Friday, September 30 2022 13:36

ArmInfo. On September 28, Human Rights Defender Ms.  Kristinne Grigoryan held a meeting with the Special Representative of the Secretary General of the Council of  Europe on Migration and Refugees, Ms. Leyla Kayacik, in the framework  of her working visit to Strasbourg.

As the press service of the HRD of Armenia reports, the Defender Ms.  Grigoryan presented to Ms. Kayacik the challenges of ensuring the  rights of refugees and asylum seekers in Armenia, including those who  arrived in Armenia from the Russian Federation and Ukraine, and the  activities carried out by the Defender's office in that particular  direction.

Ms. Leyla Kayacik presented her mandate and emphasized the importance  of the work and cooperation with both states and human rights  protection institutions within the framework of the fulfillment of  the CoE conventional obligations.

Referring to the report published by Human Rights Defender on  September 16, Ms. Grigoryan referred to the necessity to ensure the  living conditions of at least 7,600 people displaced from  Gegharkunik, Syunik and Vayots Dzor provinces as a result of the  Azerbaijani military attack, emphasizing the importance of special  protection of women, older persons, children and persons with  disabilities that constitute the majority of displaced persons. 

The parties reached an agreement to continue cooperation in the  direction of definite actions, including supporting the Defender's  institution.

The Human Rights Defender of Armenia held another meeting with the  Director of Human Rights of the Directorate General Human Rights and  Rule of Law of the Council of Europe, Mr. Christophe Poirel.

During the meeting with the Director of Human Rights of the  Directorate General Human Rights and Rule of Law, Mr. Christophe  Poirel, the projects implemented jointly with the Office of the Human  Rights Defender within the mandate of the Directorate General were  discussed, particularly, reference was made to the results of the  "Human Rights and Women in the Armed Forces in Armenia" project and  the importance of its continuation. In her speech, the Defender  highlighted the high level of continuous fruitful cooperation with  the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan, emphasized the need to adopt  and launch a new Armenia- CoE Action Plan, as well as presented  recommendations on developing new program directions within the  framework of other possible mechanisms of the Council of Europe aimed  at supporting the Office of the Human Rights Defender.

Reflecting on the urgent necessity to ensure the rights of displaced  persons as a result of Azerbaijani aggression, the Defender pointed  out the importance of providing appropriate support within the  framework of the new Armenia-CoE Action Plan 2023-2025 and reaffirmed  the willingness of the Defender's Office to continue putting efforts  aimed at deepening the cooperation.