The Azerbaijani woman who hugged an Armenian singer is being harassed

Singer Samira Efendi, who gave 12 points to Armenia’s representative and hugged him during the final of the Astana International Music Contest, has sparked wide debate in Azerbaijan.

After being criticized on social media, the singer explained her behavior on the program “One Day in History,” hosted by producer Tarikh Aliyev (Tolik).

Samira Efendi noted that by doing so she demonstrated professionalism, not politics:

“As the daughter of a veteran, the granddaughter of a general and a citizen of this country, I believe that the future is in the hands of the youth. Of course, we will not forget history and we will not allow it to be forgotten.

I try to follow the peaceful policy pursued by our president. I believe that everyone who represents the country abroad and is in the spotlight should build small bridges towards peace.”

The singer says that during the contest she did not always give high scores to Armenia’s representative:

“Before the final I often ‘cut his points’. There were times when everyone was giving him 12 points, and I gave 10. If we are talking about music and professionalism, this participant really performed very well. Giving him 12 points surprised everyone. I do not regret it, because I had been much stricter with him many times before, but in the final I gave him the score he deserved.”

Efendi emphasized that on stage her goal was to evaluate the music, not to express a political position:

“I look at it as a musician. I’m not a politician to be hostile. I did not go there to express enmity, but to represent my country.”

Although the incident triggered various reactions on social media, the singer nevertheless stated that she stands by her opinion.