Ruben Vardanyan`s wife announces organization of international  women`s humanitarian delegation to visit Baku

ArmInfo. Veronika Zonabend, the wife of Ruben Vardanyan, has announced a new humanitarian initiative aimed at restoring contact between Armenian detainees held in Azerbaijan and their families. he full text is provided below:

"My husband has been unlawfully detained in Azerbaijan since  September 2023. For more than three years, he has been kept away from  his family and from everyone who loves him. During this time, his  granddaughters were born - granddaughters he has never held in his  arms.  

I write this as a loving wife, as a mother, as a grandmother, and as  someone who can no longer wait in silence while various institutions  explain why they cannot - or should not - act. But this is not only  about Ruben.  

Eighteen more Armenians remain in detention in Azerbaijan. Many of  them have not seen their loved ones in six years. They have received  no letters. They have not heard the voices of those close to them.  They have not held in their hands a photograph of their children,  their grandchildren - and some, of their great-grandchildren.  

To their families, they are not an "agenda item," a "political  problem," or a "complex diplomatic case." They are husbands, fathers,  grandfathers, sons, and brothers. Their only offence was wanting to  live on their ancestral land, to speak their language, and to  preserve their culture. Today it too often seems as though their fate  matters deeply to no one beyond their own families. Throughout this  time, an endless conversation has continued around their fate - about  mechanisms, procedures, mandates, and political circumstances. While  some are occupied with preserving their political positions, others  spend years in detention waiting for a single photograph, a letter,  or a few words from those they love. 

Following the closure of the ICRC delegation office in Baku, the  families of Armenian detainees have been left without regular,  independent humanitarian access to their loved ones. The  international mechanisms designed to protect people in such  circumstances have, in practice, ceased to function. Armenia's Human  Rights Defender has stated that this matter falls outside her  mandate. Official delegations from their own country, when visiting  Azerbaijan, have not found a way to see these people - to check on  their conditions of detention or their state of health.  

In the face of this institutional vacuum of accountability, I can no  longer simply wait. At Ruben's request, I intend to organise an  international women's humanitarian delegation to travel to Baku in  the coming weeks.  

I call upon Azerbaijan's Human Rights Commissioner, Ms. Sabina  Aliyeva, and her office, to facilitate the arrival of this delegation  in Baku, to arrange an official meeting, to organise a visit to the  Armenian prisoners held at the Umbaki Penitentiary Complex, and to  enable the formal transfer of packages, photographs, letters, and  permitted personal belongings from their families, in accordance with  Azerbaijani law.  

For those who are imprisoned, this will serve as a reminder: they  have not been forgotten.  I believe we remain human only when we  refuse to let indifference become the norm - when we continue to  cultivate compassion, love, and mercy within ourselves, even in the  most difficult of circumstances.  

I want to believe that even where politics has destroyed trust, there  remains space for a human gesture. Leaders of nations and powerful  states are remembered by history not only for their victories, but  for the mercy they showed to those who found themselves in their  power. It is precisely such acts that history values most - for they  reveal strength united with dignity.  

This initiative is not a political act. It is an attempt to restore  at least a minimal connection between those in detention, their  families, and all those who care about their fate. Such a connection  helps a person preserve their dignity - and without dignity, it is  impossible to speak of genuine and lasting peace between neighbouring   peoples.  

Over the next two weeks, we are collecting letters of support for the  Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan. We will do our best to deliver  them alongside family packages as part of this humanitarian  initiative.

Letters may be sent in any language to:  [email protected] 

Subject line: Letter of Support - Armenian Detainees 

If your letter is addressed to a specific person, please include  their name in the subject line.

  The names of the women who will form part of the delegation will be  announced in due course.  

Veronika Zonabend"

The exact number of Armenian prisoners of war and hostages held in  Azerbaijani prisons remains unknown. Experts estimate the number to  be several hundred. Currently, Azerbaijani authorities confirm the  presence of 19 Armenians in their custody. Among those held in  Azerbaijani captivity are eight former and current members of the  military-political leadership of Artsakh. These include former  Artsakh presidents Arkady Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan, and Arayik  Harutyunyan; former Foreign Minister David Babayan; as well as  Parliament Speaker David Ishkhanyan; former Commander of the Artsakh  Defense Army General Levon Mnatsakanyan; General David Manukyan; and  former State Minister Ruben Vardanyan.

In February, a Baku puppet court sentenced Arayik Harutyunyan, David  Babayan, David Ishkhanyan, David Manukyan, and Levon Mnatsakanyan to  life imprisonment, and Bako Sahakyan, Arkady Ghukasyan, and Ruben  Vardanyan to 20 years in prison on trumped-up charges. The so-called  court sentenced the remaining Artsakh residents to up to 15 years in  prison.