When I Was Six Years Old, I Played with a Land Mine in Our Yard and Lost My Sight: Artak Beglaryan

Many children here will never see their fathers again, but I hope at least you will begin to see what is happening here. This is stated in the article by the Human Rights Advocate of the Republic of Artsakh, Artak Beglaryan, published in the "American Conservative."

When I was six years old, I played with a land mine in our yard and lost my sight as a result. But even then, the absurdity did not escape me. The republic where I lived was nonetheless invisible. It could not be found on any map. It was unrecognized by any nation in the world.

Today, I am the Human Rights Advocate in that invisible Republic—Artsakh, also known as Nagorno-Karabakh. Since I took office two years ago, my task has been to protect every individual's rights on this land from any encroachment—whether from the Artsakh government or any foreign adversary. It has been an absurd, almost unfeasible mission to defend the rights of people who do not exist to the international community.

Despite my invitations, no major human rights organization has ever visited our republic to assess how the rights of children, women, the disabled, and other vulnerable groups in the population are being upheld, or to contribute to the improvement of our efforts in protecting human rights.