Mika Artyan
Unzipped: Gay Armenia, March 11 2009

Alekper Aliyev, editor-in-chief of kultura.az, has published, as he put it, his x93most scandalousx94 novel x93Artush and Zaurx94 in Baku. Itx92s a gay love story between an Azeri and Armenian, a sort of partial deconstruction of Ali and Nino (a heterosexual love story of Azeri Ali and Georgian Nino) having instead Azeri and Armenian male lovers against the backdrop of the emerging Karabakh conflict.
The main characters, Artush and Zaur were born and raised in Baku, went to the same school, shared desks in the classroom. At some point boys became sexually attracted to each otherx85 These were the early years of the Karabakh conflict. The war separates them. Artush moved to Armenia, Zaur remained in Baku. Already adults they meet again – in Tbilisi. They indulge in memories, fall in love and even get married with the help of a Dutch pastor, a confidant of the wife of Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili.
In his interview, the author argues that Azeris and Armenians share similar kitchen, music and mentality. x93Armenians are closer to us than, say, Georgiansx94 due to the influence of the Persian culture. Alekper says that one of the reasons of writing this novel was to expose the absurdity of all wars in the South Caucasus a la Kusturica. He believes he has the full right to do so as he lost his older brother during the Karabakh war in 1994. x93We are now engaged in information wars with Armenians over the dolma and balaban, even though all our efforts should be aimed at addressing global challenges. Our people must find the wisdom, courage and determination to put an end once and for all of the frozen conflict. We need joint efforts to create all necessary conditions for peaceful coexistence between the two neighbours on this small plot of land, in this God-cursed region called x93The South Caucasusx94. Frankly, itx92s a bit hard to believe that this would happen". x93During the World War II in Moscow there were concerts of German classical music; works of German composers were heard on the radio; even studies on German philosophers were carried outx85 Can you imagine for Kara Karaev to be performed in Armenia, or Khachatryan x96 in Azerbaijan? This is completely impossible! And this has a simple explanation x96 the more primitive the man, the more aggressive he is.x94
Predictably, this book caused a stir and shock in Azeri forums and blogs, with plenty of hateful and homophobic comments. Some accused the author in treason and betrayal of national interests. Others claimed (with irony) that Azerbaijan now has its very own Salman Rushdie and Orhan Pamuk.
x93Who f**ked who?x94 x96 this is one of the first and apparently principal questions being discussed in forums and blogs (both Azeri and Armenian), each side wishing for x91his guyx92 to f**k x91the enemyx92. I got an impression that this question worried them more than even the fact of the main characters being gay. They are kind of ready to x91forgivex92 and x91forgetx92 gay part of the story, as long as x91their guyx92 is x91the manx92 meaning he is x91doing the enemyx92. For them, itx92s only black or white. What if they are x93versatilex94 (which allegedly the case in the novel)? This would crush the x91hopesx92 from both sides. Anywaysx85
There is only one bookstore in Baku which sells this book. Guess, what the name of that bookstore?.. x93Ali and Ninox94. Some in Azeri forums even suggested buying all the copies of the book and burning it in front of the bookstore. There were even rare voices advocating for the application of the x93Shariat lawx94 towards the author.
The topic itself proved to be so controversial that quite a few discussion forums and reports about the book got removed or self-censored from some Azeri forums and web sites, including day.az and kultura.az. If you discount the nationalities and sexuality of the main characters, the plot may seem pretty routine and unremarkable. However, against the backdrop of nationalism and intolerance in the region, the very fact of the novel that tells about the love story between an Armenian and Azeri, a gay love story between an Armenian and Azeri, makes it a double taboo breaking.
Look forward to reading the book in Russian when it gets published there (as far as I understand, itx92s being negotiated with the Russian publishers). Only then I would be able to properly review it. Till thenx85 Hopefully, these displays of hate and intolerance wonx92t evolve into something more dangerous and physical towards the author. Only the bravest among us are ready to break taboos. Alekper Aliyev is one of them.

