“GEGHARD”
SCIENTIFIC ANALYTICAL
FOUNDATION
2025
2025
“If a single candle were lit for every mur- dered Armenian, the radiance of those candles would outshine the moon. The Armenians endured it all, but they never agreed to change their faith. Those people were worn out and tormented by violence, but they never stopped building their churches, writing their books, and raising their hands to the heavens, calling on their God,” Akram Aylisli[1], Stone Dreams[2].
In 2012, the publication of the novel Stone Dreams in the Moscow-based journal Druzhba Narodov marked a turning point for Akram Aylisli, a people's writer of Azerbaijan. By depicting[3] the Armenian massacres in Baku and the slaughter of Armenians in Agulis by Turks in 1919, Aylisli, through his work, confirmed the fact of the Armenophobic policies pursued by the Azerbaijani authorities.
Akram Aylisli, who had previously been awarded Azerbaijan’s highest honors, Shohrat ("Glory") and Istiglal ("Independence"), by Heydar Aliyev, was declared an enemy of the people following the publication of his novel. He was stripped of his honorary pension, state awards, and titles. Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev claimed that the novel "tarnished the country’s history," and a state-sponsored campaign against Aylisli and his family began. He was expelled from the Azerbaijani Writers' Union, and both his son and wife were dismissed from their jobs. Aylisli’s books were burned in Baku, Ganja, his birthplace Aylis, and other places.
In January 2013, a group of young people burned photos of Akram Aylisli in front of his home, demanding that he leave the country. Activists from the ruling Yeni Azerbaijan Party staged public "funerals" for his books on the streets of Baku, while the Azerbaijani Writers' Union demanded to strip Aylisli of his citizenship. The novel was even discussed in the Milli Majlis, where it was unanimously condemned. The former speaker of Parliament, Ogtay Asadov, declared that those defending the writer had "questionable origins."
According to Mahmud Karimov, president of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (2001–2013), Aylisli's book humiliated the Azerbaijani people. The spiritual leader of the Caucasus Muslims, Allahshukur Pashazadeh, labeled the writer a traitor, apostate, and heretic. The pro-government Modern Musavat party went so far as to announce a reward of 10,000 manats for anyone who would cut off Aylisli's right ear.
The state-orchestrated campaign of violence against Aylisli extended its hatred not only toward the writer but also toward the Armenian people. Some members of parliament openly referred to Aylisli as an "Armenian," exposing their hatred and racism. In 2013, Nizami Jafarov, a member of the Milli Majlis, said in parliament: "In my opinion, Akram Aylisli should be stripped of Azerbaijani citizenship and sent to Yerevan. Let him go and serve as a servant in an Armenian church."
Akram Aylisli decided to publish his novel at a time when Hungary had just extradited Ramil Safarov to Azerbaijan. Against the backdrop of Safarov's glorification, Armenophobia had intensified further. "When I saw the hysterical reaction and the deliberately inflamed madness of enmity between Armenians and Azerbaijanis, which knew no bounds, I decided to publish my novel," Aylisli wrote.
A group of Russian writers, along with Russian and international media outlets and organizations, spoke out in defense of Akram Aylisli.
However, the persecution of the writer continued. In 2016, a criminal case was initiated against Akram Aylisli under Article 221.1 of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code for alleged hooliganism. He was accused of assaulting a 35-year-old employee at Baku airport. This incident resulted in a ban on his leaving the country, serving as yet another method to silence the writer. Aylisli was forced to personally appeal to Ilham Aliyev, urging him to end the criminal prosecution against him. He said: "If the government’s policies were so flawless, then a small literary work could not influence the life of an entire country."
The persecution of Akram Aylisli once again confirms that Armenophobia is an integral part of state policy in Azerbaijan, and Armenocide is elevated to the status of a national heroism. This deeply rooted phenomenon in the neighboring country is so entrenched that even a people's writer, honored with state awards by Heydar Aliyev, was not forgiven for his dissent. By deepening hatred toward Armenians, the Aliyev regime labels anyone who dares to confront reality and present the true history as an enemy.
[1] Akram Aylisli, a people's writer of Azerbaijan, was born in 1937 in the village of Agulis (Aylis) in Nakhijevan. Since 1962, he worked as an editor for several newspapers and magazines and served as the secretary of the Azerbaijani Writers' Union from 1988 to 1989. In 2005, he was elected as a member of the Milli Majlis. He was honored with numerous state awards and titles.
[2] Akram Aylisli, Stone Dreams, Yerevan, 2013, p. 181.
[3] The main events of the novel take place in Baku during the years 1988–1990.