The European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD) denounces the politically coerced cancellation and exclusion of the State Orchestra of Artsakh National Instruments and the “We Are Our Mountains” State Song and Dance Ensemble from an upcoming international cultural festival in Vienna.
According to Zoran Strezovski, President of the World Festival Association (WOFA), this decision was taken following direct pressure from foreign embassies, which targeted these refugee artists.
This incident represents a flagrant attempt to extend the policy of ethnic cleansing and cultural erasure beyond the borders of the South Caucasus into the heart of Europe. After being forcibly displaced from their ancestral homeland in 2023, the artists of Artsakh attempt to preserve their intangible cultural heritage. This is a principle explicitly protected under UNESCO’s 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage. As multiple resolutions of the European Parliament and rulings of international courts have documented, the Armenian cultural heritage of Nagorno Karabakh face an imminent danger of destruction.
The exclusion of the State Orchestra of Artsakh National Instruments and the “We Are Our Mountains” State Song and Dance Ensemble is a direct affront on the human dignity, identity and internationally recognised cultural rights of the ethnically cleansed indigenous Armenian population of Nagorno Karabakh. Political and diplomatic intimidation have no place in a European capital. It sets a dangerous precedent for international cultural rights and freedom of expression. Cultural preservation is not a political crime, nor are refugee artists a threat to security.
Therefore, the EAFJD calls on the organizers of the festival to stand for justice and reverse their decision on cancelling the participation of the artists.