Meer over Artush and Zaur op Unzipped: Gay Armenia

Nigar Musayeva
Caucasus Reporting Service, Baku, 20 February 2009

Artush and Zaur were two schoolchildren growing up in the great multi-ethnic city of Baku, but fate was not kind to them. Just when they were discovering their love for each other, they were torn apart by war.Artush, an Armenian, ended up in Armenia, while the Azeri Zaur was left to mourn the memories of his lost love as he walked the streets of Azerbaijanx92s capital. As a plot for a novel, it is not the most original in the world. But the twist has shocked Azerbaijan and made author Alekper Aliev infamous in his homeland. For both Zaur and Artush are men. Setting a love affair between two men in the midst of the conflict over the region of Karabakh, which is ruled by Armenians but claimed by Azerbaijan, has proved controversial.
x93I think that only a sick or completely cynical person could write such gibberish, someone who spits on his own country and on the millions of people harmed by the Karabakh war. It is just filth, thatx92s what it is,x94 said Sultan Gafarov, a student in Baku. Such attitudes are widespread in the country. Homosexuality has been legal in Azerbaijan since September 2000, and it is illegal to discriminate against homosexuals, but openly gay Azeris meet abuse in many areas of life.
x93There is xenophobia against homosexuals in society, which is stirred up by publications about AIDS. It is not universal. For example, homosexuals who achieve a high place in society are not criticised. In society, a rich homosexual appears more of a man than a poor heterosexual,x94 said Eldar Zeynalov, director of the Human Rights Centre of Azerbaijan.
In such a complex atmosphere, Aliev knew that publishing his book would not prove easy. x93In Azerbaijan not one publishing house would agree to issue a homoerotic book, which in their opinion dirtied the good name of the Azeri people,x94 he told IWPR. x93The main theme of the book is the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the theme of homosexuality is not essential, just a way of attracting attention. Everyone knows the negative opinion of homosexuality in the South Caucasus. Against this background, I tried to show the mosaic of conflicts in the three neighbouring republics.x94
He finally had to publish it through a private publishing house last month, but it has proved successful. One shopkeeper said the controversial novel had been x93selling like hot cakesx94.x93I am very glad that a novel finally emerged to shock conservative opinion in Azerbaijan. This is long overdue, to break stereotypes, to have a joke with public opinion,x94 said Khanlar Agayev, a businessman in Baku. x93I hope now the author manages to survive the many attacks that will come from readers and critics.x94
Such attacks have come from all sides, including from the religious hierarchy in the mainly Muslim country. Haji Fuad Nurulla, deacon of the Baku Islamic University, is among the strongest opponents of homosexuality, which he thinks has come in from abroad and is weakening national culture. x93In the Koran this is strongly condemned. It is a sin, abnormal. It is completely unacceptable for a man to wear womenx92s clothes, to behave like a woman,x94 he said. x93Such people must be isolated from healthy members of society, so they do not infect them.x94
Only one charity is helping Azerbaijanx92s homosexuals with the difficulties of life in such an environment, the Union of Gender Development and Flourishment, which started work in 2006. Its funding primarily comes from The Netherlands. According to its chairman, Kamran Rzayev, homosexuals in the country have most trouble within their own families. x93There have been cases when parents, finding out about the non-traditional orientation of their children, have beaten them and thrown them out of the house,x94 he said. x93In such cases, we provide psychological support to these boys and girls and try to speak to their parents. Some parents, particularly those who are younger, come to our office themselves, and we explain that their children are not drug addicts, are not criminals, they are normal people who work, earn money, study, have their own interests.x94
Natavan, a lesbian, is among the young people who gathered in the organisationx92s kitchens to smoke and talk about their lives. She said her parents knew about it, but they did not talk about it in the family. x93Any conversation turns into an argument. They think it is a perversion, and probably think I am an ill-fated child,x94 she said. x93I want to have a normal family, I would like to live together with a loved one. But men just donx92t interest me, and if I lived with a woman then everyone would spurn me.x94
Rzayev said that a handful of single-sex couples do live in Baku, and that some of them had even been together for a decade or more. Some had even gone abroad to have their union recognised in one of the countries were gay marriage is legal. As it turned out, that is exactly what happened to Artush and Zaur. After long years separated by the tense relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which have still not signed a peace deal, they find each other in Tbiliisi x96 a city where Azeris and Armenians can go and be friends again x96 and were married by a friend of Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvilix92s Dutch wife.

Benedikt Brisch
Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD), Bonn, 26. Januar 2010

Ich habe "Artush und Zaur" von Alekper Aliev xfcber die Feiertage gelesen und die Lektxfcre war wirklich sehr interessant und unterhalt-sam. Insbesondere interessant fxfcr mich waren die politisch-historischen Bezxfcge und der spxf6ttisch-satirische Blick auf die westlichen, besonders auch die deutschen, eher hilflos wirkenden Konfliktlxf6sungsmaxdf-nahmen bis hin zu der inneren Zerrissenheit der Protagonisten. Sehr schxf6n auch, dass das beklagenswerte Demokratiedefizit von Seiten der "Macht" zwar einerseits durchaus Empxf6rung der "kleinen Leute" hervorruft, andererseits gerade diese kleinen Leute den Protagonisten mit ihrer Rxfcckstxe4ndigkeit und Unzivilisiertheit auf den Wecker gehen. Das Thema Homo-sexualitxe4t als "Mega-Tabu" in dieser Weltgegend passt natxfcrlich wunderbar zu dem Kontext und potenziert die Radikalitxe4t dieses Buches. Gut, einige porno-graphische Stellen sind nicht jedermanns Geschmack aber Literatur darf nun mal mit gutem Grund fast alles. Ich meine auch eine gute Entscheidung, die Vorrede wegzulassen und hinten dazuzufxfcgen.

Mika Artyan
Unzipped: Gay Armenia, March 11 2009

Alekper Aliyev, editor-in-chief of kultura.az, has published, as he put it, his x93most scandalousx94 novel x93Artush and Zaurx94 in Baku. Itx92s a gay love story between an Azeri and Armenian, a sort of partial deconstruction of Ali and Nino (a heterosexual love story of Azeri Ali and Georgian Nino) having instead Azeri and Armenian male lovers against the backdrop of the emerging Karabakh conflict.
The main characters, Artush and Zaur were born and raised in Baku, went to the same school, shared desks in the classroom. At some point boys became sexually attracted to each otherx85 These were the early years of the Karabakh conflict. The war separates them. Artush moved to Armenia, Zaur remained in Baku. Already adults they meet again – in Tbilisi. They indulge in memories, fall in love and even get married with the help of a Dutch pastor, a confidant of the wife of Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili.
In his interview, the author argues that Azeris and Armenians share similar kitchen, music and mentality. x93Armenians are closer to us than, say, Georgiansx94 due to the influence of the Persian culture. Alekper says that one of the reasons of writing this novel was to expose the absurdity of all wars in the South Caucasus a la Kusturica. He believes he has the full right to do so as he lost his older brother during the Karabakh war in 1994. x93We are now engaged in information wars with Armenians over the dolma and balaban, even though all our efforts should be aimed at addressing global challenges. Our people must find the wisdom, courage and determination to put an end once and for all of the frozen conflict. We need joint efforts to create all necessary conditions for peaceful coexistence between the two neighbours on this small plot of land, in this God-cursed region called x93The South Caucasusx94. Frankly, itx92s a bit hard to believe that this would happen". x93During the World War II in Moscow there were concerts of German classical music; works of German composers were heard on the radio; even studies on German philosophers were carried outx85 Can you imagine for Kara Karaev to be performed in Armenia, or Khachatryan x96 in Azerbaijan? This is completely impossible! And this has a simple explanation x96 the more primitive the man, the more aggressive he is.x94
Predictably, this book caused a stir and shock in Azeri forums and blogs, with plenty of hateful and homophobic comments. Some accused the author in treason and betrayal of national interests. Others claimed (with irony) that Azerbaijan now has its very own Salman Rushdie and Orhan Pamuk.
x93Who f**ked who?x94 x96 this is one of the first and apparently principal questions being discussed in forums and blogs (both Azeri and Armenian), each side wishing for x91his guyx92 to f**k x91the enemyx92. I got an impression that this question worried them more than even the fact of the main characters being gay. They are kind of ready to x91forgivex92 and x91forgetx92 gay part of the story, as long as x91their guyx92 is x91the manx92 meaning he is x91doing the enemyx92. For them, itx92s only black or white. What if they are x93versatilex94 (which allegedly the case in the novel)? This would crush the x91hopesx92 from both sides. Anywaysx85
There is only one bookstore in Baku which sells this book. Guess, what the name of that bookstore?.. x93Ali and Ninox94. Some in Azeri forums even suggested buying all the copies of the book and burning it in front of the bookstore. There were even rare voices advocating for the application of the x93Shariat lawx94 towards the author.
The topic itself proved to be so controversial that quite a few discussion forums and reports about the book got removed or self-censored from some Azeri forums and web sites, including day.az and kultura.az. If you discount the nationalities and sexuality of the main characters, the plot may seem pretty routine and unremarkable. However, against the backdrop of nationalism and intolerance in the region, the very fact of the novel that tells about the love story between an Armenian and Azeri, a gay love story between an Armenian and Azeri, makes it a double taboo breaking.
Look forward to reading the book in Russian when it gets published there (as far as I understand, itx92s being negotiated with the Russian publishers). Only then I would be able to properly review it. Till thenx85 Hopefully, these displays of hate and intolerance wonx92t evolve into something more dangerous and physical towards the author. Only the bravest among us are ready to break taboos. Alekper Aliyev is one of them.

