Azerbaijani MP addresses letter to PACE President
Mrs. Anne Brasseur,
President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe,
Copy:
All PACE Bureau members,
Mr. Wojciech Sawicki,
Secretary-General of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
For information:
Mr. Thorbjørn Jagland,
Secretary General of the Council of Europe
Baku, 17 April 2015
Mrs. President,
I am perplexed by your press release entitled “PACE President welcomes Armenia?s steady advancement on path of reform?, as published under your name on the official PACE-website yesterday 15 April.
Mrs.
Anne Brasseur,
President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe,
Copy:
All PACE Bureau members,
Mr. Wojciech Sawicki,
Secretary-General of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
For information:
Mr. Thorbjørn Jagland,
Secretary General of the Council of
Europe
Baku,
17 April 2015
Mrs.
President,
I am perplexed by your press
release entitled “PACE President welcomes Armenia?s steady advancement on path
of reform?, as published under your name on the official PACE-website yesterday
15 April.
In this press text you mention twice so-called
“Nagorno-Karabakh conflict?, in these wordings, whereas the PACE ? organisation which you officially
represent ? repeatedly confirmed in its leading bodies to officially mention
this so-called conflict as “the
occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh and seven other territories of Azerbaijan?.
We do realize that your Secretary-General Mr
Sawicki, as head of the PACE-administration being editor-in-chief of all PACE press
texts, keeps denying clear decisions by PACE-bodies in this regard. Until
today, indeed all PACE press releases on this issue mention the Armenian formulation,
not the PACE formulation (which is also complying with formulations by other
international organizations!).
As you will for sure remember, the precise
wordings of the title of a report on this issue were the object of a very
intense and long-lasting debate within the PACE?s Bureau, as every single word
has indeed its political importance for all parties concerned in this delicate
issue. Eventually the following formulation was adopted with large majority in
the Bureau: “(Escalation of violence in)?Nagorno-Karabakh and the other occupied territories of Azerbaijan?.
On 17 March in Paris an Armenian representative
in the Monitoring Committee, as well as according to the information obtained
from media, Armenian President, Speaker of the Parliament, and other officials
during your official visit to Armenia between 13-15th April tried to
reopen the debate, by attacking you and to change this formulation again,
so-called ?simplifying? it into “The
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict?, precisely as you formulate in your press
release! A similar Armenian attempt few weeks before in Strasbourg, within the
Political Affairs Committee, was also turned down with an overwhelming
majority.
All these Armenian attempts in Bureau, Political
Affairs Committee and Monitoring Committee to deny reality of armed occupation of
Nagorno-Karabakh and other Azerbaijani territories eventually only resulted in
a waste of precious time and energy within these PACE bodies. But apparently
you, as President of PACE, only you keep advocating publicly the Armenian
thesis, going straight against clear decisions by all these leading PACE
bodies.
In the same yesterday?s press release however,
you emphasized, and I quote: “As
President, it is my duty to guarantee the implementation of decisions taken by
Assembly bodies?. You do understand how perplexed I am by your openly contradictory
attitude.
Therefore, allow me to strongly call on you
and on your authority as President, to correct the above-mentioned press
release and to have all future PACE press texts on this issue complying with the
PACE Bureau?s formulation.
Allow me to remind you that you have the power
to overrule your Secretary-General as editor-in-chief of PACE press releases,
who?s aim is clearly to implement his private Armenian-inspired political
agenda through these one-sided and incorrect press texts, thus affecting your
good name as President and the good reputation of PACE.
All of us know that PACE home page press
releases ? not being officially approved PACE documents, but written under the
absolute control of just one single man! ? have often more impact on public
opinion than huge reports and tough resolutions, so let?s be very serious about
this!
In general, as President you are for sure
aware that the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe should not
undermine its credibility by using contradictory political terminologies on any
delicate topic. You will for sure agree that uniformity in PACE?s political
terminology, complying with official PACE decisions, is essential in this
respect.
Finally, I thank you in advance both for your
answer, which will be clarifying for sure, as for truly ensuring very precise
implementation of decisions taken by Assembly bodies on this issue in the
future.
With my
highest consideration,
Elkhan Suleymanov
Member of Azerbaijani Delegation to PACE
