a lot mosque.

ArmenianSurvival

IIRC 200.000 azeris was exiled from ROA, do you realy think, they had only  one mosque(and It looks like a persian mosque)?  or do you  realy think there were a war,  inside of ROA? so how do we know,  200.000 azeris  lived at ROA?

By the way,  when did that persian mosque built? I didnt know, there were persian people who lived ROA. is  it  new?

There is no war now, the Azeri government is just carrying out rediculous policies.

Yes, I agree  about this.  Attacking historical herritage is  complately a guilt.

     As for mosques inside the Republic of Armenia, there are still mosques. Theres not that many, but if you look at modern churches, they are also very rare. It is hard to find a church in Armenia that has been built within the last 100 years. Most of them are ancient. So if you compare modern mosques with modern churches in Armenia, the Azeris probably had more mosques-per-person than Armenians had churches.

     Also, most of those Azeris were not in the Republic of Armenia, they were in Karabagh and mainly the surrounding regions. If you lived in eastern Turkey and Kurdish rebels militarily took the region, would you stay or fear that you would be killed? I dont think you would stay, I sure wouldnt. The Azeris werent exiled, they started leaving as the Azeri army was slowly being pushed further and further back into Azerbaijan by Armenian forces. Had they stayed, who knows what could have happened. But they chose to leave. Now, it might not have been much of a "choice", but given the circumstances of war, its better to leave than to stick around and find out what happens. If I was an Azeri, I would leave. Likewise if I was an Armenian and the Armenians lost, I would leave as well. Staying under foreign occupation is not a safe thing to do in that part of the world, I'm sure you know that as well as I do. That is why Armenians in Karabagh dont want to be under Azerbaijan, and its why Azeris left the occupied regions of Azerbaijan as their army was leaving, before the Armenians fully took over.

     Also as I said, those 200,000 or so Azeris had only been in the region for around 70 years, and they were still a minority in Karabagh (because most of them were in regions surrounding Karabagh, and not actually in the province). The reason they left is because Armenia also occupies parts of Azerbaijan outside of Karabagh, and im sure those Azeris didnt want to live under Armenian occupation. This is the sad reality of war. Those regions surrounding Karabagh are basically a military buffer, as well as a way of breaking and preventing the Azeri blockade of Armenia and Karabagh. Which Azeri (or human being for that matter) would want to live in a military buffer? Better things are waiting for them in Baku, which is where most of them went. Azeri nationalists accusing Armenians of genocide didnt help, either. Thats why many Azeris left. Although I'm sure there were soldiers who were irresponsible to say the LEAST, there is no evidence whatsoever of exiles or genocide. You can't take a couple of individual atrocities and call it 'genocide', because by that standard, we can say Azeris also committed genocide.

 now that's a funny non-recognized map I'd say, aren't you guys tired of spreading such lies, including the map by the way.

this is no better than what the taleban did.

im sorry, but this action by the azeribaijani army is disgusting. and this goes to anyone who does such things.

iran isnt occuping anything 

proove that we are occuping azerbaijan.

and what does that have to do with cultural genocide?