Songs instead of politics

Alexei Vlasov. Exclusively to VK

In late May Baku will host the 2012 international Eurovision song contest. The level of preparation is so high that guests of Azerbaijan’s capital should have no doubts – everything will be perfect: from welcoming guests to the technical aspect of the project. At the moment the last preparations are being completed and in few days a number one state of readiness will be declared.

In the year since the victory of the Azerbaijani duet in the musical contest, many experts were concerned with the question – how will this event affect the difficult relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan? On the one hand, it is a chance for a small step toward each other. Youth culture in its “global wrapping” is a thing that should bring neighbouring countries closer. On the other hand, there were views that the musical contest-2012 might become a reason for mutual accusations. In Armenia a serious discussion appeared on the participation in the contest and broadcasting it in the media. There is no one point of view. The official position is more “homogeneous.” But rejection of broadcasting it might put Armenia in a very difficult situation, and Azerbaijan is not the point here, it is about the rules of the game, which were not created in Baku.

Here the question arises – is it necessary to unite politics and a musical party artificially? Probably Eurovision 2012 should be considered as a way to turn away from the past for some time and see that the new generation of 16-20 year-old people has different values and priorities. From this point of view, the contest gives a splendid opportunity for rejecting stereotypes of the past and looking to the future, where popular culture and modern communications make borders between countries disappear. Armenian-Turkish dialogue started from football diplomacy, and sport cannot be blamed for postponing ratification of the protocols.

The authorities of any country in such cases should consider an obvious factor – isolation from an event which is a part of global trends means staying far away from the development process.