Statement of the Western Azerbaijan Community
07 September 2023, 11:26

Hearings against Azerbaijan were organized at the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission of the US Congress on September 6, and Luis Ocampo, who showed particular zeal in the race of Azerbaijanophobia raging in some Western countries, voiced a number of accusations against Azerbaijan. This once again proves the hypocrisy of the Tom Lantos Commission, its politicization with the abuse of human rights, as well as its participation in a hostile campaign against Azerbaijan carried out by a number of circles.

“We call on the Tom Lantos Commission to abandon blatant meddling in the internal affairs of other countries and to pay attention to issues within the US, such as protecting the rights of Native Americans and addressing excessive use of force by the police.”

The community also called on Juan Mendez, who, along with Luis Ocampo, made baseless accusations against Azerbaijan, to raise the question of why, despite numerous appeals, he wasn't allowed into Guantanamo when he served as the UN Special Rapporteur.

“These hearings further embolden Armenia and revanchist forces, deliberately stoking tensions in the region. Armenia, which for 30 years refused to comply with UN Security Council resolutions and ultimately was defeated by Azerbaijan on the battlefield, now places its hopes on hearings organized by the Tom Lantos Commission, involving 5-10 persons, American rapper Snoop Dogg, and tweets from so-called 'independent' journalists with racist views, such as Lindsey Snell, who conducts a smear campaign against Azerbaijan and Türkiye,” the community noted.

“The Tom Lantos Commission has never shown interest in the severe consequences of Armenian occupation, ethnic cleansing, the suffering of the Azerbaijani people, including the fate of Azerbaijanis deported from Armenia. If the commission was impartial and didn't treat issues through the lens of religious solidarity, it should have organized hearings on the return of Western Azerbaijanis to their ancestral lands in Armenia,” the community added.