Wednesday, August 10, 2022
No Result
View All Result
Asbarez.com
NEWSLETTER
ՀԱՅ
  • Home
  • Top Stories
  • Community
  • Arts & Culture
    • Art
    • Books
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Critics’ Forum
  • Op-Ed
    • Editorial
    • Opinon
    • Letters
  • Columns
    • By Any Means
    • My Turn
    • Three Apples
    • Community Links
    • Critics’ Forum
    • My Name is Armen
    • Living in Armenia
  • Videos
  • Sports
  • Home
  • Top Stories
  • Community
  • Arts & Culture
    • Art
    • Books
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Critics’ Forum
  • Op-Ed
    • Editorial
    • Opinon
    • Letters
  • Columns
    • By Any Means
    • My Turn
    • Three Apples
    • Community Links
    • Critics’ Forum
    • My Name is Armen
    • Living in Armenia
  • Videos
  • Sports
No Result
View All Result
Asbarez.com
ՀԱՅ
No Result
View All Result

Azerbaijan Blasts Highland over Artsakh Recognition

by Contributor
December 6, 2013
in Featured Story, Latest, News, Top Stories
7
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
A greeting sign welcomes people to Highland, California (Photo: Chris Stewart / SF Chronicle)

HIGHLAND, Calif.—The Consulate General of Azerbaijan in Los Angeles is asking the city of Highland to rescind its recent proclamation granting sister city status to the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, reported The Sun newspaper.

In a letter dated Nov. 26, the Mayor of Berdzor City, in Artsakh, asked the city to establish a “relationship of friendship and spiritual connection” with the city and to “cooperate in the areas of culture, sport, and education for the purpose of the preservation and exchange of mutual Christian values.”

Highland Mayor Larry McCallon presented the request to the City Council the same day, and the Council approved the request on a 4-0 vote. Councilwoman Penny Lilburn was absent from the meeting.

The following day, on Nov. 27, the Consulate General of Azerbaijan in Los Angeles sent a letter to each City Council member, asking they rescind the decision, The Sun reports.

McCallom said Thursday he has no intention of doing so, and didn’t have anything further to say on the matter.

The war-torn region of Berdzor City was rehabilitated by Armenian Christian secessionists amid the Armenian-Azerbaijan conflict. The vegetation-lush region is the only non-recognized state that receives humanitarian aid from the U.S., said Tereza Yerimyan, government affairs director of the Armenian National Committee’s Western Region office in Glendale.

The city of Los Angeles is also a sister city with the Nagorno Karabakh Republic, and Fresno County and the states of California, Maine, Massachusetts and Rhode Island have all adopted resolutions recognizing the region as an independent state.

Yerimyan said the Christian Armenians have been violently oppressed by the mostly Muslim Azeris of the Azerbaijan Republic, a conflict that came to a head in the Nagorno-Karabakh War in the early 1990s following the dissolving of the Soviet Union. Berdzor City’s push to attain sister city relationships with municipalities across the U.S. is an attempt at building bridges, Yerimyan said.

“It’s a way of uniting and potentially encouraging trade, and a way of also recognizing the fact that Artsakh is also independent,” Yerimyan said Thursday. “It does not in any way, shape or form have any Soviet remnants left in it. It’s truly a partner for the U.S.”

The Consulate General of Azerbaijan, however, maintains that the Armenian lobby has been preying on the ignorance of local municipalities, getting them to ratify sister city agreements with the Nagorno Karabakh Republic in order to establish credibility as an independent nation. But the region is internationally recognized as part of the Azerbaijan Republic, and the U.S. doesn’t even recognize the area as an independent state.

“This is part of the strategy pursued by the Armenian lobby to get credibility for the illegal regime that was established by Armenia following its invasion of Azerbaijan’s internationally recognized territory,” said Rafig Rustamov, vice consul for the Consulate General’s office in Los Angeles, on Thursday.

According to The Sun, Highland Councilwoman Jody Scott was surprised when she heard the news Thursday. She said she never received the letter from the Azerbaijan Consulate, but planned to look into the matter and request that the it be brought back before the City Council for further discussion.

