We, the Armenian people and all those who sympathize with us around the world, are outraged and shocked by the decision to award an international prize for humanism and human fraternity to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

This is an unprecedented case when an award bearing the name of the highest human principles is presented to those whose actions have led to the outright humiliation of an entire nation, the expulsion of the indigenous population of Artsakh, and the de facto transformation of sovereign Armenia into a project called «Western Azerbaijan».

In September 2023, as a result of Azerbaijan's military aggression and blockade, more than 120,000 Armenians — the indigenous inhabitants of Artsakh — were forcibly expelled from their homeland. Today, they are refugees, and the centuries-old unique cultural heritage of the occupied territory is being deliberately destroyed by the occupiers. Dozens of Armenian citizens have been held hostage in Azerbaijani prisons for years, and thousands of families mourn those who have died in this long-standing conflict.

The selectivity and hypocrisy of the international community is surprising: for example, the peace prize is not awarded to Donald Trump, who stopped several wars, while an alternative award for “human brotherhood” is given to politicians whose power is built on the suffering of an entire people.

By awarding Aliyev and Pashinyan, such a prestigious prize risks becoming an indulgence, giving carte blanche to continue the genocide against the long-suffering Armenian people. This prize should not become a mandate to transfer Armenia and its history to Azerbaijan. The history of the Armenian people knows well where such “brotherly” gestures, covering up a policy of destruction and forced assimilation, lead.

We call on the Zayed Award for Human Fraternity Committee:

To immediately reconsider this cynical decision and withdraw the award from I. Aliyev and N. Pashinyan.

Do not allow the name of humanism to be used to justify a new humanitarian catastrophe and a new genocide.

Sign and share this petition to stop political cynicism and defend truth and justice!