Letters | Be warned, the pain of war lingers long after the fighting ends

Readers reflect on the scars of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, waste management solutions for Hong Kong and the ticketing scramble for next year’s Coldplay show

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Azerbaijan soldiers walk near the Lachin checkpoint, on September 26 last year. Photo: AFP

Published: 11:30am, 14 Oct 2024Updated: 9:13am, 15 Oct 2024

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Azerbaijan recently marked its first State Sovereignty Day, commemorating its full control over the Nagorno-Karabakh region after its troops recaptured it from Armenian separatists, leading to an exodus of ethnic Armenians. While peace currently holds, the deep-seated tensions between Azerbaijan and Armenia are unlikely to dissolve soon. The origins of this conflict run deeper than human efforts can resolve. We must recognise the limits of human capacity when faced with the weight of history.

My personal interest in the Karabakh conflict began with my childhood hobby of stamp collecting. As a young philatelist, I was drawn to regions like Abkhazia, Transnistria, and Karabakh, areas marked by ethnic strife following the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Personal encounters later reinforced my ideas about these divisions. In Karabakh, an Armenian philatelist warned me against mentioning Azerbaijan, whom Armenian people regarded as the enemy. Years later, at the 2015 World Scout Jamboree, Azerbaijani peers described Armenia as the aggressor in their booth.

Though I sensed the bitterness on both sides, I was too young to foresee the violent resurgence of the conflict in 2020 and again in 2023. After the most recent military action, I lost contact with the Armenian philatelist. His sister later informed us via Facebook that he had died in the Armenian capital Yerevan, after fleeing Stepanakert (now Khankendi) in Karabakh. She could not attend his funeral due to the ongoing war in Ukraine.

Nothing in life is permanent. Flowers bloom and fade with the seasons, and mountains are slowly reshaped by the forces of nature. Nations, too, are subject to the inevitable passage of time. Karabakh’s ancient fortresses have witnessed the fall of Artsakh. But does the passage of time always bring progress? The Soviet song Wondrous Future pleaded, “Oh wondrous future, please do not be cruel to me!” While we aspire to a better future, humanity remains tragically bound to the pursuit of fleeting glories – glories that will eventually be washed away by the tides of history.