BP: Stop Funding Genocide Against Armenians by Azerbaijan
Murray Auchincloss, Interim CEO, BP
Azerbaijan is committing genocide against the Armenians living in Nagorno-Karabakh. As of today, Azerbaijan has forced more than 80 percent of the 120,000 people who called the region home to flee. These invasions of villages and towns came after a blockade that lasted months and caused untold suffering and hunger in the region. In the midst of this horror, where is BP?
BP has been in the region since the early 1990s. Since then, it has been the largest investor in Azerbaijan, spending more than $84 billion on projects in that nation.
The United Nations (UN) has recently clarified international guidelines for businesses operating in conflict zones. The UN calls on companies to pay closer attention to human rights in these high-risk zones. The Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights expanded its guidelines in August to add that businesses need to "identify and assess their adverse impacts on human rights and conflict, act to cease or prevent them, and track and communicate the measures taken."
Recently, a group of business leaders sent a letter to Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev. In it, they wrote:
We urge the Government of Azerbaijan to meet its obligations as set out in international law, so that all people in Nagorno-Karabakh can live in peace and security, free from discrimination and the threat of inhuman and degrading treatment, and are able to move freely, including leaving and re-entering the area. Their safety, dignity, and liberty must be upheld.
But BP has said nothing even though it has a powerful influence on the Azerbaijan government. Sign the petition to demand that BP step up and speak out against Azerbaijan's atrocities against the Armenians of Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabakh.
For More Information:
"Conflict and exodus in Nagorno-Karabakh: bp’s urgent responsibilities," by Nora Mardirossian and Phil Bloomer, Business and Human Rights Resource Center, 4 October 2023
Sponsored by
To:
Murray Auchincloss, Interim CEO, BP
From:
[Your Name]
BP is the largest foreign investor in Azerbaijan. As such, it has a responsibility to be a force for human rights and against genocide.
In your own policy on human rights from 2020, Bernard Looney stated, " We make choices all the time that affect people. Decisions on where we operate, what we do and how we do it. And we set exacting standards for ourselves. We know we can make mistakes, but our human rights policy, along with our code of conduct, demands we aim high. And by being transparent about what we expect and require of BP people, we hope to earn society’s trust. We believe – no matter where in the world we do business – we should do so responsibly, respecting the rights of our workforce and our neighbours. That is the right thing to do, and it is central to fulfilling our purpose. We shouldn’t stand for anything less.”
The situation in Nagorno-Karabakh can only be described as genocide. Recently, a group of business leaders wrote to President Ilham Aliyev. In it, they wrote:
"We urge the Government of Azerbaijan to meet its obligations as set out in international law, so that all people in Nagorno-Karabakh can live in peace and security, free from discrimination and the threat of inhuman and degrading treatment, and are able to move freely, including leaving and re-entering the area. Their safety, dignity, and liberty must be upheld."
BP was absent from this letter.
Your company needs to step up and keep the promises you made in your human rights policy. We demand that BP speak out against Azerbaijan's atrocities against the Armenians of Artsakh/Nagorno-Karabakh.