01 November 2023 18:40

The address by President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mr. Ilham Aliyev to the participants of the international conference on “Neocolonialism: Human Rights Violations and Injustice,” held in Baku on 20 October 2023, has been circulated as documents of the UN General Assembly and the Security Council.

The address emphasized that it is gratifying that representatives of 14 countries representing various continents, as well as representatives of territories fighting for justice, gathered in Baku to condemn the policy of colonialism still continuing in the 21st century, and to conduct systematic and consistent work and organize themselves towards its elimination.

It was stated that when Azerbaijan assumed the chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan declared that he would build his priorities and activities on the historic Bandung principles, and that one of the issues discussed during the Bandung Conference was the fight against colonialism.

It was stated that despite nearly 70 years having passed since the Bandung Conference, France is one of the countries that still continues colonialism, and that France, which occupied dozens of countries in Africa, Southeast Asia, the Pacific Ocean and Latin America, plundered their wealth and kept their peoples in captivity for many years, committed numerous military crimes and crimes against humanity in those territories, and that the French armed forces subjected hundreds of thousands of peaceful residents to genocide on the basis of their ethnic and religious affiliation.

It was stated that France is also one of the countries that has used the most mines in the world, that it planted more than 5 million mines in the territory of Algeria alone, and that as a result, like Azerbaijan, Algeria is among the countries most affected by mine explosions in the world.

It was emphasized that after France, its close ally Armenia comes next on this list, and that as a result of mines planted by Armenia in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan, nearly 340 Azerbaijanis have become mine victims in the last 3 years alone, and it was noted that one of the reasons that binds these two countries so closely is that both have experience in engaging in mine terror.

It was emphasized that although centuries have passed, since the mindset has not changed, the shameful new methods of French colonialism continue today, that the peoples of overseas territories who gathered at the conference in Baku have been fighting for independence for many years, but France, which cannot give up its colonial history, does not respect the aspirations for freedom and the rights of peoples living outside Europe, in its overseas communities and territories in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, and tries in every possible way to prevent the realization of these aspirations.

It was stated that natural resources are being plundered in French Guiana and 90% of its lands are owned by the French state, that the local population in Martinique and Guadeloupe is being assimilated through covert and illegal settlement, that France refuses to recognize the sovereignty of the Union of the Comoros over Mayotte Island, and that a referendum was held in New Caledonia without the participation of half of the population, and in this way, the right of the people of New Caledonia to be independent was taken away. It was stated that France, which does not accept the concept of ethnic minorities and bans the Corsican language, is trying to present itself as a defender of national minorities in our region.

It was emphasized that, in parallel with neocolonial tendencies, racism and Islamophobia are also observed to be spreading widely in France, and that the French authorities, which should fight such worrying and dangerous tendencies within the country, are trying to lecture other states and interfere in the internal affairs of other countries.

It was noted that France, which should be ashamed of its colonial history rich in bloody crimes, instead of apologizing for the acts it has committed, talks about fabricated ethnic cleansing in other countries, abuses its status as a permanent member of the UN Security Council to pursue its biased and non-objective policy, and engages in geopolitical intrigues in various regions.

It was emphasized that the holding of events dedicated to colonialism, its consequences and the fight against neocolonialism, which are of particular relevance for humanity, first during the Ministerial Meeting held in Baku on 6 July 2023 within the framework of Azerbaijan’s chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement, then on 22 September at the headquarters of the UN General Assembly in New York, and later again in Baku in October, is a clear example of the support shown by Azerbaijan as Chair of the Non-Aligned Movement to this issue.

It was stated that it is extremely important to bring the issue of the fight against neocolonialism to the attention of the international community through all possible platforms, and in this regard, the activities of the 4th Committee of the UN General Assembly, dealing with political and decolonization issues, should be further revitalized.

The full text of the document is available via this internet link.