Meer over Artush and Zaur op Unzipped: Gay Armenia

Nigar Musayeva
Caucasus Reporting Service, Baku, 20 February 2009

Artush and Zaur were two schoolchildren growing up in the great multi-ethnic city of Baku, but fate was not kind to them. Just when they were discovering their love for each other, they were torn apart by war.Artush, an Armenian, ended up in Armenia, while the Azeri Zaur was left to mourn the memories of his lost love as he walked the streets of Azerbaijanx92s capital. As a plot for a novel, it is not the most original in the world. But the twist has shocked Azerbaijan and made author Alekper Aliev infamous in his homeland. For both Zaur and Artush are men. Setting a love affair between two men in the midst of the conflict over the region of Karabakh, which is ruled by Armenians but claimed by Azerbaijan, has proved controversial.
x93I think that only a sick or completely cynical person could write such gibberish, someone who spits on his own country and on the millions of people harmed by the Karabakh war. It is just filth, thatx92s what it is,x94 said Sultan Gafarov, a student in Baku. Such attitudes are widespread in the country. Homosexuality has been legal in Azerbaijan since September 2000, and it is illegal to discriminate against homosexuals, but openly gay Azeris meet abuse in many areas of life.
x93There is xenophobia against homosexuals in society, which is stirred up by publications about AIDS. It is not universal. For example, homosexuals who achieve a high place in society are not criticised. In society, a rich homosexual appears more of a man than a poor heterosexual,x94 said Eldar Zeynalov, director of the Human Rights Centre of Azerbaijan.
In such a complex atmosphere, Aliev knew that publishing his book would not prove easy. x93In Azerbaijan not one publishing house would agree to issue a homoerotic book, which in their opinion dirtied the good name of the Azeri people,x94 he told IWPR. x93The main theme of the book is the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, the theme of homosexuality is not essential, just a way of attracting attention. Everyone knows the negative opinion of homosexuality in the South Caucasus. Against this background, I tried to show the mosaic of conflicts in the three neighbouring republics.x94
He finally had to publish it through a private publishing house last month, but it has proved successful. One shopkeeper said the controversial novel had been x93selling like hot cakesx94.x93I am very glad that a novel finally emerged to shock conservative opinion in Azerbaijan. This is long overdue, to break stereotypes, to have a joke with public opinion,x94 said Khanlar Agayev, a businessman in Baku. x93I hope now the author manages to survive the many attacks that will come from readers and critics.x94
Such attacks have come from all sides, including from the religious hierarchy in the mainly Muslim country. Haji Fuad Nurulla, deacon of the Baku Islamic University, is among the strongest opponents of homosexuality, which he thinks has come in from abroad and is weakening national culture. x93In the Koran this is strongly condemned. It is a sin, abnormal. It is completely unacceptable for a man to wear womenx92s clothes, to behave like a woman,x94 he said. x93Such people must be isolated from healthy members of society, so they do not infect them.x94
Only one charity is helping Azerbaijanx92s homosexuals with the difficulties of life in such an environment, the Union of Gender Development and Flourishment, which started work in 2006. Its funding primarily comes from The Netherlands. According to its chairman, Kamran Rzayev, homosexuals in the country have most trouble within their own families. x93There have been cases when parents, finding out about the non-traditional orientation of their children, have beaten them and thrown them out of the house,x94 he said. x93In such cases, we provide psychological support to these boys and girls and try to speak to their parents. Some parents, particularly those who are younger, come to our office themselves, and we explain that their children are not drug addicts, are not criminals, they are normal people who work, earn money, study, have their own interests.x94
Natavan, a lesbian, is among the young people who gathered in the organisationx92s kitchens to smoke and talk about their lives. She said her parents knew about it, but they did not talk about it in the family. x93Any conversation turns into an argument. They think it is a perversion, and probably think I am an ill-fated child,x94 she said. x93I want to have a normal family, I would like to live together with a loved one. But men just donx92t interest me, and if I lived with a woman then everyone would spurn me.x94
Rzayev said that a handful of single-sex couples do live in Baku, and that some of them had even been together for a decade or more. Some had even gone abroad to have their union recognised in one of the countries were gay marriage is legal. As it turned out, that is exactly what happened to Artush and Zaur. After long years separated by the tense relations between Armenia and Azerbaijan, which have still not signed a peace deal, they find each other in Tbiliisi x96 a city where Azeris and Armenians can go and be friends again x96 and were married by a friend of Georgian president Mikheil Saakashvilix92s Dutch wife.

