> General news Brains for Hire Education and Nation-building in Contemporary In an attempt to fill the post-Soviet ideological vacuum and to consolidate power, the turers at these institutes were often along ethnic lines may seem , the main Forum > leaders of newly independent Azerbaijan turned to ‘Azerbaijanism’, pan-Turkic ideology, the state university professors who, due to goal of this ‘Azerbaijanism’ is to Central Asia idea of Western style civil society, and the Azerbaijani past. The war with , the budget cuts in public education, agreed strengthen presidential power across socio-economic crisis, and indoctrination through the public education system all heavily to part-time positions in the private sec- the territory of the Republic. influenced the new nation’s shaping identity. tor. By the end of the 1990s Azerbaijani Pro-Turkish, pro-Western and pro- policy makers were making greater Soviet/Russian ideological streams in By Irina Morozova , Armenia, and gained schools and universities were allowed efforts to preserve the positive aspects the education system have been toler- great currency. to continue their activities. of the Soviet educational system such ated by the former and current presi- n 1993, G. Aliyev, a former member The most popular theme within Alongside the pro-Turkish institutes, as free access to education and result- dents of Azerbaijan – so long as they Iof the Central Committee of the numerous branches of academia there exist a number of pro-Western ing high literacy rates, and the high serve Aliyev’s cult. Public and private Communist Party of the Soviet Union, became the national liberation move- private universities that claim to be level of secondary education.3 schools do not succeed without the became the president of the Republic ment in Azerbaijan at the beginning of bringing Western education to Azer- President’s portrait in the director’s of Azerbaijan. After consolidating the the twentieth century. Researchers went baijan. The orientation of these uni- A new brand on the market cabinet. < branches of power, Aliyev installed his back in time to rediscover the Azerbai- versities corresponds to the official state Periodically, presidential teams come clan to administer the country. Just jani-Armenian conflict at the beginning ideology pertaining to democracy, civil out with new ideas. The concept of Dr Irina Y. Morozova received her PhD in before his death in 2003, his son Ilham of the twentieth century, re-interpret- society, and human rights. At the begin- ‘Azerbaijanism’ was invented by G. history from the Institute of Asian and Aliyev was elected president. Azerbai- ing the recorded thoughts and actions ning of the 1990s, many Azerbaijanis Aliyev, and was partly based on an Azer- African Studies at Lomonosov Moscow jani leaders and policy makers sought of Azerbaijani leaders to draw parallels assumed that abandoning Soviet com- baijani interpretation of Americanism.4 State University. At present she is a research a uniting national idea that would to the present. The entire history of munist ideology and its accompanying According to its main idea, there is no fellow at IIAS. Her research interests include strengthen the position of the Aliyev Azerbaijan came to be viewed as a long system of education would immediate- special Azeri identity in Azerbaijan that the modern history of Central and Inner Asia clan throughout the country. They com- struggle for independence and recog- ly lead them to the same level of demo- should be developed into the national and post-Soviet societies in transition. missioned the nation’s intellectuals and nition. cratic development as in the West.This, paradigm. The Azeri, accounting for [email protected] educators to develop themes address- For the last thirteen years, history however, did not happen. Innovations 70-80 per cent of the population, ing ‘the united Azerbaijani nation’ and classes in the schools and universities introduced in the Western-orientated should observe the constitution and ‘the territorial integrity of the Azerbai- of Azerbaijan have been taught from institutes remained superficial: despite laws on equal terms with the other jani lands’. Those who remained this avowedly nationalistic perspective. the new administration, examination nationalities of contemporary Azerbai- employed in public education after the Consequently, the younger generation system, and Western-style diplomas jan.5 However positive the desire to dramatic budget cuts had little choice has grown up determined to regain the and degrees, no essential changes were maintain the legal structure and pre- but to comply. By the beginning of the occupied lands of Nagorno-Karabakh.1 made to the content of education. Lec- vent the country from falling apart 1990s, fundamental research was hard- So long as the key positions at the lead- ly distinguishable from populist agita- ing universities are occupied or con- tion, leaving the Azerbaijani public trolled by Aliyev’s clan, and intellectu- without tools to distinguish fact from als and educators are pressured to fiction. participate in the nation-building project, trustworthy research in the The Nagorno-Karabakh social and human sciences has little conflict chance to appear.2 Azerbaijani nationalism, which never seemed radical during the time Between pan-Turkism and of the USSR, broke out with renewed westernization force after independence. The lost war In the early 1990s Azerbaijani against Armenia in Nagorno-Karabakh nationalism came under the influence (1988-1994) provoked ethnic hatred of pan-Turkic ideology. Appealing to the and a desire for revenge. Defeat in Turkic origins of the Azerbaijani peo- Nagorno-Karabakh sharpened the ple, private Turkish charitable organi- defensive feelings of the small Azer- zations set up a network of education- baijani nation, suppressed and divided al centres promoting ’s interests in former times by its great neighbours in Central Eurasia. They successfully and Iran. recruited Azerbaijani youth to schools Suffering from low morale, the Azer- based on the Turkish academic system, baijani people demanded new, com- winning converts to pan-Turkic ideolo- forting, and encouraging national con- gy. These attempts faced few obstacles cepts. Not only historians considered from the government, which considers it their duty to write on the glories of Turkey a close and reliable ally. the Azerbaijani nation. Intellectuals, Attempts to consolidate Azerbaijan’s publicists, scientists, and journalists Turkic identity did not, however, receive from all sorts of backgrounds came the unanimous support of the country’s together to furnish proof that Nagorno- political and intellectual elite; many pre- Karabakh had belonged to the Azer- ferred a more distinct national identity baijani people from time immemorial. for Azerbaijan. By the end of the 1990s, The idea of ‘the great Azerbaijan state’ pan-Turkism had lost much of its pop- possessing territory in contemporary ularity, although Turkish-sponsored

Notes >

1 During my field research in Baku in May 2003, I interviewed 100 Azerbaijani students, postgradu- ate students, and postdocs, aged 18 to 30. No less than 95 of them stated that they considered a military campaign to be the most probable solution to the Karabakh problem. 2 Practically every one of the 21 Azerbaijani doctors and professors I interviewed in Baku was unim- pressed by contemporary Azerbaijani theoreticians in the social and human sciences. 3 Interview with Prof. Ramiz T. Humbatov of the Azerbaijan State Oil Academy, Baku, May 2003. 4 The central idea of Americanism can be described as the fulfilment of civil and military duties to the state and the president, respect for the US flag and anthem, and loyalty to American values such as freedom of speech, civil society, and free enterprise. 5 Interview with Prof. Parvin Gulam Darabadi, Department of International Relations of Baku State University, Baku, May 2003.

IIAS Newsletter | #33 | March 2003 3