Baku, July 16 (AZERTAC). Legendary heavyweight boxer Frank Bruno MBE has expressed his support for the Many Happy Returns (MHR) campaign at  www.manyhappyreturnsidp.com.

One of the UK’s most successful and popular sportsmen of the past 30 years, Frank is a former WBC Heavyweight Champion. He won 40 of his 45 professional bouts, 38 of them through knockouts, and fought Mike Tyson three times in Las Vegas. He won the first 21 of his bouts through knockouts, and his overall knockout rate was an impressive 84.4 per cent. Throughout his career, Frank was renowned for the strength of his formidable punch, agility and gentlemanly approach to the sport.

Since retirement, Frank has participated in numerous charitable activities, including completing three marathons and acting as Patron of the Shannon Bradshaw Trust. He has also done much to raise awareness of mental health issues and to reduce the stigma attached to such illnesses. He has also become an accomplished actor, even appearing in the Royal Variety Performance.

Frank was one of the guests of honour at the recent Gala Charity Boxing Match in York Hall, the home of East London boxing, which saw fighters from Gabala in Azerbaijan pitted against the home team from Repton. In addition to raising £10,000 for the Mo Farah Foundation, the event was aimed at increasing support for the MHR campaign. This focuses on the plight of the 1 million Azerbaijani Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and refugees who are the ongoing victims of the Armenian–Azerbaijani conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh.

Frank said: “The MHR campaign is dear to my heart. The Azerbaijani IDPs and refugees need to be allowed to go back home now.”

The title of the MHR campaign is based on the English birthday greeting ‘Many Happy Returns’ which, in this case, also refers to the wish of the Azerbaijani IDPs and refugees to return to their rightful homeland. The website features photos of IDPs in just three of the camps spread across the 76 regions of Azerbaijan, taken by the renowned German photographer Philipp Rathmer.

Despite a ceasefire being called 20 years ago, and four UN Security Council resolutions being passed against the illegal Armenian occupation, those whose land was seized remain unable to go home.

The MHR website also gives members of the public the opportunity to pledge their support for a poll – taking just 30 seconds – to redesignate ‘UN World Refugee Day’ as ‘World Refugee and IDP Day’.