Benedikt Brisch
Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst (DAAD), Bonn, 26. Januar 2010

Ich habe "Artush und Zaur" von Alekper Aliev xfcber die Feiertage gelesen und die Lektxfcre war wirklich sehr interessant und unterhalt-sam. Insbesondere interessant fxfcr mich waren die politisch-historischen Bezxfcge und der spxf6ttisch-satirische Blick auf die westlichen, besonders auch die deutschen, eher hilflos wirkenden Konfliktlxf6sungsmaxdf-nahmen bis hin zu der inneren Zerrissenheit der Protagonisten. Sehr schxf6n auch, dass das beklagenswerte Demokratiedefizit von Seiten der "Macht" zwar einerseits durchaus Empxf6rung der "kleinen Leute" hervorruft, andererseits gerade diese kleinen Leute den Protagonisten mit ihrer Rxfcckstxe4ndigkeit und Unzivilisiertheit auf den Wecker gehen. Das Thema Homo-sexualitxe4t als "Mega-Tabu" in dieser Weltgegend passt natxfcrlich wunderbar zu dem Kontext und potenziert die Radikalitxe4t dieses Buches. Gut, einige porno-graphische Stellen sind nicht jedermanns Geschmack aber Literatur darf nun mal mit gutem Grund fast alles. Ich meine auch eine gute Entscheidung, die Vorrede wegzulassen und hinten dazuzufxfcgen.

Mika Artyan
Unzipped: Gay Armenia, March 11 2009

x93Artush and Zaurx94, gay love story between Armenian and Azerbaijani
Alekper Aliyev, editor-in-chief of kultura.az, has published, as he put it, his x93most scandalousx94 novel x93Artush and Zaurx94 in Baku. Itx92s a gay love story between an Azeri and Armenian, a sort of partial deconstruction of Ali and Nino (a heterosexual love story of Azeri Ali and Georgian Nino) having instead Azeri and Armenian male lovers against the backdrop of the emerging Karabakh conflict.
The main characters, Artush and Zaur were born and raised in Baku, went to the same school, shared desks in the classroom. At some point boys became sexually attracted to each otherx85 These were the early years of the Karabakh conflict. The war separates them. Artush moved to Armenia, Zaur remained in Baku. Already adults they meet again – in Tbilisi. They indulge in memories, fall in love and even get married with the help of a Dutch pastor, a confidant of the wife of Georgian president Mikhail Saakashvili.
In his interview, the author argues that Azeris and Armenians share similar kitchen, music and mentality. x93Armenians are closer to us than, say, Georgiansx94 due to the influence of the Persian culture. Alekper says that one of the reasons of writing this novel was to expose the absurdity of all wars in the South Caucasus a la Kusturica. He believes he has the full right to do so as he lost his older brother during the Karabakh war in 1994. x93We are now engaged in information wars with Armenians over the dolma and balaban, even though all our efforts should be aimed at addressing global challenges. Our people must find the wisdom, courage and determination to put an end once and for all of the frozen conflict. We need joint efforts to create all necessary conditions for peaceful coexistence between the two neighbours on this small plot of land, in this God-cursed region called x93The South Caucasusx94. Frankly, itx92s a bit hard to believe that this would happen". x93During the World War II in Moscow there were concerts of German classical music; works of German composers were heard on the radio; even studies on German philosophers were carried outx85 Can you imagine for Kara Karaev to be performed in Armenia, or Khachatryan x96 in Azerbaijan? This is completely impossible! And this has a simple explanation x96 the more primitive the man, the more aggressive he is.x94
Predictably, this book caused a stir and shock in Azeri forums and blogs, with plenty of hateful and homophobic comments. Some accused the author in treason and betrayal of national interests. Others claimed (with irony) that Azerbaijan now has its very own Salman Rushdie and Orhan Pamuk.
x93Who f**ked who?x94 x96 this is one of the first and apparently principal questions being discussed in forums and blogs (both Azeri and Armenian), each side wishing for x91his guyx92 to f**k x91the enemyx92. I got an impression that this question worried them more than even the fact of the main characters being gay. They are kind of ready to x91forgivex92 and x91forgetx92 gay part of the story, as long as x91their guyx92 is x91the manx92 meaning he is x91doing the enemyx92. For them, itx92s only black or white. What if they are x93versatilex94 (which allegedly the case in the novel)? This would crush the x91hopesx92 from both sides. Anywaysx85
There is only one bookstore in Baku which sells this book. Guess, what the name of that bookstore?.. x93Ali and Ninox94. Some in Azeri forums even suggested buying all the copies of the book and burning it in front of the bookstore. There were even rare voices advocating for the application of the x93Shariat lawx94 towards the author.
The topic itself proved to be so controversial that quite a few discussion forums and reports about the book got removed or self-censored from some Azeri forums and web sites, including day.az and kultura.az. If you discount the nationalities and sexuality of the main characters, the plot may seem pretty routine and unremarkable. However, against the backdrop of nationalism and intolerance in the region, the very fact of the novel that tells about the love story between an Armenian and Azeri, a gay love story between an Armenian and Azeri, makes it a double taboo breaking.
Look forward to reading the book in Russian when it gets published there (as far as I understand, itx92s being negotiated with the Russian publishers). Only then I would be able to properly review it. Till thenx85 Hopefully, these displays of hate and intolerance wonx92t evolve into something more dangerous and physical towards the author. Only the bravest among us are ready to break taboos. Alekper Aliyev is one of them.

Meer over Artush and Zaur op Unzipped: Gay Armenia

ORDERS
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german version

ARTUSCH UND ZAUR
xdcbersetzung: Daniel Schreiner und Sinan Cem xd6ztxfcrk
Korrektur und Lektorat: Harald Korten
Umschlag: Frans van den Muijsenberg
Schriftart: Minion Pro
Druck und Verarbeitung: drukkerij Wxf6hrmann
ISBN: -
Preis: x80 18,90
Kosten Versendung: x80 1,95
Bestellung: senden Sie bitte ein Email mit ihre Name und Adresse,
                 Sie bekommen dann alle weitere Informationen.

dutch version…..

english version…..

spanisch version…..


french version…..

