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Exhibition dedicated to life in Azerbaijani IDP camps opens in Berlin

3 November 2014 11:42 (UTC+04:00)
Exhibition dedicated to life in Azerbaijani IDP camps opens in Berlin

"The Unresolved Dreams: Azerbaijan's Refugees and IDPs" exhibition opened in Berlin, featuring photographs of Azerbaijani refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) taken by renowned US photojournalist Ed Kashi.

The event supported by the German office of The European Azerbaijan Society (TEAS) was held on 30 October, AzerTag state news agency reported.

Over 1 million refugees and IDPs have been residing in camps across Azerbaijan for over 20 years since they were forcibly expelled from Nagorno-Karabakh and the seven surrounding districts by Armenian forces, which continue to illegally occupy this territory.

Each day is a struggle for these people, all of whom long to return to their ancestral homeland. Despite international condemnation of this occupation, including the passing of four UN Security Council resolutions against Armenia, this ongoing situation receives negligible attention from the European media.

This led Ed Kashi, who has contributed to the National Geographic Magazine, New York Times, Time and Newsweek, to turn his lens on the everyday lives of these IDPs and refugees. The images serve to capture their challenges, but also their hopes and the resilience of the human spirit.

Ed Kashi visited Azerbaijan for the project in June 2013 and the resultant photo exhibition opened in London around a year later. It then travelled to Paris, and is now being presented in Berlin.

Speaking at the event, Ed Kashi said: "With the topic of IDPs and refugees currently growing in importance across many parts of the world, it is important that we do not forget these people who have been suffering from the Armenian occupation of their homeland for over 20 years. Azerbaijan has one of the largest IDP populations in the world. Through my work, I am expressing a responsibility for these people, so it is a great honour to present this in Berlin today."

Director of TEAS Germany Shahin Namati-Nasab in turn said: "The fate of more than 1 million and refugees who were illegally expelled from their homes by Armenian forces must not be forgotten. However, it is often not easy to understand such topics as war and the plight of refugees and IDPs from afar. It is easier to comprehend the human dimension through art, and that is why we are glad to support Ed Kashi's photographic exhibition. We are particularly gratified that there is such a great interest in the opening, with more than 400 guests in attendance."

The project is supported by the VII Photo Agency, co-founded by Ed, and by TEAS, which aims to develop European-Azerbaijani relations regarding culture, politics and economics on a pan-European scale.

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