“If that’s the case I’m a little bit ticked off because I went down to City Hall Tuesday morning and cleaned out my mailbox, and there was no letter from this Consulate,” Scott said.

Scott said she e-mailed City Manager Joe Hughes on Thursday and asked about the letter from the Consulate. He said it was in her mailbox at city Hall, Scott said. She said she plans to address the matter at Tuesday’s Council meeting.

“I’m going to question the action that was taken and why it was made,” Scott said.

When she approved the item on Nov. 26, she said she only asked whether there would be any financial impact to the city (there isn’t), but nothing else, The Sun reports.

“I didn’t question anything else, and I should have,” Scott said. “What do we know about this Republic? That’s the question I am going to ask.”

Rustamov said the Consulate letter was sent on Nov. 27 to each Councilmember via regular mail, e-mail and fax.

While not officially recognized, the Nagorno Karabakh Republic serves as an excellent example of successful Democracy, which makes the Azerbaijani response all the more upsetting, Yerimyan said.

“It’s such a dirty trick to attack something like this,” said Yerimyan. “These people have fought for their freedom, just like how (Americans) fought for their freedom in the U.S. They (Azerbaijanis) need to move on.”

Contributor

Contributor

Next Post

Charging Through Black Friday to Join the Armenian Cause at ANCA Grassroots

Comments 7

  1. Hagopian hagopian says:
    9 years ago

    I doubt people in Highland are ignorant as the consul general of azerbaijan is claiming. But, I would pose the same thought to the counsel general is the azerbaijani government preyed on the ignorance of American Indians when the consul general went to a powwow and played a flute and claimed that American Indians were turks.

    Reply
  2. GB says:
    9 years ago

    I wonder why Rustamov never registered the mail, and I wonder if Scott can spell the name of Azerbaijan??

    Reply
  3. ARA says:
    9 years ago

    I think the azeri numbskullers need a nice awakening- r they really that dumb to think they will keep our lands forever! Sik indeed-barbarians we know. they have a small sword and are scared

    Reply
  4. Hovsep says:
    9 years ago

    This is definitely a win for us. Keep up the good work. This vegetation lush region must prevail!

    Reply
  5. Masis says:
    9 years ago

    I ask Jody Scott to also review the Ramil Safarov case and see what is going on there.
    To the Consulate, an appropriate response would be an 8.5×11 paper with the word Safarov on it, nothing else.

    These illegitimates govern in a manner that is incongruent with international law then write a complaint. The problem is no one recognizes it.

    Reply
  6. Serge Samoniantz says:
    9 years ago

    The US State Department should be contacted and a vigorous protest should be lodged against the unwarranted interference into the affairs of a US municipality by a foreign government. This is the second time the Azeri government has tried to negate a sister-city agreement between a Karabagh city and a city in California. A few years ago, when Montebello established a sister-city agreement with Stepanakert, the Azeri Ambassador sent letters of protest to Montebello, and another to Sacramento, addressed to Gov. Schwarzenegger. The latter responded that it was a local issue and the State of California had nothing to do with it. The Mayor of Montebello, at that time, Bill Molinari, responded with a strong letter to the Azeri Ambassador, basically telling him to mind his own business, and stay out of Montebello’s decisions.
    This time, perhaps a stronger letter from Calif. Governor Brown should tell the Azeri Consulate in Los Angeles to refrain from such activities. Or, the State Department could declare the Azeri Consul a “persona non grata,” just like Baku’s declarations to visitors to Artsakh.
    We also should make sure that the City Council in Highland, a city of 54,000 near San Bernardino, stands solidly behind its sister-city agreement.

    Reply
    • GeorgeMardig says:
      9 years ago

      Good point, I agree.