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A NOTE FROM THE PUBLISHER

In the original Azeri version of the book, the Wedding and Separation section opens with a lengthy direct address to the readers, a device that the author also uses, albeit with shorter passages, in several other places in the book. In this particular lengthy direct address to the readers, the author explains the socio-historical context and appreciation of homosexuality in ancient Greece, and positions the upbringing and social interactions of Artush and Zaur outside the realm of Platox92s tradition. At the end of this direct address, the story of Artush and Zaur continues with the next chapter (The red album….).

The publisher and several of the translators of the book were concerned about the stylistic incompatibility between this lengthy direct address and the rest of the story, and felt that the content of this direct address would have been more intuitively expressed through prose, and through conversations between the characters. This approach would improve the flow and the rhythm of the story.

Additional editorial feedback contends that, stylistic arguments aside, the authorx92s explanation in this lengthy direct address was meant for the readers of the original Azeri version of the book, that this provision of historical context might inspire dialogue and discussion about the situation of homosexulity in the South Caucasus region. However, it was felt that for some Western readers the content and the tone of this direct address might be perceived as harsh and homophobic, and that it would be best to leave out this text in the various translations of the book.

But there were also those who believed that this lengthy direct address was essential for the understanding of the book. In the story, the narratives about homosexuality end with the homoerotic Greco-Roman wrestling scene, and with the suicide of Artush and Zaur. It was felt that without reference to the socio-historical context of homosexuality in ancient Greece, as provided by the authorx92s direct address to the readers, the narratives of the story would not be fully understood and appreciated.

Taking into consideration all these different perspectives, and with the permission of the author, it was decided that this lengthy direct address should be removed from the main story, and be placed, as an addendum, in the back of the book.  In the spirit of non-censorship and authorial authenticity, the publisher feels that it is important to include this text in question, for the readers to decide for themselves whether this text should be integral to the story’s narratives.

For those readers who bought the book and wish to experience this direct address at its original position, the text should be placed at the beginning of page 126, at the start of the Wedding and Separation section.

Readers are invited to share their opinions on this discussion and our solution, and on this book in general, by e-mailing directly at artushandzaur@upcmail.nl or give a reaction on this website to be able to discuss the matter with other readers of the book. We very much welcome and appreciate our readersx92 feedback.

Copyright xa9 2009 by Alekper Aliyiev

Original title:
Artu? ve Zaur

Original Publication:
Dissident Publishing House, Ulan Bator, Mongolian Peoplex92s Republic
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Copyright English, German, French, Dutch and Spanish translation xa9 uitgeverij Sylfaen

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted or stored in a retrieval system, in any form or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

For information about Alekper Aliyev, interviews with the author and all kind of other information concerning the book, please contact:

Uitgeverij Sylfaen
Frans van den Muijsenberg
De Hoefkamp 1136
6545 MH Nijmegen
T   0031 (0)24-3789946
M   0031 (0)6-28279670

sylfaen@upcmail.nl
www.sylfaen.nl

ENGLISH EDITION

translation from azeri into english
Erica Grey is a Teaching Fellow at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London and also a visiting Tutor at Goldsmiths College. His research centres on Orthodox Christianity in Eastern Europe and the ex-Soviet space with special reference to Turkish speaking Christian communities in the region. He speaks a number of regional languages including Turkish, Gagauz and Hungarian. His published works include x91The Career of Father Mihail xc7akir – The Cyril and Methodius of the Gagauzx92, Solanus, 2007, pp. 5-18 and ‘Text, Context and Performance: The Lay Institutions of Gagauz Ortho-doxy’, Leiden: Brill (forthcoming 2010).

proofreading and editing
James Alexander Kapalo (MA, PhD) is a Teaching Fellow at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London and also a visiting Tutor at Goldsmiths College. His research centres on Orthodox Christianity in Eastern Europe and the ex-Soviet space with special reference to Turkish speaking Christian communities in the region. He speaks a number of regional languages including Turkish, Gagauz and Hungarian. His published works include x91The Career of Father Mihail xc7akir – The Cyril and Methodius of the Gagauzx92, Solanus, 2007, pp. 5-18 and ‘Text, Context and Performance: The Lay Institutions of Gagauz Ortho-doxy’, Leiden: Brill (forthcoming 2010)

second editing and filmscript
Paul Lee graduated from the University of Toronto with Hon.B.Sc. (biology/anthropology/Latin American Studies) and M.A. (anthropology) and Ph.D. (education), and from York University with M.B.A. (arts & media administration) and M.F.A. (film). Since 1991 he has organized, program-med, and curated film festivals in Canada, the U.S., Mexico, Peru, Colombia, Argentina, Spain, Italy, Germa-ny, Sweden, Poland, Romania, Moldova, Mauritius, Iran, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Thailand, Japan and the Philippines. In addition to his programming activities, Paul also specializes in producing films for first-time filmmakers, and in producing international co-produc-tions, women’s films, Asian films, human rights/social justice educational films, and LGBT films. In 1994 he made his first short film Thick Lips Thin Lips, which has won 9 awards, and was screened at over 240 film festivals worldwide, after its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival. In 1995 he made his second film These Shoes Weren’t Made For Walking, which has won 6 awards, and was screened at over 90 film festivals worldwide, after its premiere at the Sydney Film Festival (and the film is used in the Women’s Studies curriculum in more than 30 universities and colleges across Canada, the U.S., Polynesia, and the Caribbean). In 1999 he made his third film The Offering, which has won 71 awards to date, and was screened at over 490 film festivals worldwide, after its premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival.  When not making his own films or producing films for other independent filmmakers, Paul takes care of International Marketing for the Cinema Development Fund in Kyrgyzstan, and for the Swedish film distributor Glimz AB.

