A network of civil society organizations in Armenia that work to protect the rights of Artsakh Armenians on Tuesday condemned the Armenian Foreign Ministry’s posturing toward Artsakh, including its blaming of Artsakh leaders for Yerevan’s decision to halt the pursuit of the Artsakh issue during talks with Azerbaijan.
Armenia’s foreign ministry on Saturday told Azatutyun.am the Artsakh issue “was removed from the agenda of the normalization of interstate relations between the Armenia and Azerbaijan” blaming Artsakh President Samvel Shahramanyan for a signing a decree in September 2023 following the brutal offensive by Azerbaijan’s military that forced the displacement of Artsakh’s Armenian population.
This statement, as well as misleading comments about the Artsakh leaders’ rejection of effort to organize direct talks with Azerbaijan, through third country mediation, was met with strong criticism and rebuke by the Artsakh government, as well as opposition forces in Armenia.
The civil society groups issued a statement on Tuesday calling Yerevan’s most recent snub of Artsakh Armenians “unacceptable,” adding that the posituring “contradicts both the vital interests of the Armenian people and the fundamental principles of international law and universal human rights standards.”
The groups highlighted several legal justifications, which informed their position the matter.
“The forced displacement of more than 150,000 Artsakh Armenians from their historical homeland is a clear manifestation of ethnic cleansing, which cannot and should not be recognized by the international community as a legal or legitimate reality,” the groups said, insisting that the Artsakh issue cannot be “removed from the agenda.”
“According to international law, we note that presenting insufficient diplomatic results as a legal reality is inadmissible. This means abandoning the fundamental rights of the Artsakh Armenian population and legitimizing the violence committed by Azerbaijan,” the statement explained.
“According to international humanitarian law, the issue of protecting the rights and return of forcibly displaced populations must remain on the international agenda until its just resolution. It cannot ‘be removed from the agenda’ merely because one party to the conflict has adopted a unilateral decree,” it added.
“The Republic of Armenia has an obligation to protect the interests of Armenians, including Artsakh Armenians, in international forums. Actual results indicate that the Artsakh Armenians have been left without proper protection and have been forced to leave their historical homeland,” the statement added.
“It is neither lawful nor legal to refer to the ‘Decree on the dissolution of Nagorno-Karabakh.’ A document imposed by the use of force and threats cannot be considered a legal and internationally recognized legal basis,” the groups said.
The civil society organizations presented the following legal demands:
- We demand from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, based on the provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia and the fundamental principles of international law, to immediately revise its position and publicly confirm that the issue of protecting the rights, security, and return of the Armenian population of Artsakh continues to remain a priority of Armenia’s foreign policy, regardless of Azerbaijan’s unilateral illegal actions.
- We demand that the issue of the forced displacement, ethnic cleansing, and return of the Armenian population of Nagorno-Karabakh be included in the Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty negotiations as an integral component.
- We call on the international community, the UN, the Council of Europe, the OSCE, and international organizations dealing with human rights protection not to recognize the results of ethnic cleansing, to demand that the Republic of Azerbaijan respect international law and ensure the safe and dignified return of Artsakh Armenians to their settlements under international guarantees, monitoring, and protection mechanisms.
- The life and future of the Artsakh Armenians cannot become concession points in interstate negotiations. We demand justice, accountability, and protection of our people’s rights in accordance with the norms and principles of international law.
