ArmInfo.At the meeting with Ambassador of France to Armenia Jonathan Lacote, RA Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan first of all raised issues related to the rights of Armenian servicemen and civilians in Azerbaijani captivity and their immediate return.
As reported by the press service of the RA Ombudsman, Tatoyan stressed that the return or release of prisoners of war should be considered exclusively in the context of human rights or the humanitarian process, as an international requirement for automatic action. The Ombudsman informed the Ambassador that the Azerbaijani authorities are artificially delaying the process of returning the Armenian prisoners of war who were under their jurisdiction during the hostilities, as well as before and after hostilities.
The Human Rights Defender also touched upon the process of defining or clarifying the borders of Armenia with Azerbaijan, noting that it is accompanied by gross violations of the rule of law and human rights.
According to him, one of the main factors of this is that this process is taking place with obvious threats of war from Azerbaijan against the population of Armenia, as well as with genocidal rhetoric. "But this not only continues, but the hatred of Armenians and the incitement of hostility is receiving a new impetus. Consequently, it has no legal force, it must be immediately stopped or revised, " the Ombudsman of Armenia stated.
Moreover, he emphasized that the definition of borders with the described approaches will not contribute to the peaceful coexistence of peoples in the region, but it only will also create fertile ground for the incessant Armenophobia and hostility in Azerbaijan and its dangerous manifestations. During the meeting, the parties discussed other issues related to human rights.