MINELRES: Lider TV: Azeri scholar takes dim view of pan-Caucasian history textbook

[Felix Corley]

Azeri scholar takes dim view of pan-Caucasian history textbook
Lider TV, Baku, in Azeri 0900 gmt 27 Jan 03

Presenter in studio The Council of Europe's representative office in
Georgia is working on a textbook on the history of the Caucasus. According
to the project initiated by Tbilisi, the textbook is intended to
facilitate conflict solution in the Caucasus.

Correspondent over video of children sitting in classroom According to the
Tbilisi-initiated project, a new textbook on the history of the Caucasus
will be taught at secondary schools in Azerbaijan, Armenia, Georgia and
Russia as of next year. The book is envisaged for senior schoolchildren.
The preparation of the book is to be tackled by the Ministries of
Education of the mentioned countries. Therefore, should the project be
implemented, our students will have to learn Armenian history as well. But
do they want to know the enemy's history? First student No, I don't.

Second student No, because the atrocities committed by the Armenian
Dashnaks in Azerbaijan will never be forgotten. So there is no point in
learning their history.

Third student Yes, because it is necessary to know the history of the
enemy.

Fourth student Yes, because that way we can defeat them more easily.

Correspondent The Azerbaijani Ministry of Education does not believe that
the project will succeed either. The head of the ministry's department,
Bayram Huseynzada, says that this issue was already discussed several
years ago, but it didn't go any further than discussions. If we can write
the history of the Caucasus, that means that there is no Nagornyy Karabakh
problem. But we can't say that yet. End quote.

The reason the project was not implemented back in 1997 were differences
in historians' opinions.

Historian Yaqub Mahmudov, captioned, sitting in office I have been
objecting to this since 1997. Our neighbours are not ready for a book like
that. They have distorted history and want to appropriate Azerbaijani
lands. With this attitude and world outlook, this is out of the question.

Correspondent According to Yaqub Mahmudov, a text-book on the history of
the Caucasus can be written only when the Armenians recognize historical
and scientific facts. Safura Carkazqizi. Esmira Xalilova, Sabuhi Asgarov,
Lider TV.

Copyright 2003 Lider & BBC