Western Azerbaijan Community demands Swiss MPs recognise rights of expelled Azerbaijanis

The Western Azerbaijan Community has issued a statement expressing strong condemnation of a request sent on September 19 by a group of MPs from the Swiss Federal Assembly, led by Erich Vontobel, to the Swiss government.

This request, characterized by biased and provocative statements, contains unfounded accusations against Azerbaijan, the community said, Caliber.Az reports. 

Highlighting the contentious nature of the request, the community pointed to references made to reports by Luis Moreno Ocampo, who is seen as having a pro-Armenian stance and allegations of corruption. This aspect further underscores the questionable intentions behind the Swiss MPs' actions.

“Swiss MPs are not concerned about the crimes committed by Armenia against Azerbaijanis, including the expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis from that country and the displacement of around 800,000 people from lands it occupied for 30 years. Their blatant silence in response to the gross violation of the rights of Azerbaijanis and the systematic destruction of Azerbaijani cultural heritage in Armenia and the formerly occupied territories clearly demonstrates the biased position of the Swiss parliamentarians,” the community stated.

Furthermore, the community expressed concern over the potential ramifications of the Swiss MPs' initiative: “This initiative, based on distorted information, undermines peace and stability in the region and serves to incite ethnic conflict. We strongly condemn such initiatives aimed against the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Republic of Azerbaijan.”

In closing, the community urged members of the Swiss Federal Assembly to recognize the return right of expelled Azerbaijanis: “The West Azerbaijan Community calls on the members of the Swiss Federal Assembly to recognise the right of Azerbaijanis expelled from Armenia to return to their homeland and act in this matter in accordance with the requirements of international law.”