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PanARMENIAN.Net
UNESCO should send monitors to South Caucasus, specifically to Nakhijevan
19.10.2007 14:03 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ `Armenia appreciates and respects the
historical-cultural heritage of national minorities, which are within
its territory,' Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian said when
addressing the 34th session UNESCO's General Conference.
`The destruction of timeless monuments in the Soviet period -
monuments belonging to all religions, not just our ancient Christian
churches and monasteries, but also mosques - cannot be undone. We can
only take pride in what we have and protect and preserve them. In
fact, the Cemetery of Riataza, belonging to Armenia's Yezidi
non-Christian minority, Armenian sites on the Great Silk Road and
Yerevan's exquisite, recently restored Blue Mosque are on the waiting
list for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
In our region, borders have changed frequently and peoples have moved
and been moved repeatedly. Armenia's ancient civilization has
established settlements, left behind traces of living communities -
fountains and bridges, churches and massive religious and artistic
sculptures. The fate of those monuments is important for their own
sake, for the sake of artists and historians, but even more so, for
the sake of a world that must remember its history, must remember the
legacy of peoples who have come and gone.
Our interest therefore in the world's cultural heritage is not just
philosophical. It is very much personal. Our history is indeed
intertwined with the history of our neighbors, with their history. We
are dismayed at attempts to ignore this history. We are appalled at
attempts to undo this history.
We are not the only ones who have said from this podium that the
destruction of a people's patrimony is tantamount to destroying their
memory, their history, their identity. Unfortunately, we have
neighbors who have built today's identity on a less than real
history. And we see the trauma and instability that results.
Once again, we urge UNESCO to send monitors to our region,
specifically to Nakhijevan, to see and appropriately judge the
intentional destruction in areas far removed from war and
confrontation,' the Minister said, the RA MFA press office reported
UNESCO should send monitors to South Caucasus, specifically to Nakhijevan
19.10.2007 14:03 GMT+04:00
/PanARMENIAN.Net/ `Armenia appreciates and respects the
historical-cultural heritage of national minorities, which are within
its territory,' Armenian Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian said when
addressing the 34th session UNESCO's General Conference.
`The destruction of timeless monuments in the Soviet period -
monuments belonging to all religions, not just our ancient Christian
churches and monasteries, but also mosques - cannot be undone. We can
only take pride in what we have and protect and preserve them. In
fact, the Cemetery of Riataza, belonging to Armenia's Yezidi
non-Christian minority, Armenian sites on the Great Silk Road and
Yerevan's exquisite, recently restored Blue Mosque are on the waiting
list for inclusion in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
In our region, borders have changed frequently and peoples have moved
and been moved repeatedly. Armenia's ancient civilization has
established settlements, left behind traces of living communities -
fountains and bridges, churches and massive religious and artistic
sculptures. The fate of those monuments is important for their own
sake, for the sake of artists and historians, but even more so, for
the sake of a world that must remember its history, must remember the
legacy of peoples who have come and gone.
Our interest therefore in the world's cultural heritage is not just
philosophical. It is very much personal. Our history is indeed
intertwined with the history of our neighbors, with their history. We
are dismayed at attempts to ignore this history. We are appalled at
attempts to undo this history.
We are not the only ones who have said from this podium that the
destruction of a people's patrimony is tantamount to destroying their
memory, their history, their identity. Unfortunately, we have
neighbors who have built today's identity on a less than real
history. And we see the trauma and instability that results.
Once again, we urge UNESCO to send monitors to our region,
specifically to Nakhijevan, to see and appropriately judge the
intentional destruction in areas far removed from war and
confrontation,' the Minister said, the RA MFA press office reported