GERMAN EDITION

translation from azeri into german
Daniel Schreiner was born in 1979 in Troisdorf/Germany. Study of Socialwork in Cologne and of Comparative Literature and Middle Eastern Studies in Bonn. Next to his recent job as a DAAD administrator he is working on several publications on Aserbaijani prose and writers and translations of Alekper Aliyevs books. Teaching expe-rience in Aserbaijan and Pakistan.
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Sinan Cem xd6ztxfcrk was born in 1976 in Adiyaman in the province of Gxf6lbasi in Turkey and studied at the Hacettepe University in Ankara. After graduating from University with a diploma in Sociology, he came to Germany in 2002. There he studied Constitutional History at the University of Bonn. Since 2007 he attends masters-classes at the University of Cologne in the subjects of Sociology, Musicology and Philosophy. He is especially interested in national popular movements, gender equa-lity, urban sociology and themes related to alienation in everyday life. Since the year 2008 he works as a freelance translator.
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proofreading and editing
Harald Korten is a Teaching Fellow at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London and also a visiting Tutor at Goldsmiths College. His research centres on Orthodox Christianity in Eastern Europe and the ex-Soviet space with special reference to Turkish speaking Christian communities in the region. He speaks a number of regional languages including Turkish, Gagauz and Hungarian. His published works include x91The Career of Father Mihail xc7akir – The Cyril and Methodius of the Gagauzx92, Solanus, 2007, pp. 5-18 and ‘Text, Context and Performance: The Lay Institutions of Gagauz Ortho-doxy’, Leiden: Brill (forthcoming 2010).

DUTCH EDITION

translation from english into dutch
Hansje Hardenberg (1951) started translating after high school, while studying Dutch and English language and literature, Library and Documentation Sciences and Journalism. Between 1975 and 1990 she translated about 15 novels and edited numerous books, both fiction and non-fiction. After that she was employed on a permanent basis, first as a company journalist and later as a PR-officer. In 2007 she was invited to work as a proofreader at the European Court of Justice on a temporary basis x96 an opportunity she couldn’t resist. When her contract ended, she picked up freelancing again. Since 2007 she has been living and working in Luxemburg, doing mainly transla-tions (EN-DU, GE-DU, FR-DU), editing and proofreading. She likes to spend her spare time on walking, painting, sculpturing, writing and photography. Website: http://postscriptum.pinksoup.eu

proofreading and editing
Marcel Bout (1980) studied at the University of Tilburg in the Netherlands. He has obtained the academic degree Master of Arts in 2005. His main subject was Communi-cation and Information Sciences. After graduating, he worked for several companies. He there performed a variety of activities, such as the writing and editing of texts for websites, checking the quality of the external communication, the training of new employees and participating in several communication projects. Since the year 2009 he also works as a freelance translator (English to Dutch), editor and proofreader.

SPANISH EDITION

translation and editing from english into spanish
Enrique Brieba (B.A-M.A) holds degrees form Notre Dame University, So. Bend Indiana, USA. A Sociologist, a poet and an English and Spanish teacher. He has been working as a professional translator since 1981 in Canada, United States and Chile. In addition he is proficient in French and Portuguese. An active Member of Poets of the World Net-work has published his poems in different Latin Americans Anthologies and Literary Journals. At present he holds teaching positions for diverse Language Training Institu-tions in Chile and Brazil and is preparing the first edition of a collection of poems that will be published in 2010.
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FRENCH EDITION

translation from english into french
Franck Billxe9 holds a degree in Russian and Arabic from the University of Westminster, London. He has been working as a professional translator since 1994 and translates into French (his mother tongue) and English from a number of languages including Russian, Swedish and Mongolian. In addition to being a linguist, he is also trained as an anthropologist and is currently completing his PhD thesis in social anthropology at Cambridge University. He has published several papers in academic journals on the relations between China and the Republic of Mongolia.

proofreading and editing
?????????? holds a degree in Russian and Arabic from the University of Westminster, London. He has been working as a professional translator since 1994 and translates into French (his mother tongue) and English from a number of languages including Russian, Swedish and Mongolian. In addition to being a linguist, he is also trained as an anthropologist and is currently completing his PhD thesis in social anthropology at Cambridge University. He has published several papers in academic journals on the relations between China and the Republic of Mongolia.
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PREVIEW
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You have driven me mad, you are my nostrum, oh Armenian,
On the path of love, I became your slave, oh Armenian.

Chapter 1 – ENCOUNTER
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Tblisi greeted him with Indian summer and a gentle breeze. Zaur stepped out of carriage 4 of the Baku-Tbilisi train and onto the dirty concrete platform. He raised his jacket collar and shivered a little with cold. Knapsack and laptop flung over his shoulder, he made his way steadily towards the broad stairs leading down to the exit. Every time he came to this city he caught the smell of sausage stuf-fed with strange oriental spice. That same smell hit his nose today. Cigarette butts, reminiscent of ships with white sails adrift at sea, were floating in the tiny pools on the platform under the weak beams of the sun that looked very much like an Acharuli khachapuri. Lining up along the roof of the platform, crows cawed insolently as if greeting the passengers in an avian dialect of ancient Georgian. A three-legged dog rushed past Zaur, its fourth leg probably lost under the wheels of a train.

Most of the sullen taxi drivers by the platform were Azeri. In Georgian, Rus-sian, Azeri and also somehow in Armenian, they were giving loud promises of very cheap taxi trips of high quality. The conference organizers had not sent a car for him. Zaur did not need it, though. His luggage was light and he had a chance to sleep in the train. He felt like walking for a while, to get a good feel of Tbilisi, for it had been half a year since the last time he saw the city. He wanted to make a spiritual connection with it.

Scarcely had he stepped onto the stairs, when he was surrounded by Gypsies that started all at once begging for money in Azeri. Zaur pushed away a girl of about fifteen.

x91I left Baku to get away from you but you haunt me even here! Where the hell can I go then?x92 He said that and was hurrying down the stairs when the mocking and angry voice of the Gypsy girl caught his ear.

x91Go to Bayil!x92

Zaur stopped and looked back at her. She saw the reaction of the stingy young man, burst out laughing and started pulling faces. Her laughter was taken up by her six friends and the seven girls, who were all alike as peas in a pod, turned into a whirl of ringing laughter and mocking tongues.

