European Court's Ruling on Gurgen Margaryan Case is a Key Achievement: Arman Tatoyan

The ruling of the European Court of Human Rights in the Gurgen Margaryan case will hold significant importance for preventing crimes motivated by ethnic hatred. This was stated in a press release by the Human Rights Defender on May 27.

The full statement is as follows: “Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan considers the European Court's ruling regarding the murder of Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan a key achievement in preventing crimes committed with ethnic discrimination and hatred. It is also vital for the reinforcement of the human rights system at the pan-European level.”

In its ruling on the case “Makucheyan and Minasian v. Azerbaijan and Hungary” (Application No. 17247/13), the European Court noted that the pardon granted to Ramil Safarov, the privileges offered to him, and the encouragement from the highest state level, as well as his glorification within Azerbaijani society, were based on ethnic motivations. The Court noted that this was supported by statements from high-ranking officials expressing their support for the act.

The European Court explicitly recorded and took into account the comments made by Azerbaijan's Ombudsman Elmira Suleymanova, who stated, “Ramil Safarov should serve as an example of patriotism for the youth of Azerbaijan.” Immediately after the pardon granted by the President of Azerbaijan, the Ombudsman claimed that, “This is another proof of President Ilham Aliyev's humanity and concern for the citizens of Azerbaijan.”

The European Court condemned the release and glorification of a person who committed an ethnically motivated murder, viewing it as a dangerous encouragement for creating an atmosphere of impunity. Furthermore, concerns about Ramil Safarov's extradition and release had previously been raised by respected international organizations, including the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) and the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination.

It is crucial to remember that the unavoidable accountability of a person who committed murder with such brutality and the imposition of punishment has a clear objective: to prevent the occurrence of such crimes motivated by ethnic hatred in the future. However, the glorification and encouragement of such a crime has perilous consequences, creating fertile ground for more heinous acts in the future.

Discrimination and hatred based on ethnic affiliation must be completely eradicated. This is fundamentally unacceptable, especially when encouraged by the state. This phenomenon poses a danger from the perspective of the universal human rights system and can have profoundly negative consequences that will require long-term efforts to address. The brutal murder of Gurgen Margaryan was such a consequence.

In this ruling, the European Court found that there was a procedural violation concerning the right to life guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights (Article 2), as well as the right to protection against discrimination (Article 14) in conjunction with Article 2. Specifically, it was noted that Azerbaijan failed to ensure the further application of the imposed punishment on its citizen, leading to the impunity for a hate crime.

The Human Rights Defender of Armenia will rigorously follow the effective implementation of legal principles and standards related to combating ethnic discrimination and hatred at a universal level with maximum utilization of its status.

It should be recalled that on the night of February 19, 2004, in Budapest, during a NATO “Partnership for Peace” program training, Azerbaijani officer Ramil Safarov brutally murdered sleeping Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan with at least twelve blows and also attacked Armenian officer Hayk Makuchyan. The Hungarian court had sentenced Ramil Safarov to life imprisonment. Several years after his conviction, he was extradited from Hungary to Azerbaijan, after which he was pardoned and glorified for killing an ethnically Armenian officer.