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recommended

Congressional Alarms Ringing Amid Renewed Azerbaijani Ethnic-Cleansing of Artsakh

Congressional Alarms Ringing Amid Renewed Azerbaijani Ethnic-Cleansing of Artsakh

6 mins ago
Russian Border Guards Set Up Checkpoints In Meghri

Russian Border Guards Set Up Checkpoints In Meghri

19 hours ago

Connect with us

  • About
  • Advertising
  • Subscribe
  • Contact

© 2021 Asbarez | All Rights Reserved | Powered By MSDN Solutions Inc.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Top Stories
  • Community
  • Arts & Culture
    • Art
    • Books
    • Music
    • Theatre
    • Critics’ Forum
  • Op-Ed
    • Editorial
    • Opinon
    • Letters
  • Columns
    • By Any Means
    • My Turn
    • Three Apples
    • Community Links
    • Critics’ Forum
    • My Name is Armen
    • Living in Armenia
  • Videos
  • Sports

© 2021 Asbarez | All Rights Reserved | Powered By MSDN Solutions Inc.

Accessibility

Accessibility modes

Epilepsy Safe Mode
Dampens color and removes blinks
This mode enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
Visually Impaired Mode
Improves website's visuals
This mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
Cognitive Disability Mode
Helps to focus on specific content
This mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
ADHD Friendly Mode
Reduces distractions and improve focus
This mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
Blindness Mode
Allows using the site with your screen-reader
This mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.

Online Dictionary

    Readable Experience

    Content Scaling
    Default
    Text Magnifier
    Readable Font
    Dyslexia Friendly
    Highlight Titles
    Highlight Links
    Font Sizing
    Default
    Line Height
    Default
    Letter Spacing
    Default
    Left Aligned
    Center Aligned
    Right Aligned

    Visually Pleasing Experience

    Dark Contrast
    Light Contrast
    Monochrome
    High Contrast
    High Saturation
    Low Saturation
    Adjust Text Colors
    Adjust Title Colors
    Adjust Background Colors

    Easy Orientation

    Mute Sounds
    Hide Images
    Virtual Keyboard
    Reading Guide
    Stop Animations
    Reading Mask
    Highlight Hover
    Highlight Focus
    Big Dark Cursor
    Big Light Cursor
    Navigation Keys

    Asbarez.com Accessibility Statement

    Accessibility Statement

    • asbarez.com
    • August 10, 2022

    Compliance status

    We firmly believe that the internet should be available and accessible to anyone, and are committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of circumstance and ability.

    To fulfill this, we aim to adhere as strictly as possible to the World Wide Web Consortium’s (W3C) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG 2.1) at the AA level. These guidelines explain how to make web content accessible to people with a wide array of disabilities. Complying with those guidelines helps us ensure that the website is accessible to all people: blind people, people with motor impairments, visual impairment, cognitive disabilities, and more.

    This website utilizes various technologies that are meant to make it as accessible as possible at all times. We utilize an accessibility interface that allows persons with specific disabilities to adjust the website’s UI (user interface) and design it to their personal needs.

    Additionally, the website utilizes an AI-based application that runs in the background and optimizes its accessibility level constantly. This application remediates the website’s HTML, adapts Its functionality and behavior for screen-readers used by the blind users, and for keyboard functions used by individuals with motor impairments.

    If you’ve found a malfunction or have ideas for improvement, we’ll be happy to hear from you. You can reach out to the website’s operators by using the following email

    Screen-reader and keyboard navigation

    Our website implements the ARIA attributes (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) technique, alongside various different behavioral changes, to ensure blind users visiting with screen-readers are able to read, comprehend, and enjoy the website’s functions. As soon as a user with a screen-reader enters your site, they immediately receive a prompt to enter the Screen-Reader Profile so they can browse and operate your site effectively. Here’s how our website covers some of the most important screen-reader requirements, alongside console screenshots of code examples:

    1. Screen-reader optimization: we run a background process that learns the website’s components from top to bottom, to ensure ongoing compliance even when updating the website. In this process, we provide screen-readers with meaningful data using the ARIA set of attributes. For example, we provide accurate form labels; descriptions for actionable icons (social media icons, search icons, cart icons, etc.); validation guidance for form inputs; element roles such as buttons, menus, modal dialogues (popups), and others. Additionally, the background process scans all of the website’s images and provides an accurate and meaningful image-object-recognition-based description as an ALT (alternate text) tag for images that are not described. It will also extract texts that are embedded within the image, using an OCR (optical character recognition) technology. To turn on screen-reader adjustments at any time, users need only to press the Alt+1 keyboard combination. Screen-reader users also get automatic announcements to turn the Screen-reader mode on as soon as they enter the website.

