While under Soviet rule, and soon after the massacres of Sumgait in 1988, the citizens of Artsakh passed a referendum to join Armenia. In 1991, another referendum was passed to establish the Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh) Autonomous Republic. At no point has Artsakh been a part of Azerbaijan, which declared its independence later in 1991.
With those referenda, the people of Artsakh unequivocally expressed their intention to live freely and with the right to self-determination on their lands – just as the American revolutionaries did 220 years before.
Massacres and killing of civilians, systemic destruction of centuries-old churches, desecration of cemeteries, and attempts to erase traces of the millennia-old presence of Armenians in the region clearly establish Azerbaijan’s continued intent of ethnic cleansing and genocide.
The atrocities committed by the Republic of Azerbaijan, fueled by systemic and deep hatred towards Armenians, make it impossible for any arrangement which renders Artsakh under the control of Azerbaijan.
Therefore, we declare our unbreakable solidarity with our brothers and sisters in Artsakh and call on the Armenian government and the international community to resist and block any effort to cede control of Artsakh to Azerbaijan, lest they wish to be remembered as co-perpetrators of yet another ethnic cleansing event in recent history.
The brave people of Artsakh deserve the right to self-determination and to live peacefully and with dignity in their homeland.
We stand in solidarity with the people of Artsakh.
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation Eastern Region (ARF) Central Committee
Armenian Youth Federation-Youth Organization of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation Eastern Region (AYF-YOARF) Central Executive
Armenian Relief Society of Eastern USA Board of Regional Directors
Homenetmen Armenian General Athletic Union Eastern Region Executive
Hamazkayin Armenian Educational & Cultural Association Eastern Region Executive
May 5, 2022
Guest Contributor armenianweekly
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