The French news portal https://www.lagazetteaz.fr has published an open letter addressed to the French public by known poetess Leyla Begim, founder of the Natavan Society in the Czech Republic regarding the statue of the famous Azerbaijani poetess Khurshidbanu Natavan in Évian-les-Bains, Report informs, citing State Committee on Work with Diaspora.

The letter pointed out that the vandalism shown against the monument of the Azerbaijani poetess caused confusion among enlightened and creative people living in different countries of the world: "I was extremely disappointed by the news that the poet's monument was being prepared for demolition in France, where the declaration of human rights based on the principles of the Enlightenment was adopted. Do they want to destroy the statue in Rodin's homeland?"

It was noted that the monument, which was co-authored by the People's artists of Azerbaijan, Salhab Mammadov and Ali Ibadullayev, existed in the Azerbaijan Park in Évian-les-Bains for 6 years and represents not only multi-ethnic Azerbaijan with multicultural values but also universal values. It mentioned that all religious temples and historical monuments are preserved in Azerbaijan, statues and bas-reliefs were erected in honor of outstanding European figures such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Nikola Tesla, Charles de Gaulle, and many more.

The attempt to remove the statue of Khurshidbanu Natavan, admired by Alexandre Dumas, was evaluated as a declaration of war against representatives of culture around the world: "This is equivalent to the cancellation of all principles of enlightenment, the destruction of all diplomatic relations established between the two countries over decades. This is the destruction of the bridge from the past to the future, to the next civilization."

Read full article: https://www.lagazetteaz.fr/news/france/14499.html