Old and New Videos Containing Hostility Towards Armenians Spread in Azerbaijan's Media Space, Ombudsman

Amid the humanitarian disaster in Nagorno-Karabakh, old and new videos, photos, and other publications containing enmity and hate against Armenians are actively spreading in Azerbaijan's media space and social platforms. These are accompanied by comments from Azerbaijani society that express anti-Armenian sentiments and incite hate, praising violations of human rights committed by the Azerbaijani armed forces, both by military personnel and civilians, including war crimes and atrocities.

The ombudsman reiterates that such intolerant attitudes in Azerbaijani society are a consequence and evidence of the Azerbaijani authorities' policies of hatred towards Armenians and ethnic cleansing.

Moreover, the existence of propaganda inciting ethnic hatred against Armenians in Azerbaijan has also been documented by international human rights monitoring bodies, particularly in the concluding observations of the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) on Azerbaijan's periodic reports from September 22, 2022, and the report by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) from March 29, 2023.

Both the committee and the commission expressed concern over incitement of racial hatred against persons of Armenian descent in public discussions, both in the media and on social networks, as well as in the speeches of political and public figures. Additionally, the utilization of discriminatory language against ethnic Armenians in school textbooks and the promotion of intolerance were deemed concerning.

In this regard, ECRI noted the prevalence of hate speech against Armenians among youth, both in and outside schools, emphasizing that it could create fertile ground for further military actions.

ECRI also highlighted the presence of aggressive rhetoric against ethnic Armenians in Azerbaijani society, including from officials, noting that although the Azerbaijani authorities argue that negative attitudes are directed not at Armenians per se but at decision-makers, the border between criticism aimed at Armenian decision-makers and hate speech against Armenians has become blurred, making their separation practically impossible.

The ombudsman stresses that Azerbaijan's dangerous policy of anti-Armenianism should be a focus of organizations with a human rights protection mandate, considering that this entrenched dangerous phenomenon in society, resulting from systemic policies carried out over many years, cannot be eradicated solely through verbal denunciation by Azerbaijani authorities; rather, systematic and serious practical procedures must be implemented in this direction.

Taking into account the important role of national human rights institutions in addressing human rights related issues, including the challenges mentioned, the Armenian Human Rights Defender continuously monitors various manifestations of hate and is persistent in activating tools to overcome this phenomenon.