Baku reports destruction of religious monuments in occupied territories to intl. organizations
By Jamila Babayeva
The State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations of Azerbaijan has submitted documents on destruction of religious monuments in the occupied territories to international organizations, chairman of the committee, Elshad Iskandarov, told reporters on December 10.
He said the necessary information were also submitted to the international centers for preparing reports.
Iskandarov believes that the activity of religious communities is also needed to create a unified international opinion on this issue.
"We have submitted information to international organizations about violations of religious rights, destruction of monuments belonging to the Islamic religion and the Albanian church in the Armenian-occupied territories, which are an integral part of Azerbaijan," Iskandarov said. "I think it will bring a reaction of not only international organizations, but also all international religious institutions,"
Armenian armed forces have occupied 20 percent of Azerbaijan since 1992, including the Nagorno-Karabakh region and seven surrounding districts. Armenia constantly violates a ceasefire agreement signed with Azerbaijan in 1994 and refuses to implement the U.N. Security Council's four resolutions on the liberation of the Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding regions.
Over 350 cultural monuments, cemeteries, and mosques are in the Azerbaijani lands occupied by Armenia.
"Azerbaijan will continue to defend the rights of ethnic and religious minorities and communities," Iskandarov said at a conference on "Human Rights and the relationship between state and religion in Azerbaijan" organized by the State Committee on the 65th anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by UN General Assembly.
"In 2012 and 2013, the State Committee organized about 50 events on human rights. These activities that mainly focused on women's rights, the rights of religious and ethnic minorities, religious communities, children of members of the religious community, and in particular homeless children, will continue in future," he explained.
Iskandarov also noted that Azerbaijan have taken important steps in protecting human rights and freedoms.
"By continuing Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev's policy, which was laid down by the national leader Heydar Aliyev, Azerbaijan carries out work to protect the rights of religious communities and provide them necessary state support," Iskandarov said.
"If there were no state, then no human rights - including freedom of religion - could be respected in chaos," the head of the State Committee stated.
"There is tolerance in Azerbaijan, which is an example to the world. We must not only talk about this tolerance, but also demonstrate it with our actions in real life," Iskandarov said.
The conference was attended by members of the Parliament, the heads of religious confessions of Azerbaijan, chairmen of the religious communities and religious leaders, as well as specialists in the field of human rights protection.
Participants discussed the measures carried out in the country in the field of freedom of conscience, as well as questions about the role of religious communities in the protection of human rights.