Tuesday, January 12 2021 16:04

ArmInfo. Ombudsman of Armenia  Arman Tatoyan said that Azerbaijan deliberately politicizes the issue  related to the Armenian prisoners. Tatoyan announced this at a press  conference. The Ombudsman noted that politicizing such issues is  unacceptable.  According to Tatoyan, Azerbaijan has always dragged  out the issue of prisoners of war in order to create tension in the  Armenian society.

The Human Rights Defender reiterated that the Permanent  Representative of Azerbaijan to the United Nations (UN) issued a  letter in which cross-cutting issue is 62 Armenians captured after  November 9. According to the Ombudsman, it is unacceptable to link  issues related to prisoners of war with territorial issues. The  Ombudsman noted that earlier the Azerbaijani diplomat noted that the  residents of the Shirak region of Armenia were transferred to Artsakh  for sabotage.

"I condemn such statements, and emphasize that such actions are a  gross violation of international law. The problem related to  prisoners  of war is greatly distorted and the rights of our  compatriots are violated. As a result, the need for the intervention  of a Human Rights Defender has arisen.  Today, the Ombudsman's  response to the letter of the Azerbaijani permanent representative  has been isspread in international organizations. We are constantly  working with our international colleagues, "he said.

Tatoyan noted that such actions of Azerbaijan can be regarded as a  complete disregard for international law to protect the rights of  prisoners. "The Ombudsman states that 62 people from Shirak region,  as well as all other captives in Azerbaijan, are prisoners of war and  werecaptured in the course of performing their military duty.  Therefore, they must be immediately released," Tatoyan stressed.

The Human Rights Defender stated that the initiation of criminal  cases against 62 prisoners of war and their qualification as  terrorists is also a gross violation of human rights. "They cannot be  terrorists just because they took part in hostilities. This  requirement is fixed in the Third Geneva Convention of 1949.  Regardless of the political processes, prisoners of war must be  returned to their homeland," the ombudsman said in a statement.

Arman Tatoyan noted that the position of Azerbaijan that the  provisions of the trilateral statement of November 9, 2020 apply only  to those people who were captured before the signing of the Statement  is unacceptable. According to the Ombudsman, this situation applies  to all prisoners of war without exception. Moreover, according to  Tatoyan, within the framework of the agreement, the Armenian side  returned to Azerbaijan two saboteurs convicted of murder in Artsakh.  Consequently, it becomes obvious that the delay in the process of  returning the prisoners of wra is of an exclusively artificial  nature.

Tatoyan also noted that anti-Armenian propaganda in Azerbaijan is  gaining momentum. In particular, during the parade in Baku,  Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev and Turkish President Recep Tayyip  Erdogan made statements in which Armenophobia is clearly visible.  Moreover, this point of view is also reinforced by Aliyev's behavior  during the meeting with the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs in Baku.

The Ombudsman noted that the Azerbaijani servicemen are uploading  photos and videos of the murders of Armenians on the Internet, and  all this is done without a twinge of conscience. "On the footage of  the murders and mockery committed by the Azerbaijani military, they  repeat the same words and expressions that are uttered by their  political leadership," Tatoyan stressed.

It should be noted that in December in Artsakh, near the village of  Khtsabred, Hadrud region, 62 servicemen were captured by the enemy.