Armenian MP calls on OSCE PA to protect Nagorno-Karabakh Armenians`  rights and tighten control over situation in Armenia 

ArmInfo.  Below is a statement Lilit Galstian, a member of the RA delegation to the OSCE PA representing the opposition faction Armenia, made at the 33rd session of the OSCE  PA in The Hague. 

Dear colleagues,

Each year we are discussing the state of human rights and democracy  and each year the picture is becoming more troubling.  As the report  rightly stated: "Instead of strengthened co-operation, we are  witnessing a widening gap between agreed standards and their  implementation in practice." 

This is not simply an emotional disappointment; but a serious concern  about our ability to restore trust and to acknowledge our failures. 

For the past four years, I have consistently raised two vital issues:  the ethnic cleansing of Nagorno- Karabakh committed by Azerbaijan,  and the democratic backsliding in Armenia.

At our Annual Session in Porto, I proposed sending an international  mission to Baku to monitor the sham trials of former political  leaders of Nagorno-Karabakh and to assess the ongoing erosion of  Armenian cultural heritage. The proposal was not supported! 

By failing to act, de we allowed Azerbaijan to continue its  violations. Today, at least 19 Armenians- including Ruben Vardanyan,  Bako Sahakyan, Arkadi Ghukasyan, Davit Ishkhanyan, Davit Manukyan,  and others remain unlawfully detained. They continue to face torture  and inhumane treatment, while even the Internation Red Cross has been  denied access.

This is not an isolated injustice, but part of a broader policy that  included the blockade of Nagorno- Karabakh, the forced displacement  of its indigenous population, the destruction of Armenian cultural  heritage, and the continued promotion of the so-called "Western  Azerbaijan" a state-sponsored aggressive and false narrative used to  advance territorial claims against Armenia. 

By failing to respond we weaken the very standards that form the  foundation of OSCE. 

Unfortunately, Armenia is facing serious democratic challenges of its  own. International organizations are expressing concern about the  concentration of power and the weakening of democratic institutions.

Recent parliamentary elections were often portrayed as a geopolitical  contest. While the majority of voters rejected further concessions,  the crimes against democracy,  the rising dictatorship, political  prosecutions, unlawful attacks on Armenian Apostolic church. 

Colleagues, our responsibility does not end with documenting these  developments.

I, therefore, call on the Assembly to closely monitor the democratic  decline in Armenia; 

to demand the immediate release of all unlawfully detained Armenians; 

to ensure the protection of the cultural heritage of  Nagorno-Karabakh; 

and to reaffirm the right of return of its indigenous population.

This is not simply a moral imperative; but a legal obligation.  Let  us restore trust in the principles we are committed to uphold.

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.