Armenia’s Eurovision boycott

by Elmira Tariverdiyeva, Baku. Exclusively for VK

Armenia has officially refused to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest hosted by Baku in May 2012. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) expressed disappointment with Armenia’s decision. There is nothing extraordinary in refusal of a state to take part in the song contest. Some other European states had similar initiatives due to the financial recession. However, Armenia is the only state to skip the contest. Yerevan had a rather unusual explanation for its decision.

Initially, Armenia was confident in winning Eurovision in January. But then it urged singers to ignore the contest, as a protest against death of a soldier. Investigation revealed that Albert Adibekyan was killed by his brother-in-arms. But Armenian authorities insist that he was killed by a sniper. Perhaps, Armenia is trying to cover up a murder of the fifth soldier this year.

Artur Grigoyan, Director of the State Song Theater, told the Aykakan Zhamanak paper that he was a co-author of the note on refusal to attend the contest. He said that the serviceman was killed by own comrade, not an Azerbaijani sniper: “It is even greater shame. I get even more enraged by the fact that he was killed by an Armenian”. Nune Yesayan, a candidate for Eurovision, said that murders of soldiers happen every year and have nothing to do with the boycott of the contest: “Such incidents happen every month, some people get remarks, resign, but the cases continue. It happens because of stupidity of young men in the army, they swear at their mothers. These children are so empty-minded that they do not understand that you cannot take a life away because of a quarrel. They say that they serve for the sake of their country, but...”

Despite the truth, Armenia still refuses to attend the contest. The Public Television of Armenia explained the reasons: “There is no logic in sending a singer to the country where he would be viewed as an enemy. It is a fundamental issue”. Authors of the statement express confidence that the atmosphere formed cannot give all singers of the contest equal chances, which is a basic principle.

But it does not really matter where the contest is held, because singers receive votes from all over Europe, not just the population of Azerbaijan. Yerevan’s concern over security of its singers is odd, because it was visited by students, athletes, MPs, political analysts from Armenia. In October 2011, the government of Azerbaijan presented a letter to the EBU, on behalf of Prime Minister Artur Rasizade, about hosting the Eurovision Song Contest in Baku in May 2012, with assurances of security of all guests arriving for the contest and simplification of the visa regime.

Baku regrets that Yerevan does not want to attend the contest, because Armenian singers could contribute to the peoples’ diplomacy of Azerbaijan and Armenia and encourage rapprochement in resolving the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.