Chingiz Mustafayev

Chingiz Mustafayev Çingiz Fuad oğlu Mustafayev
Chingiz Mustafayev in recording studio
Born	Çingiz Fuad oğlu Mustafayev 29 August 1960(1960-08-29) Baku, Azerbaijani SSR
Died	15 June 1992(1992-06-15) (aged 31) Nakhichevanik, Karabakh, Azerbaijan
Occupation	Journalist, author
Nationality	Azerbaijani
Period	1991–1992
Subjects	Politics, freedom of press, human rights
Notable award(s)	National Hero of Azerbaijan (1992)

Chingiz Mustafayev (Azerbaijani: Çingiz Fuad oğlu Mustafayev; August 29, 1960- June 15, 1992) was one of the most noted independent Azerbaijani journalists, granted the state order of the National Hero of Azerbaijan posthumously.^[1] Although the corpus of his journalistic work spans slightly over a year, with no formal journalistic training, Chingiz created a video anthology of the early stages of Nagorno-Karabakh War, documented from the front lines ultimately at a cost of his own life.^[2]

He was the man behind the TV camera, who filmed the scene of Khojaly Massacre in 1992. To make the footage Chingiz had to travel on an army helicopter, and despite coming under fire he managed to film the evidence of the Khojaly Massacre showing hundreds of dead bodies strewn across snow-covered fields.^[3] The pictures are accompanied by the sound of Chingiz’ – no stranger to the sight of corpses – sobbing uncontrollably as he filmed.

Azerbaijan's official media had covered up the fact that the town had been wiped out and women, children and the elderly had been slaughtered. But his film was the irrefutable evidence that there had had been a full-scale massacre, with the perpetration of which Human Rights Watch and Russian Memorial society blamed the Armenian forces.

In the course of eight months, Chingiz shot 18 documentaries about the war in Karabakh, leaving behind a substantial historical archive. Chingiz was known for his patriotic work and was considered to have risked everything to expose the truth.

Death

Tomb of Chingiz Mustafayev at the Martyrs' Lane.

On 15 June 1992, aged not quite 32, Chingiz himself was hit, while filming an exchange of fire between Azerbaijani and Armenian forces near the village of Nakhichevanik.^[4] According to his brother Vahid Mustafayev, he was fatally wounded when a shell exploded right beside him and a splinter from the shell severed one of his major arteries. By the time Chingiz was delivered to the hospital, he died of blood loss. His last moments were captured on his own camera.^[5] On the other hand, some sources claim that details of his killing were not available and that before his death he reportedly was gathering data alleging that the Armenian attack against civilians in Khojaly was a provocation by the Azerbaijani National Front to force the resignation of Azerbaijani president Ayaz Mutalibov.^[6]

ANS CM 102 FM the first Radio Broadcasting Company in the Caucasus was called in his honor and the slogan of this station is “We are fated to struggle”.

A foundation has been established in honour of Chingiz Mustafayev by ANS for the purposes of arranging journalist contests in various nominations.^[7] Azerbaijani radio station ANS CM 102 FM also renamed after him and carries his slogan Döyüş alnımıza yazılıb (The fight written on our foreheads).^[8]

Background

His family is described as a rather average and ordinary Azerbaijani family. His father was a military man involved with missiles and rockets in the USSR. His mother was from the city of Shaki; they were married when she was 19. Chingiz was the oldest child, born in 1960, in 1962 they had another child Seyfulla Mustafayev. Six years later in 1968 the third child was born, Vahid Mustafayev. In 1990 he married the 21 years old engineer student Rafiga Mustafayeva (Bagirova). In 1991 their only child who was named after his grandfather Fuad Mustafayev, was born.^[9]

Trivia

• He was also known for producing Azerbaijan’s first Hip Hop record in 1983.^[10]

Footnotes

1. ^ Çingiz Mustafayev kimdir? (Azerbaijani)
2. ^ Чингиз Мустафаев - человек и пароход. Телевидение на стыке двух эпох (Russian)
3. ^ Романов Ю. «Я снимаю войну…» (Russian)
4. ^ bbc.co.uk:Главы из русского издания книги "Черный сад" (Russian)
5. ^ Chingiz Mustafayev in Action by Vahid Mustafayev
6. ^ Committee to Defend Journalists - Chingiz Fuad-ogly Mustafayev
7. ^ Azerbaijani Painter receives Man of the Year award
8. ^ Qan Turalı: ANS efirində urapatriotizm sədaları (Azerbaijani)
9. ^ Our Own Voices, Our Own Minds:Stalin Crushes Would-Be Student Activists
10. ^ Documenting the Horrors of Karabakh

External links

• In Memory of Chingiz Mustafayev
• Chingiz Mustafayev Club
• Chingiz Mustafayev in newspaper
• Chingiz Mustafayev Foundation
• Chingiz in headlines
• 12 Years after Chingiz Mustafayev - 2004 Article
• History of ANS
• CNN about Chingiz Mustafayev

Persondata
Name	Mustafayev, Chingiz
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	29 August 1960
Place of birth	Baku, Azerbaijani SSR
Date of death	15 June 1992
Place of death	Nakhichevanik, Karabakh, Azerbaijan