Western Azerbaijan Community affirms strict commitment to expelled Azerbaijanis' safe return to their ancestral lands 2024 conclusive meeting / PHOTO

On December 21, Azerbaijani Presidential Administration official Adalat Valiyev and Chairman of Western Azerbaijan Community’s Board Aziz Alakbarov called for continued efforts to protect the rights of Western Azerbaijanis, ensure their safe and dignified return to their ancestral lands, and preserve the region's historical and cultural heritage.

The officials come up with their callings during the annual general meeting of the Western Azerbaijan Community on the results of the current year, Caliber.Az reports, citing local media.

The event began with a tribute to the memory of the great leader Heydar Aliyev, as well as the martyrs who died in the struggle for the homeland, followed by the national anthem.

In his opening speech, Adalat Valiyev, Head of the Department for Relations with Political Parties and Legislative Bodies of the Presidential Administration of the Republic of Azerbaijan, emphasized that the issue of Western Azerbaijan, whose political and legal foundation was first laid by the great leader Heydar Aliyev, has become one of the priorities of state policy thanks to the determination of President Ilham Aliyev. 

He described the meeting between President Ilham Aliyev and the intelligentsia of Western Azerbaijan on December 24, 2022, calling them his family, as a historic event, reinforcing the confidence of the people of Western Azerbaijan in returning safely and honourably to their ancestral lands through peaceful means.

Valiyev noted that the foundation of the Community's work is based on the "Return Concept," which was prepared and adopted by the Western Azerbaijan Community at the request of President Ilham Aliyev. This concept serves as the conceptual basis for the peaceful return to Western Azerbaijan. According to this concept, large-scale efforts are being made both within the country and abroad.

“The Community tirelessly works to protect the rights of hundreds of thousands of its members and to ensure their return to the lands where they were born. As a result, the struggle for the rights of the people of Western Azerbaijan is supported not only by Azerbaijanis worldwide but also by the progressive international community. The participation of more than 100 foreign guests from 51 countries and representatives of the diplomatic corps at the second international conference on the topic 'The Right to Return: Ensuring Justice for Azerbaijanis forcibly expelled from Armenia,' held on December 5-6 this year, is a vivid example of this,” he added.

The representative of the administration described the address by the head of state to the participants of the event and the awarding of a group of active Community members as another historic event. He also highlighted the significant fact that 16 individuals from 10 countries were accepted as honorary members of the Community.

Then, Chairman of the Community's Board, MP Aziz Alakbarov, presented the board’s report. He stated that the main goal of the Community’s multifaceted activities this year was to facilitate the return of compatriots to their ancestral lands, protect historical and cultural monuments destroyed in Armenia, and ensure justice for the damage inflicted on Azerbaijan's intangible cultural heritage during the deportations. He emphasized that the Community will continue to expand its activities to secure the basic rights of their compatriots and expressed gratitude to all the organizations supporting its efforts in this regard.

Reports were also presented by the Chairman of the Community's Audit Commission, Professor Vahid Novruzov, Chairman of the Supervisory Board, Corresponding Member of the National Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan Misir Mardanov, Chairman of the Council of Elders, MP and Academician Ahliman Amiraslanov, Chairman of the Council of Intelligentsia, Professor Elkhan Guseynov, Chairman of the Women's Council, MP Malahat Ibrahimgizi, and Vice Chairman of the Youth Council, MP Kamal Jafarov. They also answered participants' questions.

Later, Adalat Valiyev presented awards to those members of the Community honored by the Orders of President Ilham Aliyev: Fikrat Aliyev received the "Shohrat" Order, Ismat Abbasov received the "For Services to the Fatherland" Order (2nd degree), Dilara Seyidzada and Vagif Shadlinski received the "Honorary Diploma of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan," and Hasan Hasanov was awarded a personal pension by the President of Azerbaijan.

It is important to note that the goal of the annual general meeting, held in line with the Community’s Charter, is to assess the organization's yearly activities, listen to reports on the work done, and define priorities for the coming year.

By Khagan Isayev