Zaur let his eyes linger on them for a moment as if trying to engrave that image in his memory for ever, and then he turned sharply and carried on down the stairs. There was something dreadful in the Gypsyx92s words. What could they mean? What was it? A danger warning, a sign for him to be cautious? Or could it be that the Gypsy had cursed him?.. That nothing can be done about it? Her words seemed as strange as the koans of Buddhist monks that have reached Nirvana. And now, he was forced to rack his brains over that sentence to try to comprehend its meaning. Those words were a wise riddle addressed to Zaur, to him alone. He convinced himself that the Gypsy girl was a clairvoyant and when he reached the last step, he looked back again. The Gypsies were nowhere to be seen. And neither was his good mood.

Zaur stepped outside. The indian summer embraced the ancient city. The sky appeared as though merging with the earth. He did not want to walk anymore. Zaur looked around. Ten metres away from him, an elderly taxi driver was reading a newspaper in his old yellow Zhiguli. Zaur approached the half-open car window and said, x91Good day. How much to the city hall?x92

The driver livened up and put his paper down on the dashboard. His professional intuition somehow told him Zaur would surely choose his car, and he said firmly, x91Four lari.x92

x91I have to exchange money.x92

x91Therex92s a green window over there, can you see it, son?x92

x91Yes.x92

x91You can do it there.x92

Zaur nodded thankfully and hurried to the green window. Georgian lari that had been competing with the dollar for many years and had outlived two presidents held a steady position of two to one. Zaur held out a hundred dollar note to a fat moustached Georgian woman squeezed into a shabby chair inside the small booth.

x91Exchange all, please.x92

The woman held the note to the light, then spat on her fingers and began counting off lari. And slowly was she counting. Zaur was nervous. Finally, he got the money, put it into his pocket without counting it again and ran back to the car. He opened the rear door, threw his things onto the back seat and took the front seat himself.

x91Let’s go.x92

The driver muttered something in Georgian, trying to start the engine. The latter was as old as the man himself; it played pranks, not in the least eager to follow its masterx92s order. After several futile attempts, the old man suddenly said, x91Allah, Muhammad, ya Alix92, turned the key once again and the engine rumbled. Zaurx92s eyes popped out of his head. The Zhiguli started and rushed towards the centre.

x91How come you know that prayer?x92 Zaur could hold back no longer.

x91What prayer, son?x92

x91Allah, Muhammad, ya Ali.x92

The old man smiled showing his teeth, yellow from tobacco.

x91So, I see you are from Baku, son, eh?x92

x91Thatx92s right.x92

x91An Azeri taught me that prayer. x91If you say it before setting out youx92ll surely do all right,x92 he said. Years have passed but I still remember those words. The prayer has helped me out many times. I used to go to Kvemo Kartli very often before, you call the place Borchali, in this very car,x92 he patted the steering wheel vigorously, x91I used to take Azeris back home to Borchali from Shaitan Bazaar where they sold fruitx85 Now, neither I nor my car has strength for long journeys any more. Wex92ve both grown old.x92

Zaur watched lazy Georgians walking heavily along the pavement: x91I seex85x92

x91What about you, son? Are you in Tbilisi to have a good time orx85?x92

x91Therex92s a conference here.x92

x91What conference? Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan or what?x92

Zaur smiled. x91No. Itx92s about the South Caucasus con-flicts.x92

The old man shook his head and clicked his tongue. He glanced at Zaur out of the corner of his eye.

x91Damn those politicians! Sons of a bitch they play with peoplex92s lives. Did we want a war? All republics suffer from that. Today, we say the Soviet times were so-and-so, awful, inhuman. But there was no such thing then! We had friendship among peoples, we had fraternity. And nowx85 see whatx92s going onx85x92

On blurting that out, he vaguely waved his hand in front. Zaur gazed in that direction. McDonalds, Council of Europe flags flying in front of administrative buildings, expensive boutiques along the road. Maybe, the old man had waved his hand for no reason, without meaning indicate anything or anyone in particular. Or maybe he was expressing his protest against Westernisation and Americanisation? Zaur had no intention of finding out. He just asked, x91But arenx92t peoples themselves to blame? No one but politicians?x92

The driver turned round and looked Zaur in the face. He had not expected such a question. Never had he met such person as this guy. Everyone he had ever discussed the South Caucasus conflicts with would agree with him without hesitation. Everyone he knew cursed politicians as one. It was the first time he saw a man, moreover, an Azeri, who blamed not politicians but nations.

x91Therex92s some truth in what you say, son. But the problem has its other side. For example, how were the Azerbaijanisx92 at fault in the Karabakh war? Ix92m sure youx92ll say the Armenians are to blame. And thatx92s true, indeed, they are. But if you ask the Armenians they will say itx92s all quite the contrary. Isnx92t that so?x92

Zaur shrugged his shoulders.

x91I wouldnx92t say we were without blame. There is no such thing as a sinless human or a society. Perhaps some of our mistakes were among the reasons that the war that flared up so badly. But the Karabakh Armenians were surely the ones who started it all. First they wanted to unite with Armenia, and then they began demanding independence. And the result is obvious. Theyx92ve succeeded neither in integration nor in the formation of an independent state. There it is, neither fish nor fowl. Meanwhile, it was the refugees who suffered, the people who lost their blood and the ones they loved.x92

Zaur could not believe his own ears. Was it him speaking? It was not like him to have long conversations with taxi drivers. And now he was speaking in simple sentences, slipping into the chasm of profanation. Castes of taxi drivers, tradesfolk, prostitutes, policemen, civil servants had always been objects of his loathing. He had dealt with them only in case of emergency and had been sparing of words. And here he was, seriously discussing the Karabakh conflict with some taxi driverx85

