Azerbaijan calls for revocation of Gorbachev’s peace prize “A perpetrator cannot be a Nobel Peace laureate”

The Azerbaijani public is calling for Mikhail Gorbachev to be stripped of his Nobel Peace Prize. Representatives of Azerbaijan’s civil society, public activists, family members of the victims of the January 20 events, and veterans have sent an open letter to the chair and members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee. The letter requests the revocation of the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Mikhail Gorbachev in 1990.

The letter emphasises that Gorbachev bears direct responsibility for the January 20, 1990 tragedy, when Soviet troops, acting on his orders, conducted a military operation in Baku, resulting in the mass killing of 150 civilians and numerous injuries. These events have been recognised as crimes against humanity.

The authors of the appeal argue that awarding the Nobel Peace Prize to Gorbachev following these events insults the memory of the victims and undermines the moral authority of the prize. They expressed hope that the committee will make a decision to restore justice by revoking Gorbachev’s award, thereby reinforcing the global public’s trust in Nobel values.

What significance could this hold for Azerbaijan and other post-Soviet countries? What impact would such an event have? What consequences might it carry on the international stage?

Foreign experts shared their opinions on this matter with Caliber.Az.

Russian political scientist, Doctor of Political Sciences, Candidate of Philosophical Sciences, and diplomat Tatyana Poloskova stated that in 2013, she was among a group of representatives of the Russian intelligentsia who wrote an appeal to the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, demanding that Mikhail Gorbachev be stripped of the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called.

"Let me remind you that on May 3, 2012, outgoing Russian President Dmitry Medvedev awarded former USSR President Mikhail Gorbachev the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called, the highest honour of the Russian Federation. This award was accompanied by a statement: 'I believe this is an appropriate recognition of the significant work you carried out as the head of state. I see this as a symbol of respect for the state you led, for the state that was our common homeland — the Soviet Union.' Personally, I do not consider Mikhail Gorbachev a subject of national pride and openly expressed this opinion in the aforementioned appeal while he was still alive, as did my colleagues. Unfortunately, our request went unanswered and triggered a wave of criticism from the so-called liberal camp. However, I do not regret it and remain convinced that Gorbachev should have been stripped of all Soviet awards as someone responsible for the dissolution of the USSR," the diplomat noted.

Regarding the Azerbaijani public's call to revoke Gorbachev's Nobel Peace Prize, awarded to him in 1990, she expressed her full agreement with this demand.

"Gorbachev's order to deploy Soviet troops to suppress the protests in Baku is not just a crime against humanity. Renowned Soviet filmmaker Stanislav Govorukhin described that military operation against its own population as follows: 'Soviet troops entered the territory of their own state. But they entered as occupiers.'

What will be the reaction of the Norwegian Nobel Committee? Let’s start with the legal aspect of the matter. The procedure for revoking the Nobel Peace Prize is not stipulated in Alfred Nobel's will or in the statutes of the Nobel Foundation. Detailed explanations on this issue can be found on the official website Nobelprize.org. At one point, media reports were suggesting a precedent of Barack Obama being stripped of his Nobel Peace Prize. However, this information turned out to be false," the doctor explained.

That said, she noted, there has been significant public criticism in various countries regarding the selection of individuals who have received the Nobel Peace Prize, and such grievances are regularly brought to the attention of the Norwegian Committee.

"In my opinion, the activities of the Norwegian Nobel Committee have long taken on a politicized character. When reviewing candidates, decisions are often influenced by current political trends, leading to rather unpleasant outcomes. For instance, Myanmar politician Aung San Suu Kyi, 25 years after receiving the prize, was accused of genocide against the Rohingya Muslim minority. Barack Obama received the award within the first months of his presidency, when it was far too early to assess the results of his work. And these are far from the only examples.

The question of revoking Gorbachev’s Peace Prize was already raised in 2021. At the time, Russian State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin stated that the absence of a procedure for withdrawing the Peace Prize could discredit it. In his Telegram channel, Volodin argued that such a procedure could restore trust in the award. He noted that there are no questions about Nobel Prizes in fundamental sciences, as their criteria are clear. However, in the case of the Peace Prize, there is a lack of clear criteria and evaluations. According to Volodin, the policies of the first and only president of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev, 'led to the division of peoples and the greatest geopolitical catastrophe of the 20th century—the collapse of the USSR.'

I am confident that the appeal by the Azerbaijani public could play a crucial role in setting a precedent for revoking the Peace Prize. It is essential to unite the efforts of all interested organizations and influential figures. A perpetrator cannot be a laureate of the Peace Prize. The initiative by the Azerbaijani community will garner support from many people across the world who believe in the triumph of historical justice," Poloskova asserted.

"The Azerbaijani people have the moral, and not only moral, but also political and ethical right to make such a decision," said Doctor of Military and Political Sciences, Professor Vakhtang Maisaya (Tbilisi). "I believe that for Azerbaijan, these were very tragic days. I was a student at that time, and I vividly remember the pain and tragedy of the Azerbaijani people, which we all also felt. The Georgian people extended their sincere condolences to their neighbouring nation. It was a great disaster for the Azerbaijani people. And I believe that for this reason, Azerbaijan has every right to demand the revocation of this worldwide award from the late Mikhail Gorbachev."

He is also convinced that Mikhail Gorbachev is responsible for the massacre orchestrated by the Soviet leadership a year earlier, on April 9, 1989, in Tbilisi.

"I believe that the Georgian people will fully support this call from the Azerbaijani people to the Nobel Committee.

Once again, I want to express my deep condolences to the families of those who sacrificed their lives for the independence and statehood of the Republic of Azerbaijan. I believe that this demand from the Azerbaijani public is a clear manifestation of the state responsibility of the Azerbaijani people towards those individuals who committed this crime. Such a crime must always be remembered, and it will never be forgiven," said Maisaya.