      These adjustments are compatible with all popular screen readers, including JAWS and NVDA.

    2. Keyboard navigation optimization: The background process also adjusts the website’s HTML, and adds various behaviors using JavaScript code to make the website operable by the keyboard. This includes the ability to navigate the website using the Tab and Shift+Tab keys, operate dropdowns with the arrow keys, close them with Esc, trigger buttons and links using the Enter key, navigate between radio and checkbox elements using the arrow keys, and fill them in with the Spacebar or Enter key.Additionally, keyboard users will find quick-navigation and content-skip menus, available at any time by clicking Alt+1, or as the first elements of the site while navigating with the keyboard. The background process also handles triggered popups by moving the keyboard focus towards them as soon as they appear, and not allow the focus drift outside of it.

      Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.

    Disability profiles supported in our website

    • Epilepsy Safe Mode: this profile enables people with epilepsy to use the website safely by eliminating the risk of seizures that result from flashing or blinking animations and risky color combinations.
    • Visually Impaired Mode: this mode adjusts the website for the convenience of users with visual impairments such as Degrading Eyesight, Tunnel Vision, Cataract, Glaucoma, and others.
    • Cognitive Disability Mode: this mode provides different assistive options to help users with cognitive impairments such as Dyslexia, Autism, CVA, and others, to focus on the essential elements of the website more easily.
    • ADHD Friendly Mode: this mode helps users with ADHD and Neurodevelopmental disorders to read, browse, and focus on the main website elements more easily while significantly reducing distractions.
    • Blindness Mode: this mode configures the website to be compatible with screen-readers such as JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and TalkBack. A screen-reader is software for blind users that is installed on a computer and smartphone, and websites must be compatible with it.
    • Keyboard Navigation Profile (Motor-Impaired): this profile enables motor-impaired persons to operate the website using the keyboard Tab, Shift+Tab, and the Enter keys. Users can also use shortcuts such as “M” (menus), “H” (headings), “F” (forms), “B” (buttons), and “G” (graphics) to jump to specific elements.

    Additional UI, design, and readability adjustments

    1. Font adjustments – users, can increase and decrease its size, change its family (type), adjust the spacing, alignment, line height, and more.
    2. Color adjustments – users can select various color contrast profiles such as light, dark, inverted, and monochrome. Additionally, users can swap color schemes of titles, texts, and backgrounds, with over 7 different coloring options.
    3. Animations – epileptic users can stop all running animations with the click of a button. Animations controlled by the interface include videos, GIFs, and CSS flashing transitions.
    4. Content highlighting – users can choose to emphasize important elements such as links and titles. They can also choose to highlight focused or hovered elements only.
    5. Audio muting – users with hearing devices may experience headaches or other issues due to automatic audio playing. This option lets users mute the entire website instantly.
    6. Cognitive disorders – we utilize a search engine that is linked to Wikipedia and Wiktionary, allowing people with cognitive disorders to decipher meanings of phrases, initials, slang, and others.
    7. Additional functions – we provide users the option to change cursor color and size, use a printing mode, enable a virtual keyboard, and many other functions.

    Browser and assistive technology compatibility

    We aim to support the widest array of browsers and assistive technologies as possible, so our users can choose the best fitting tools for them, with as few limitations as possible. Therefore, we have worked very hard to be able to support all major systems that comprise over 95% of the user market share including Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Apple Safari, Opera and Microsoft Edge, JAWS and NVDA (screen readers), both for Windows and for MAC users.

    Notes, comments, and feedback

    Despite our very best efforts to allow anybody to adjust the website to their needs, there may still be pages or sections that are not fully accessible, are in the process of becoming accessible, or are lacking an adequate technological solution to make them accessible. Still, we are continually improving our accessibility, adding, updating and improving its options and features, and developing and adopting new technologies. All this is meant to reach the optimal level of accessibility, following technological advancements. For any assistance, please reach out to