Vandals Target Mamik-Papik in Occupied Artsakh, Mock With “We Chased Away the Dogs”

A well-known Armenian cultural monument in Nagorno-Karabakh has been vandalized with obscene and hateful writings, raising new concerns about the safety of Armenian heritage sites now under Azerbaijani occupation.

The monument, We Are Our Mountains — also known as Menk Enk Mer Sarery — was created in 1967 from volcanic tuff. The sculpture of an elderly man and woman has long been seen as a symbol of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh, who were forcibly displaced after the region fell under Azerbaijani control in 2023.

New photos released by the Yerevan-based Geghard Scientific Analytical Foundation show obscenities written in Azerbaijani across the surface of the monument. One of the messages reads "itləri qovluq," which means "We chased away the dogs." The foundation said this is an example of ongoing hate speech directed at Armenians and their cultural heritage.

Journalist Rahim Shaliyev, who first posted the images, said online: "The historical monument 'We Are Our Mountains,' considered a symbol of Artsakh [NK], was vandalized by Azerbaijanis." Shaliyev is an ethnic Talysh Azerbaijani reporter who shared the photos on social media.

In a detailed statement, the Geghard Foundation said the monument has been repeatedly targeted since Azerbaijan’s military operation in Nagorno-Karabakh on September 19, 2023, which led to the mass forced displacement of Armenians from the region. According to the foundation, images and videos showing vandalism, offensive inscriptions, and people posing with the Azerbaijani flag at the site have appeared many times since then.

The organization stated: “Since September 19, 2023, after Azerbaijan’s military aggression against Nagorno-Karabakh, followed by ethnic cleansing and the depopulation of Armenians, the We Are Our Mountains monument has been particularly targeted by Azerbaijanis. During this period, various photos and videos have repeatedly appeared online showing acts of vandalism against the monument, people taking photos next to it with the Azerbaijani flag, making insulting statements about Armenians, and leaving offensive inscriptions. From time to time, statements are even made in Azerbaijan calling for the destruction of this Armenian monument.”

The foundation pointed to public comments made in Azerbaijan calling for the monument to be destroyed. One example cited is a statement by Gudrat Hasanguliyev, a member of Azerbaijan’s parliament and chairman of the “Justice, Law, Democracy” party, who openly supported the monument’s destruction. Another Azerbaijani lawmaker, Fazail Ibrahimli, has also voiced approval for removing Armenian cultural traces in the region.

The organization also noted that these threats continue despite a ruling by the International Court of Justice from December 7, 2021. That decision ordered Azerbaijan to “take all necessary measures to prevent and punish acts of vandalism and desecration affecting Armenian cultural heritage…” The foundation argued that Azerbaijan has failed to follow this obligation.

It added: “It is noteworthy that Azerbaijan is not restrained even by the decision of the International Court of Justice from December 7, 2021, which obliged Azerbaijan to ‘take all necessary measures to prevent and punish acts of vandalism and desecration affecting Armenian cultural heritage…’ Despite its policy of cultural vandalism in Artsakh [NK], yesterday Azerbaijan was once again elected a member of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, thereby formally committing itself to preserving cultural monuments. It is evident that Armenian religious, historical, and cultural heritage in Artsakh [NK] remains under threat. Baku has not abandoned, and will not abandon its efforts to erase Armenian traces from the settlements of Artsakh, change their Armenian character, and ‘Azerbaijanize’ them,” the statement said.

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