Statement by the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev on the occasion of the opening of the monument to Ashik Alesker – the great master, genius of Azerbaijani poetry and a bright face of the Goyce ashik school
30 September 2024, 18:28

Today, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev opened a monument to the prominent folk artist, genius of Azerbaijani poetry and bright representative of the Goycha ashug school Ashug Alasgar (1821-1926) in the center of Baku and delivered a historic speech at the ceremony on the issue of the return of Azerbaijanis expelled from Western Azerbaijan.

It should be noted that Ashug Alasgar lived and worked in Western Azerbaijan, in one of the historical centers of Azerbaijani ashug art - the Goycha mahal, with inimitable artistic and aesthetic mastery he created works reflecting the spirit of our people and brought new breath to the thousand-year-old traditions of ozan-ashug art.

Despite the expulsion of the entire population of Goychi by the Dashnak government of Armenia in 1918, who were forced to live as refugees until 1921, and the subsequent strong pressure from the Armenian SSR, the Goychi ashug school developed in Soviet times. Invaluable services in this matter belonged to the national leader Heydar Aliyev. It was thanks to his personal efforts that the 150th anniversary of Ashugh Alesker was held in the USSR at the state level, and a tombstone was erected in his native village of Agkilse. Unfortunately, the Armenian government destroyed this monument, as well as most examples of Azerbaijani cultural heritage.

In the mahallas of Western Azerbaijan, one of the centers of Azerbaijani culture, literature, art, where Azerbaijanis once constituted the majority, as a result of ethnic cleansing, not a single Azerbaijani remained, the Azerbaijani cultural heritage there was seriously damaged.

The active patronage of President Ilham Aliyev over the heritage of Ashugh Alesker also serves as an indicator of his attention to the issue of returning to Western Azerbaijan, Azerbaijani culture, literature and art, which suffered from the occupation, ethnic cleansing and racial discrimination carried out by Armenia. The President’s deep awareness of the difficult life of Ashugh Alesker, who was in the position of a refugee, which can be seen in his speech, serves as an expression of his great concern for the fate of Western Azerbaijanis.

The celebration of the 200th anniversary of Ashugh Alesker in accordance with the Order of President Ilham Aliyev, and the inclusion of ashugh art in the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage List at the initiative of First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva played an invaluable role in perpetuating the work of Ashugh Alesker as a universal value.

The head of state’s expression of confidence in the return of Western Azerbaijanis to their native lands is a great source of motivation for us. The liberation of Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur, the implementation of the Great Return program there testify to the fact that the day is not far off when we will return to our native lands.

We, the West Azerbaijan Community, fully support the calls of President Ilham Aliyev for the restoration of justice, the unity of our people, and their unbending spirit. We will continue to actively participate in all actions taken by our state to ensure a peaceful, dignified and safe return to our native lands.

As follows from the President's speech, the life of Ashyg Alasgar embodies the fate of all Western Azerbaijanis. Although the patriotic poet, committed to the word, art, and humanistic values, was expelled from his native land, he did not lose heart, returned to his native land at the age of 100, restored his burnt house and lived in it until the end of his life. We do not lose heart, we will return, as we did in 1921.

We once again express our deep gratitude to President Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva for their attention and care for the legacy of Ashugh Alasgar and the Azerbaijani ashugh art in general. We are confident that thanks to national unity and will, we will turn over the unfair pages of history and return to our native lands.

The words with which the President concluded his speech serve as historical expressions that are the message of our return: “The erection of a monument to a prominent representative of Western Azerbaijanis today is, of course, first of all, a sign of respect of the Azerbaijani people for the memory of Ashugh Alasgar. However, at the same time, this monument is an event calling on all Western Azerbaijanis and the entire Azerbaijani people to unite again for a common goal. We are looking forward to this day, we believe. I believe and you believe. The day will come when we will restore the monument to Ashugh Alasgar destroyed by the Armenians and hold a similar ceremony in the village of Aghkilse.”

We, Western Azerbaijanis, believe in our return!