The organizers of the 17th international exhibition festival of press and information agencies, where Armenia is represented by PanARMENIAN.Net news agency and Azg newspaper, are trying to prevent Armenian journalists from circulating their statement

As PanARMENIAN.Net correspondent Yekaterina Poghosyan reported from Tehran, when they started distributing the statement, one of the exhibition organizers approached them and said that journalists have no right to circulate any documents in the exhibit hall. In response, the Armenian journalists showed a “book” about Nagorno Karabakh, which is being distributed by the Azerbaijani delegation among the other participants of the event.

Representative of the organizing committee said he is unaware of it and promised to collect those books. However, the attempt to take away the edition from the Armenian journalists did not succeed.

Although circulation of the statement was barred, the correspondents of PanARMENIAN.Net and Azg are resolved to distribute it among all participants of the exhibition. The statement reads: “Dear colleagues, we, the correspondents of PanARMENIAN.Net news agency and Azg newspaper, representing Armenia at the exhibition festival of press and information agencies, apologize for ceasing our participation over the unsatisfactory organization of the event, during which media freedom is being infringed and limitations are imposed on materials providing information about our country. We express our indignation at the fact that the exhibition organizers disallow placement of We and Our Mountains monument image on our stand, thus yielding to provocative acts of the Azerbaijani delegation, which used the event to push on anti-Armenian propaganda and claims to the historical Armenian land, Artsakh. With the exhibition organizers failing to keep their promise and return the photograph of the monument to the Armenian pavilion as well as to ensure security of the Armenian delegation, we consider our further participation in the event to be impossible.”

It worth mentioning that the other delegations support the Armenian journalists and intend to issued a complaint over the improper organization of the event.

“As the Iranian side failed to keep its promise and return the photograph of We and Our Mountains memorial, placing a photo of Yerevan fountains instead, we took the decision to boycott the event,” PanARMENIAN.Net correspondent Yekaterina Poghosyan said.

A photograph of Artsakh’s symbol - We and Our Mountains memorial which was featured in the Armenian pavilion at the 17th media exhibition in Tehran aroused indignation of the Azerbaijani delegation. While the correspondents from PanARMENIAN.Net and Azg were preparing their pavilion for opening on October 25, the Azerbaijanis were closely following the action. After the map of Armenia and Artsakh Republic was stuck to the stand, they first demanded that the map and the image of the monument should be removed but then, without waiting for any decision by the exhibition management, one of them burst into the pavilion and tore away the map. It’s also worth mentioning that the Azerbaijanis called the Turkish delegation to protect their interests. Attempts to draw the infuriated Azerbaijani aside attracted attention of a dozen of foreign attendees.

After talks with Armenia’s Ambassador to Iran Grigor Arakelyan, the organizers promised to return the photo but then went back on their word.