3 journal of azerbaijani studies in search of 'khazar

14. The Weather is Constantly Changing
One more article was published about our university - this time in the "Bakinskiy Rabochiy" on 30 May 1991. The article was entitled "Attention to every detail" and gave information about the new university. The correspondent was talking to me from the very early days and knew all along that I was the originator of the idea and was heading the affair. For some reason he introduced me as a Rector in this article - perhaps he got confused with the messy titles or simply did not pay attention to it.

Rahim muallim was very angry. He did not tell me the reason of his irritation but he mentioned that thp minister Feyzullayev was also very offended.

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Hamlet ISAXANLI

I pretended to be naive:

• 
  Rahim muallim, do you think that the people at the ministry were offended by me being introduced as a rector and not as a prorector?
  
• 
  Of course, the Minister could not have liked that it is being mentioned over and over again that it is your idea, moreover you are also a rector of the establishment! How about all others involved in it? - He launched a real attack on me.
  

I answered:

- Rahim muallim, tell the minister for me that as a prorector for academic and research affairs of the English Speaking Azerbaijan University I am ready to bring my most sincere apologies to the rector of this university. If it's not possible now, I promise, I will apologize to him when he is appointed for a sin I have committed once and by aiming at his job while I was only an acting rector. What else can I do, who else shall I apologize to, is there someone else that was offended by this?

Rahim muallim expressed his attitude to my words by simply shaking his head.

The rectors of other universities started expressing interest in our work. It did not seem to me that this sudden interest occurred out of their feeling of benevolence or curiosity. On the contrary, I could tell that we were guaranteed to have cold relationships with four major institutions - Baku State University, Azerbaijan State Economic Institute, Institute of Foreign Languages and Azerbaijan S.tate Institute of Medicine.

The main topic of my meeting with the then rector of Baku State University, the well-known mathematician Mirabbas Qasimov, was the perspectives of the new university and what we had on offer in our international relations department. I was answering Qasimov's questions thoroughly, trying to explain ideology behind the university, explaining how we would be going about establishing wide scope of international relations, marking the special role of English and other foreign languages. Mirabbas muallim seemed affected by this

conversation to an extent that he offered our university to become part of the Baku State University and function as one of its schools. "This work needs to be independent and flexible and it would also be very difficult to substantiate it legally" - I said trying to avoid this sudden suggestion.

Shortly after this meeting I got acquainted with Turan Yazgan from Istanbul University, who had come to Baku to organize management courses at INEM. Yazgan was a chairman of "The Turkish World Research Foundation". He had a very sharp personality. "Poor Azeri Turks, once they were obliged to study Russian, and now you are inciting them to study English" - he told me disapprovingly. I was quite upset by this remark. My purpose was misunderstood and wrongly interpreted. English and other foreign languages, to my mind, were a means of getting closer to the rest of the world. The knowledge of foreign languages would give a massive advantage for research and study. On the other hand the foreign languages would enable us to introduce our own culture to the world.

The other reason was that my patriotism was hurt. My love for Azerbaijan, its culture, literature and music is endless. I have always strongly opposed various movements that were directed at weakening the Azerbaijani identity and language. I did realize that education received in English might cause a certain coldness to our own language and culture. Even without endorsement of the English language, the invasion of the western culture in Azerbaijan was evident. One of the things that occupied my mind at that point in time was to teach and research Azerbaijani language, literature, history and culture at our university in a very intensive manner.

I was told that the rector of Azerbaijan State Institute of Medicine Dr. Yagub Mammadov (who later became "the head of Parliament and acting President of the country) would like to meet me.

I was at Mammadov's reception right on time. He was obviously waiting for me and started asking questions immediately:

-1 was told that you have started a university. Tell me what it is

all about?

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