Visit to Armenia aimed at promotion of truth and justice - UN Special  Rapporteur

ArmInfo. Fabian Salvioli, the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth, justice,  reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence, urged Armenia to establish comprehensive transitional justice mechanisms to address human rights violations committed in the context of Soviet rule,  autocratic governments, and the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Fabian Salvioli, the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion of truth,  justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence, said that since  Armenia's independence from Soviet rule in 1991, authorities have  adopted a series of measures to address the legacy of those  violations.

"Although these measures have not been embedded in a transitional  justice process, or officially considered part of such an agenda,  many have been directed at reverting the heirloom of repressive or  autocratic regimes towards democratic consolidation, or at  investigating and providing redress for violations suffered by  Armenian soldiers or civil society in the conflict," Salvioli said in  a statement at the end of a nine-day visit to the country.

"However, progress in truth-seeking, criminal justice, reparation and  memorialisation of past human rights violations has been  inconsistent," he said.

Salvioli, called on Armenian authorities to establish an independent  mechanism to investigate and record those violations, and make them  accessible to current and future generations, He also called on the  prosecutorial and judicial authorities to urgently step-up efforts on  accountability for those violations.

He praised efforts to provide reparations to victims of Soviet  repression, soldiers dead or incapacitated during the conflict,  civilian victims of the conflict, and victims of the 1 March 2008  events, but noted that other victims of human rights violations have  struggled to receive reparations.

"I urge the Government to adopt necessary legislative and  administrative measures to ensure that victims of illegal  expropriations, state repression and abuse in the context of  manifestations, and torture and suspicious deaths in law-enforcement  or armed forces are given specific legal status as victims of human  rights violations and full reparation accordingly," Salvioli said.

While acknowledging that the country has made strides in establishing  democratic institutions since the 1990s, the UN expert said the  progress had not been linear and pointed to "enormous challenges."

He highlighted electoral fraud, insufficient independence of the  judiciary, widespread corruption in state institutions, and  repressive activity by security and armed forces.

"The government must give an unequivocal sign to society of its  commitment towards a holistic transitional justice process aimed at  addressing past abuses, preventing their recurrence, and  consolidating the rule of law," Salvioli said.

The expert said the latest stages of conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh in  2020 and 2023 had created enormous challenges. "My arrival in Armenia  has coincided with the forced displacement of 110,000 Armenians from  Nagorno-Karabakh as a result of the conflict. I have met with  refugees and authorities in receiving communities and in Yerevan,  where I observed the pain and urgent needs of the displaced  population and immense efforts by the authorities to address their  basic and urgent needs," he said. "I extend my solidarity to the  refugees, and commend authorities for assisting these victims," he  said.

During his visit, Salvioli met government officials, civil society  representatives, refugees and families of victims, and  representatives of the international community. He also visited  memorials, refugee camps and conflict sites.

The Special Rapporteur will submit a full report on the visit to the  Human Rights Council in 2024.

In his preliminary observations on his visit to Armenia, 16 to 24  November 2023, Mr Salvioli particularly points out that "in 2022, a  reform was adopted to the Criminal Code of Armenia to bring the list  of international crimes contained therein -including war crimes,  crimes against humanity, genocide, and torture- in line with  international standards. The reform also established the prohibition  of application of amnesties and statutes of limitations for these  crimes. In October 2023, Armenia ratified the Rome Statute of the  International Criminal Court, which will enter into force in February  2024. I commend the Government of Armenia for this crucial  legislative progress."

He also notes that "Yerevan's Tsitsernakaberd Memorial complex is  dedicated to "the memory of the 1.5 million Armenians who perished in  the first genocide of the 20th century at the hands of the Turkish  government". The complex is composed of the Genocide Monument,  erected in 1967, and the Museum and Institute opened in  Tsitsernakaberd established in 1995. In the compound of the complex,  civil society has erected memorials to commemorate the victims of  pogroms in Baku, Sumgait and Kirovabad and of the conflict in  Nagorno-Karabakh, which are duly maintained by the authorities of the  complex.  The complex is an exemplary model of memorialization  efforts which could and should be replicated in other spheres.  Armenia commemorates annually the memory of victims of genocide and  has recognized victims of genocide elsewhere." 

Mr Fabian Salvioli's statement is available here: 

https://www.ohchr.org/sites/default/files/documents/issues/truth/statements/20231124- eom-armenia-sr-truth-en.pdf