Around fifty people today gathered outside the U.N. Office in Yerevan, voicing their concerns that Azerbaijan is pursuing a policy to erase all traces of Armenian culture in Artsakh.

Demonstration organizer Gayaneh Abrahamyan, who eads the For Equal Rights educational center, said Baku has ramped up actions to erase Armenian culture in territories it controls following the 2020 Artsakh war.

"If we do not fight against this today, if we do not bring this issue to the attention of all international structures, mainly UNESCO, we will directly lose the Armenian identity of Artsakh. They want to erase the any Armenian traces in Artsakh," said   Abrahamyan.

An interim ruling of the Hague Tribunal in December 2021 obliges not to implement any act of vandalism against cultural heritage monuments, to exclude their modification, misappropriation, and to punish those for actions already taken.

"The Hague handed down another interim decision noting that any action should be ruled out that will further increase conflict tensions. Now, with this action, they are increasing that tension and violating the Hague decision on two points,” Abrahamyan said, adding that Armenian officials and the Foreign Affairs Ministry must raise the issue at all international forums including the U.N. Security Council.

Abrahamyan said her organization sent a letter to UNESCO last week on the matter.

"All this must be continuously voiced by our partners in the diaspora, by scholars working in Armenian studies departments of different universities. It must be understood that this is not only a cultural issue but has a rather serious long-term political aim. The goal is to finally deprive us of any aspiration towards Artsakh," she said.

By Ani Tamrazyan (YSU Faculty of Journalism student)