MONUMENTS RE-REGISTERED

Adding to the list of the cultural and historic monuments of Azerbaijan and the exclusion of those which have lost their significance is hard work, requiring a meticulous approach. However, this is a very sensitive issue for the majority of our citizens, because the monuments fall into the category of the ideal. Monuments are our culture, art and history. They exist, they live in us and die only when people cease to respect them, preserve them and hand them down to succeeding generations. This is why the issue of "additions to the list and exclusions from it" is viewed with mistrust by many of us. And in general, this is right. It is the duty of every citizen to respect our sacred places from the history of our Motherland. The disappearance of a monument in peace time is a crime. There can be several different reasons for this - neglect, natural disasters, or business interests, above all. This means that the work to revise the list of historical and cultural monuments in Azerbaijan, currently being undertaken by specialists from the Culture and Tourism Ministry, calls for extra explanation.

All monuments are equal

What does the new list mean? The Culture Ministry reassured us that, compared with earlier versions, it will be more accurate and complete. Rizvan Bayramov, head of the cultural heritage department of the Culture and Tourism Ministry, told R+ that, following the 18 August 2006 decree by President Ilham Aliyev, "On the preservation of the architectural monuments of the city of Baku," his department has begun work to this end. By resolution of the cabinet, the appropriate bodies were instructed to review the significance of existing monuments and compile a new list. "Say, if some five years ago, a building was considered to be a monument of local importance, now it could become a monument of national or even international importance. The issuing of the decree was a very timely decision because many extremely valuable historical objects have been found in recent years. The revised list creates better conditions for the protection of historical monuments," said Mr. Bayramov.

The expert added that, at present, 6,308 historical and cultural monuments are registered and under government protection and control. Of these, about 4,000 are architectural monuments, more than 2,000 are archaeological monuments, 200 - monuments of decorative and applied arts and the same number are historical parks and gardens, memorials and monuments.

After approval by the National Academy of Sciences, the list was sent to the cabinet and then to all organizations which, in one way or another, work on the preservation of our historical and cultural heritage and, in particular, to the heads of executive authorities in all districts.

"In Baku alone, some 1,800 buildings are protected by the state. Accordingly, every head of executive authority must know how many historical monuments there are in his or her district. The ministry cannot physically keep track of all the monuments. We should work together and help one another. The names of streets are often changed in Baku, which causes misunderstandings, and we often have to argue that the house at this particular address is a historical monument and will remain so despite the renaming of the street. This is why we are making changes to the document today.  It cannot be any other way," Bayramov stressed.

The first list of Azerbaijan's historic and cultural monuments was compiled in 1957, the second in 1968. In 1981, changes were made which were included in the 1988 list. In 2000-2001, in the by now independent Azerbaijan, monuments were categorized according to their significance to improve the protection of cultural and historical legacy. In 2001, the latest list was compiled, in which all monuments were categorised according to their significance (international, national and local). This work by specialists and experts was considered and approved by the cabinet. The idea was that all monuments of cultural and historical heritage should have equal protection, whichever category they belong to.

The protection of monuments in Azerbaijan is regulated by the 1998 law, "On the protection of historical and cultural monuments," under which executive government bodies, municipalities and individual companies are not allowed to rent out buildings which are registered with the Culture Ministry as historical monuments. The law clearly regulates the activities of individuals and legal entities in the field of protection and use of monuments, regardless of the type of property, be it private, state, or clerical. This means that the monument belongs to the nation and is protected by the state, whatever its significance. The requirement to protect monuments also applies to everyone who uses the monument, that is to say, they are responsible for its preservation. At the same time, the law provides not only for protection of the monuments, but also for their possible use, for example, as private residences," said Mr. Bayramov.

There is a fine under the civil code for negligence towards a monument or for insignificant damage. However, the fines are so ridiculous that the question should be raised of revising this aspect in the near future. In the case of serious damage to a monument, the culprit will be prosecuted under the Criminal Code, which allows for imprisonment for two or more years for damaging state property. "A disrespectful attitude towards a monument is certainly punishable by law. However, the Culture Ministry can only influence the process of holding people accountable via the law enforcement bodies. When criminal activity occurs we go to the General Prosecutor's Office and write letters to the Minister of Internal Affairs, asking him to help us protect the monument in question and to initiate criminal proceedings. There are occasions when we have to go to court to prove that the particular building is a historical monument," Bayramov said.

