On September 2, the Armenian community and prominent figures from the French political and artistic worlds gathered on the steps of Paris City Hall in support of the 11 Armenian hostages being held in Azerbaijan. The event was organized by two representatives of the Coordinating Council of Armenian Organizations in France (CCAF), Ara Toranian and Mourad Papazian, demanding the immediate release of the eleven prominent figures from Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) held captive by the Baku regime, with the support of the European Parliament, the French National Assembly and Senate, as well as the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee.
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That same day, shortly before 10 a.m., even though Paris City Hall was scheduled to participate in the event, we learned that City Hall representatives were forced to withdraw from the event due to threats.
The Mayor of Paris, Emmanuel Grégoire, was called out on Twitter by Azerbaijan’s ambassador to France, Leyla Abdullayeva, who stated that: “Those convicted by the military court in Baku, including former leaders of the puppet regime in Azerbaijan’s Karabakh region, have been found guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
This inquiry addressed to the Mayor follows his statement, an excerpt of which is provided below:
«Madam Ambassador,
Your reaction to the exhibition opening today on the plaza in front of Paris City Hall calls for a few factual clarifications.
Peace between Armenians and Azerbaijanis will not be built by rewriting history or by erasing those who lived through it. The Armenian presence in Nagorno-Karabakh did not begin in 1988 or with the collapse of the USSR. It is part of a history spanning many centuries, attested to in particular by ancient Armenian religious and cultural heritage.
Above all, your account omits a crucial event: the near-total disappearance of the Armenian population from Nagorno-Karabakh in September 2023.
After decades of war, reconciliation is not built through contested trials and the continued detention of representatives of the former adversary, but through acts of reconciliation, foremost among which is their release. »
Jean Eckian