Statement on the "Situation with the Armenian prisoners of war and other captives in Azerbaijan" as delivered by Ambassador Armen Papikyan at the 1314th meeting of the Permanent Council

20 May, 2021

Madame Chairperson,

More than six months after the signing of the trilateral ceasefire statement of 9 November 2020, which put an end to the violent war of aggression of Azerbaijan and its allies against Artsakh, Azerbaijan continues to illegally detain Armenian prisoners of war and civilian captives in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law, the Geneva Conventions, decisions of the European Court of Human Rights and in complete disregard for the numerous calls from the international community. In order to somehow justify their unlawful actions, the Azerbaijani authorities also continue to promote a fictitious and false narrative aimed at misrepresenting the status of Armenian prisoners of war and other captives.

In its press release dated 11 May, Freedom House expressed deep concern “…by the reports of dehumanizing treatment and abuse, including torture, of Armenians captured and detained by Azerbaijan after the recent armed conflict” and “...urged the Azerbaijani authorities to fully cooperate with the efforts of the European Court of Human Rights to investigate the validity of reports of dehumanizing treatment of Armenian detainees regardless of their status and ensure those still in custody are provided with all protections required under international human rights and humanitarian law, including freedom from torture and inhuman treatment, and that details of their repatriation are provided. Freedom House also reminded that “as a signatory of the European Convention on Human Rights, Azerbaijan is obligated to fully cooperate with the court and provide all requested information to facilitate a transparent investigation of these serious issues.”

Madame Chairperson,

In addition to the continued incommunicado detention of Armenian prisoners of war and captured civilians in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law and paragraph 8 of the November 9 ceasefire statement, Azerbaijan also continues to conceal the exact number of prisoners of war and captured civilians and refuses to provide the relevant list to the International Committee of the Red Cross. During the 1312^th meeting of the Permanent Council, my delegation presented information about the torture and arbitrary brutal killing of 19 Armenian POWs and civilians in Azerbaijani custody. Later, the Armenian Legal Center for Justice and Human Rights revealed more shocking details of the circumstances of these war crimes. In this context, it is also worth recalling the brutal murder of 18-year-old Erik Mkhitarian, whose remains were discovered and subsequently identified with a DNA test. He was killed in Azerbaijani captivity after the cessation of hostilities. On 24 November, Erik was still alive, as evidenced by video footage disseminated on the same day by Azerbaijani users of social media. Erik’s name was on the list of 23 prisoners of war and other detainees submitted by Armenia to the European Court of Human Rights. This is the second confirmed murder of a prisoner of war from the list submitted to ECtHR. The first one was the murder of Arsen Gharakhanyan, who was tortured and killed after he was captured by Azerbaijani forces.

During the 44-day war of aggression unleashed by Azerbaijan with the direct support of Turkey and Turkish-backed foreign terrorist fighters, hundreds of Armenians, including military personnel and civilians, were captured by the Azerbaijani armed forces. Out of these, 73 people were repatriated while the rest still remain in Azerbaijani captivity. Given the confirmed cases of the murder of Armenian POWs and civilians in Azerbaijani custody, the lives and health of the remaining Armenian captives in Azerbaijan are in serious danger. The Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia initiated more than 100 criminal proceedings on all these cases, which were ultimately combined into one criminal case.

The Human Rights Defender of Armenia analysed hundreds of video and photo materials, testimonies of victims and eye-witnesses, which confirmed cases of torture and other cruel and degrading treatment of Armenian POWs and other captives. The analysis also revealed 17 cases of decapitation and murder, as well as 32 cases of desecration of dead bodies. The examination of the collected material demonstrates that the torture, other cruel and inhuman treatment by the Azerbaijani military personnel towards the Armenian prisoners of war and civilian captives were motivated by ethnic hatred.

Madame Chairperson,

Azerbaijan violates not only international humanitarian law, its international obligations, including OSCE principles and commitments, but also defies its obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights and ignores judgements and interim measures of the European Court of Human Rights.

In particular, according to the ECHR, Azerbaijan failed to comply with its obligations by refraining from providing information on Armenian prisoners of war and other civilian captives detained in Azerbaijan, as required by ECHR decisions. Thus, on 9 March, 2021, pursuant to Rule 39 § 2 of the Rules of Court, the European Court of Human Rights decided to notify the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe of the interim measures it had taken, with regard to the Azerbaijani Government’s failure to respect the time-limits set by the Court for the submission of information on the individuals concerned and the rather general and limited information provided by them (the notification was sent on 16 March).

Instead of reconsidering its unacceptable behaviour and implementing decisions of the ECtHR and its international obligations, Azerbaijan continues its smear campaign against the Armenian prisoners of war and civilian captives. A few days ago, the Azerbaijani Prosecutor General announced that the so-called criminal cases against Armenian prisoners of war, initiated on trumped-up charges of quote-unquote “terrorism” are nearing completion. Apparently, in the coming days, we will witness mock trials in Azerbaijan, the authorities of which have a notorious track record of filling prisons with undesirable people on trumped-up charges. The experience of silencing human rights activists and people with dissenting opinions, undoubtedly, has not gone for nothing, since now this practice is applied to Armenian prisoners of war.

Madame Chairperson,

The results of medical examinations of those who returned from Azerbaijani captivity and their testimonies confirm that the Armenian prisoners of war are subjected to physical and psychological violence during interrogations and throughout their detention with the aim of obtaining confessions that would fit into the logic of fictitious criminal cases. The ill-treatment and violence faced by Armenian prisoners in Azerbaijani captivity is a clear manifestation of torture, as defined by the UN Convention Against Torture.

Therefore, we once again call on the OSCE participating States to put pressure on Azerbaijan to stop its unlawful behaviour, comply with its international obligations and release without delay all Armenian prisoners of war and civilian captives.

Madame Chairperson,

I kindly ask you to attach this statement to the journal of today’s meeting.

Thank you.

MFA RA
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