The driver nodded towards the city hall building about 300 metres away and said regretfully, x91Wex92re almost there. It was interesting talking to you. Listenx85x92 he went into third gear with apparent indecision, cast a fleeting glance at Zaur and continued, x91I know pretty well what a disgusting nation the Armenians are. Theyx92re even worse than the Gypsies. Therex92s a Georgian scholar, Chavchavadze. You have to read his book about the Armenians. He reveals the Armenians insatiable nature brilliantly. Now they lay claim to Javakheti. They can live in a place for only a century and then try and appropriate it. And sometimes they succeedx85x92

Zaur smiled. He wanted to say to the driver, x91Itx92s an old Georgian tradition to abuse the Armenians when talking to an Azeri and to abuse the Azeri when talking to an Armenian.x92 But the words that followed made him change his mind.

x91I am Yazidi. I was born and grew up in Yerevan. After that stir in Karabakh began within three years I moved to Tiblisi. I wouldnx92t call it paradise here but itx92s a thousand times better than in Armenia,x92

He pulled up by the city hall. x91Cx92mon, how are you to blame for this war? Itx92s them, this scum! And now theyx92re reaching out for Georgia. If you offer your hand to an Armenian, be sure, hex92ll tear it off without thinking twice. I agree with you, nations are also to blame. The Abkhazians, the Ossetians, the Georgians, the Armenians and you are to blame, too. But there are different degrees of guilt, arenx92t there? You canx92t insist that everyone is equally guilty.x92

x91They should have invited you to our conference. Your reasoning is one of a true conflict management specialist,x92 Zaur answered, opening the door.

He paid, got out of the car, took his knapsack and laptop from the back seat, said goodbye to the old man through the half-open window and turned to the city hall building.

Neat bronze-coloured benches in the small garden in front of the city hall, dustbins, fountains and palm trees were a pleasure to the eye. Just one detail spoiled the beauty of the composition. It was the two artificial trees with light bulbs burning at night, the kind of kitsch produced in China for Third World countries. Zaur felt annoyed that those tasteless ugly trees that could be seen in every corner of Baku appeared here, too, maiming the beautiful city.

Every time he came to Tbilisi he arranged his meetings in front of the city hall. Today, he was going to call his friend Shota Karbedia, who worked at Caucasus House, and meet with him here so that he could accompany him to the hotel. However Zaur was in no haste to call him. The watch said eleven and Shota was probably sleeping the sleep of the innocent after having drunk a skin full of wine the previous night. Zaur did not feel tired at all. He just wanted to take a shower. He imagined lying in a bathtub, in hot water and trembled in anticipation of the pleasure that was quite possible in the very near future. But now he wanted to find a cafxe9, have a snack and then a walk around old Tblisi.

He turned right from the city hall, stopped in front of the first cafxe9 he saw and looked in through the big window. The place looked more like McDonalds than a cafxe9. Zaur opened the door and went in. The first thing he saw was plastic trays by the cash desk. He hated self-service. He was about to leave but hesitated under the stare of two waitresses and a tall guy behind the cash desk. He swore, chose a table by the window, put his knapsack, laptop and jacket down on the chair and came up to the cash desk. He took two hamburgers, French fries and a cola, paid and went back to his chair with a tray in his hands.

He was prepared for active participation in the discussion tonight. Such conferences were not new to him as he had some experience in the field. The subject was simple. x93The Role of NGOs in conflict resolutionx94. Yes, the subject was rather unsophisticated indeed, considering that everyone, including the organizers, knew that NGOs did not play any role in conflict resolution, never had done and never would.

Taking a huge bite of a hamburger, he pulled out his laptop. And here one of the waitresses approached him and asked in Russian, x91It seems youx92re from Baku.

Zaur looked at her with interest. A brunette, medium height, the same girl that had put his food on the tray. Hair in a neat bun. A miniskirt hardly covering knees. Rough hands of a worker spoiling the fineness of the face and figure.

x91Yes, I am. How did you know?x92 Zaur asked indifferently and stared into the monitor. He did not feel like talking at all.

x91Intuition. My aunt lived in Baku for many years, you know. She married a man from there.x92

Saying that, the girl began wiping the table, though it was already clean enough. Zaur watched her nervous and pointless hand movements. He had to say something in return for the priceless information about her aunt.

x91Oh thatx92s great. But she doesnx92t live there anymore, does she?x92

The girl looked straight into his eyes and he saw emptiness and sorrow in hers.

x91She only just saved herself when the Armenians were driven out of Baku. She and her Azerbaijani husband moved first to Krasnodar and then to Canada.

Zaur took another bite of his hamburger and sipped cold cola.

x91So youx92re Armenian.x92

Not a question, just a statement.

x91Yes, I am. We are Tbilisi Armenians. You might not believe it but I have only been to Yerevan twice. At the end of this street, the old Tbilisi, Maidan, begins. There are baths there. And there is an Armenian quarter, a Georgian one and an Azeri one around them. My father spoke Georgian and Azeri well. We’ve been living in peace for years here. Damn those who started this senseless war. When I was a child I dreamed of seeing Baku. But my dream is not to come true. Not destined tox85x92

Zaur opened the file he needed. He raised his head and looked at the girl in silence. She realised that she was distracting him but was in no hurry to leave. Zaur had no desire to listen to her, he did not want her to share her memories with him. He was sick and tired of such talk. Everyone was pointing to some vague political quarter, to some public figures as the initiators of the war, blaming them, cursing them. He was weary of clichxe9d arguments.

x91Can I ask you something?x92 the girl said timidly.

x91Sure.x92

x91How much does a laptop like that cost?x92

Zaur put his hamburger on the plate, turned to her and answered, x91Thatx92s right. There’s always been peace and friendship between us. What about now? Where did this war come from? I canx92t understand either.x92

Finishing the phrase, he concentrated on the display of his laptop and got down to the email he had received the previous week, chewing his hamburger with gusto.

The niece of the Armenian aunt, who had fled from Baku, saw the conversation was flagging and went away with a disappointed x91bon appetitx92.

Zaur did not notice her leave. He was chewing on the second hamburger.

                                breaking down taboos will not be easy
                 a love story & lesson in conflict management for adults
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