On March 8, Arman Tatoyan, Human Rights Defender of Armenia issued a special report to the Armenian National Committee of the UK on the urgency of the return of PoWs: servicemen and civilians held in Azerbaijan.
John Gallagher, the British Ambassador to Armenia, Tim Loughton, the Chairman of the Parliamentary Friendship Group with Armenia and the representative of all parties in the UK Parliament, and others attended the meeting.
Arman Tatoyan noted that the Azerbaijani authorities are artificially delaying and politicizing the process in order to cause mental suffering to the Armenian society and especially to the families of the PoWs and to create tension in the country.
Human Rights Defender of Armenia presented in detail the international humanitarian and human rights rules that require the immediate release of captives and their safe return. Moreover, it is a gross violation of international humanitarian law and the rights of the captives to be portrayed as “terrorists” because of the armed conflict.
Ombudsman also provided information on war crimes and crimes against humanity (beheading, torture, mutilation, etc.) committed by the Azerbaijani armed forces during the war in September-November, 2020.
Touching upon the process related to the borders of Armenia, Arman Tatoyan presented his new concept, which proposes a demilitarized security zone in Syunik, guaranteeing the safety of people. He presented certain evidence, facts on which this new approach is based.
“The border process has violated, as well as seriously endangered the rights of the border residents of the Republic of Armenia. It has disrupted their normal life and continues to cause concern to the villagers,” said the Human Rights Defender.
