Great Britain, London / Trend corr. G.Ahmadova / Trend interview with Servet Hasan, the Deputy Chief of the Federation of Turkish Associations of Great Britain.
- How do you value the work of the Azerbaijani and Turkish Diaspora in Britain? Are you confident with the function of these Diasporas?
- It will not be right to say that the functioning of the Diasporas is not satisfying. There is a lot of unfinished work and projects still to be implemented. There are people in both Diasporas who are trying to represent their countries with dignity. In spite of the short history of Azerbaijani brotherhood in the country, we are proud of the work they have done. I would like the central and local authorities to support the Azerbaijani and Turkish Diasporas in Britain both morally and financially. I would like this country's culture to be distributed to Azerbaijan and Turkey in the future and for both countries to concentrate more to the functioning of Diaspora organizations and voluntary organisations.
- Do you consider the work of the Azerbaijani and Turkish Diasporas concerning the Armenian issue in Britain to be adequately efficient?
We have been rendering support to our Azerbaijani brothers in many issues for several years, in particular the issues concerning Armenia. As the Federation of Turkish Associations of Great Britain, we inform members of our organizations of the occupation of Nagorno-Karabakh and the Khojali tragedy. The problem we face is that the Armenian Diaspora has a large budget which has managed to win over the West. However, we show resistance against such a force despite our lack of possibilities. There is not enough opportunity to do our work efficiently and we need human and financial resources. We cannot reach any positive results by the daily demonstrations against Armenian slander campaigns. We must be more active and should develop an agenda. For this purpose a professional group of people must be united like the Armenians.
-Can you achieve success in distributing the truth about the Armenian issues to the British press?
- One of the key problems is the existing prejudice, particularly, towards the Turks and the ignorance of the Western press. We have little chance to tackle the problems and express the truth about the Armenians in the British press. Through the Christian world, the Armenians have maintained a long-suffering nation policy. Indeed, the reality contradicts these facts. How can such a country which is economically and socially weak, and which has problems with its neighbouring country and recognized as an aggressive country have such power? Naturally, all of these problems must be tackled. We could develop projects and programs and be more active in the British press. Our youth must be able to be heard in the western press. I trust to our new generation which is well informed and are conditioned to the modern world they live in.