Young Soldiers' Tales of War in Nagorno-Karabakh

Abstract

The active participation of children and young men in armed conflicts has not lost its significance as a global phenomenon in the twenty-first century. In Eurasia, where numerous regions are plagued by violent conflicts, many of the everyday realities these young soldiers experienced still remain unclear and continue to be under-researched. Through the use of biographical interviews, this essay retrospectively explores the ways in which war in Nagorno-Karabakh impinged on male teenagers' identities. A biographical approach not only reveals these former young soldiers’ experiences which may have otherwise never been told but also allows them to reflect on their war experiences more than ten years later. In this way, we aim to complement existing research on the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict with new insights.

Notes

¹The only exceptions are two scholarly publications, Sabirova (2008) and Shahnazarian (2008).

²Since 2000 Nona has conducted more than 80 interviews.

³Most of her fieldwork trips were self-financed. Nonetheless, Nona used her Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program at UCLA to conduct additional research specifically on the topic of young soldiers’ war experiences. For our essay in particular we analysed 15 biographical interviews, which addressed the topic of war and fighting.

⁴This fieldwork trip was funded by The Centre for East European Language Based Area Studies (CEELBAS) and was conducted as part of a CEELBAS Postdoctoral Research Fellowship on Migration and Diasporic Citizenship. Ulrike conducted a total of nine biographical interviews.

⁵While Nona is an Armenian from Nagorno-Karabakh, Ulrike has no cultural connections to Armenians or Nagorno-Karabakh.

⁶Therefore, in the subsequent discussion, interview participants are referred to by pseudonyms to ensure complete anonymity.

⁷In this way, it is not gender identity only that is performed, but also ethnic identity amongst others.

⁹As there is no agreed linguistic distinction between the ethnic group Azerbaijanis and the citizens of the state of Azerbaijan, we use the term ‘Azerbaijani’ for the ethnic group.

¹⁰Today, the ghost town of Aghdam lies in ruins. Aghdam was a town of 150,000 inhabitants in the south-western part of Azerbaijan, just outside Nagorno Karabakh. During the 1993 summer offensives, Aghdam was besieged and captured by Armenian forces. As the town fell, its entire population fled eastwards. In the immediate aftermath of the fighting, the Armenian forces destroyed much of Aghdam to prevent its recapture by Azerbaijan, resulting in condemnation by U.N. Security Council resolution 853 (July 29 1993) (Laitin & Suny 1999, pp. 160).

¹¹Aram, aged 17 in 1991, Martuni, 28 July 2009.

⁸Aram was born in Martuni in 1974. His mother was a teacher in a kindergarten and his father was a militsioner (policeman). Aram’s father died from a heart attack right on the battle field.

¹²For a thorough account of the long history of Armenian–Azerbaijani tensions see Chorbajian, Donabedian and Mutafian (1994), Chorbajian (2001), de Waal (2003).

¹³It is important to note that although Azerbaijanis, are a different Turkic people than the Ottoman Turks, they are ‘Turks’ in Armenian popular understanding (Azeri is a Turkic language).

¹⁵Ulubabian Marat was the founder and initial activist of the Karabakh movement.

¹⁶Artak, aged 16 in 1991, 6 July 2009, Martuni.

¹⁴Artak was born in 1975 and brought up in Martuni. His mother worked as a pharmacist and his father was a builder. He has one older sister and one younger brother. His family left Nagorno Karabakh when the war started. Ten years after the ceasefire he finally returned from Russia to Martuni with his wife and five children after the end of the war.

¹⁷Arsen was born in 1973 and lived all his life in Martuni. His mother was a representative of the Soviet nomenclature, his father was a musician.

¹⁹Gagik, aged 22 in 1991, 10 August 2009, Martuni.

¹⁸Gagik was born in Martuni but lived and went to school in Baku until the age of ten. However, his parents died and he returned to Martuni to live with one of his uncles. At the age of 16, he finished school and moved to Baku to study and work there but then was conscripted into the Soviet Army and was sent to Afghanistan.

²⁰Gagik, 10 August 2009, Martuni.

²²Gagik, 10 August 2009, Martuni.

²¹Manuk was born in Martuni in 1976. His mother was a housewife and his father worked as a construction engineer. Manuk’s father became a member of an underground organisation when the Karabakh movement started.

²³This guard post was named after the mountain of Guruchukh.

²⁴Avo is the nickname of Monte Melkonian, a representative of the US Armenian diaspora who became a hero of the Karabakh war. He was the leader and organiser of Martuni’s defence.

²⁵Artak, aged 16 in 1991, 6 July 2009, Martuni.

²⁶Sevak, aged 14 in 1991, 21 June 2009, Martuni.

²⁷Sevak, 21 June 2009, Martuni.

²⁸Sevak, 21 June 2009, Martuni. Sevak was born in 1977 in Groznii (Chechen Republic). His parents left the city for Martuni in 1980 when Sevak was only three years old.

²⁹Arsen, 14 June 2009, Martuni.

³⁰Manuk, aged 15 in 1991, 17 July 2009, Martuni.

³¹Gagik, 10 August 2009, Martuni.

³²Gagik, 10 August 2009, Martuni.

³³Arsen, 14 June 2009, Martuni.

³⁴Sevak, 21 June 2009, Martuni..

³⁶Sevak, 21 June 2009, Martuni.

³⁵Gurgen, aged 17 in 1991, 3 August 2009, Martuni.

³⁷Aram, 28 July 2009, Martuni.

³⁸Gagik, 10 August 2009, Martuni.

³⁹Gagik, 10 August 2009, Martuni.

⁴⁰Gagik, 10 August 2009, Martuni.

⁴¹Hayk, aged 14 in 1991, 22 August 2009, Martuni.

⁴²Aram, 28 July 2009, Martuni.

⁴³Manuk, 17 July 2009, Martuni.