Azerbaijani film festival postponed in Vanadzor.

The Caucasus Center of Peacemaking Initiatives has issued a statement, voicing complaints that its efforts to organize an Azerbaijani film festival in Armenia meet resistance and pressure.

The organization says its plans to hold the film festival, Stop, in the third largest city of Vanadzor are now being postponed.

The event had been earlier boyvotted in Gyumri after an active protest backed by the city’s mayor, Vardan Ghukasyan, and the owner of FC Shirak, Arman Sahakyan.

“Different organizations, abusing their authority, exert pressures on the owners of all the cinema halls that could potentially be film venues. The intimidated owners have to reject the transaction against their own will, and statutory functions,” reads the statement.

The authors condemn the president of the Gyumri based journalists’ club Asparez for his unyielding protest which they claim contributed to a public rebellion, mounting a wave of public intimidation, defamation, libel and a disinformation campaign.

“We have all the grounds to declare that Vanadzor too, will see a mass rebellion following the same scenario, and the festival organizers, the employees of the Helsinki Civil Assembly and the audience will be deprived of all the security guarantees. The commentators of the ‘mass protest’ – i.e. the parliamentary and extra-parliamentary political forces, non-governmental organizations and media outlets have already warned in a statement that there will be consequences, laying the entire burden of responsibility on the festival organizers and sponsors,” they say.

The Center claims that the festival in Vanadzor is being postponed in an attempt to prevent pan national mobilization and military exercises scheduled on April 16 and 17.