Universal availability of the list

Rizvan Bayramov says that there is no region in Azerbaijan today where specialists from the National Academy of Sciences Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography do not carry out excavations, and the most recent historical and cultural findings confirm the importance of compiling a new list of monuments. "There are many archaeological expeditions. Sometimes people call and say that they live in an old house and inquire if it is a historical monument. In these cases, we send specialists there; after examination of the building a decision is made on its inclusion in the list of monuments which are protected by state. It may be said that the revised list of protected monuments is the most complete, and it was compiled to the best international standards. It includes all recently discovered monuments and excludes the old ones, that is, those which have been destroyed and those that have been found to have no significance," he said. Answering my question about how often the list of protected monuments should be revised, Mr. Bayramov noted that this depends on the Academy of Sciences: "The Culture Ministry registers and protects monuments following research by specialists from the Academy of Sciences and other organizations."

Sometimes people voice the opinion that the fuss over the review of Azerbaijani monuments paved the way for the demolition or destruction of some cultural monuments. Some people think that areas are cleared in this way to build high-rise buildings or for some other purpose. This is not so, Bayramov said. "All this is done to add new monuments, which will also be protected by the state, and to re-register monuments."

To achieve transparency on this issue, the Culture Ministry plans to make the new list available to citizens. It will be accessible to everyone once the cabinet approves it. "We will see that it is sent out to every library in the country and kept in the archives with other important government documents. It is important to create an electronic version of the list of monuments, so that it is accessible to the broad audience of Internet users. It will be uploaded to the Culture Ministry web site. The information on the monuments protected by the state should be accessible. This is necessary also in order to organize feedback: when people see the list, anyone who knows the details or history of a monument can write to us. There is an urgent need for new, more accurate and more thorough information. Maybe some has information on what was the popular name of the monument centuries ago, or other useful information" said Mr. Bayramov.

At present, Azerbaijan has virtually no information about the monuments which are situated in the occupied territories. There are 1,891 cultural monuments there, including 738 monuments, 28 museums, 4 arts exhibitions, 14 memorials and 1,107 cultural objects. These monuments are also included in the new list. "Unfortunately, we do not know whether they have been destroyed or still exist, and we do not have reliable information on the current state of these monuments. However, facts have come to light about the export of cultural objects from the occupied territories," the expert said.

To preserve the unique cultural and historical heritage of Azerbaijan, the number of restoration projects is increasing in the country and the government allocates quite significant funds for this purpose. It is good that examination, conservation and restoration of monuments takes place not only at the expense of the national budget, but also by using resources allocated by foreign and local non-governmental funds, Azerbaijani entrepreneurs and individuals. For example, businessmen helped restore the Juma Mosque in the village of Ilisu and the Development of Regions Public Association has been funding, for three years now, excavations in the old town of Samkir. However, expert R. Bayramov's assessment of the work to restore architectural monuments is not very encouraging. "In the Soviet period, Azerbaijan had a good school of restoration. Now, our specialists work with outdated methods. But we have to bear in mind that new technology is used in restoration in the rest of the world today. New types of equipment and materials have been introduced in the field of preservation, conservation and restoration of cultural legacy. We  now lag far behind European countries in this respect. We need to organize workshops with the participation of European restoration specialists, send our specialists abroad for training and hold meetings to exchange experience. We are already working on this issue. The main problem we encounter is that our specialists do not speak foreign languages. We need to invite the highest-class specialists, preferably foreign. It is worth noting that good quality and proper restoration work is expensive everywhere in the world. If, however, we do not resort to the help of professionals, we stand to lose the treasure we have," said our interviewee.

So, the new list of protected monuments has been revised and expanded. And if the Culture Ministry really does introduce transparency in this field, citizens who are not indifferent to these matters will have no other choice but to put aside their mistrust and simply open the Culture Ministry web site or go to a library and inquire. The Ministry's specialists are open to suggestions and remarks.