Use of Pastures, Hayfields, and Water Resources Impossible in Several Villages of Gegharkunik Region: Ombudsman

During my recent visit to the Gegharkunik region of Armenia, residents of border villages expressed concerns that due to the border delimitation process, the use of vital pastures, hayfields, and water resources has become impossible for them. This was reported by the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia, Arman Tatoyan, on his Facebook page.

“Residents of the border villages in the Gegharkunik region expressed concerns that as a result of the border delimitation process, the use of vital pastures, hayfields, and water resources has become impossible for them,” Tatoyan wrote.

Visits to villages such as Sotk, Norabak, Kut, and others in the Geghamasar community of Gegharkunik confirm that residents have been engaged in agriculture, primarily livestock farming, for many years. They have sustained their families through this means, and now their ownership, economic activities, and several other rights are under threat.

According to the farmers, difficulties are expected to arise especially starting from spring. The danger is that due to long-standing habits, there is a significant possibility that livestock could cross into areas under Azerbaijani control, with no chance of retrieval. Farmers reported that there has already been an incident where 34 horses crossed into Azerbaijani territories and have not been returned to them.

They also raised issues regarding the right to life and ensuring security. Historically, the significance of the Great and Small Al lakes or Allagyol (located on the southern slopes of the Vardenis mountain range, northwest of the Syunik plateau) and the pastures leading to these lakes has always been substantial. Especially from spring onward, farmers have been grazing large herds of cattle, including moving them from Vardenis and these villages to the pastures around the Al lakes.

Moreover, the hayfields in these areas have provided a significant portion of the hay designated for livestock farming in the Vardenis and Martuni regions.

The issues of ownership and utilization of the Al lakes have been examined by various commissions dealing with boundary disputes between Armenia and Azerbaijan since the formation of the Transcaucasian federation starting in 1923, including in 1925 and 1927. Archival documents evidence that the issue of these territories, including pastures, was justified by the necessity of nomadic herders from Kurdistan to use these areas.

During a session of the Presidium of the Transcaucasian Central Executive Committee on February 18, 1929, the pasture issue was discussed among the border issues of the republics within the federation, and it was decided to hand over the entire disputed territory to Kurdistan.

One of the archival documents obtained by the Human Rights Defender shows that on November 12, 1930, the People's Commissariat for Land Affairs of the Armenian SSR sent a complaint to the Transcaucasian Central Executive Committee indicating that the specified area “is completely detached by position, water conditions, etc., from all regions bordering Soviet Azerbaijan (Kurdistan) and is a continuation and an inseparable part of the Basargechar region. Its rational utilization (hayfields and waters) is linked with the villages of the Basargechar region.” Therefore, it was proposed that the Transcaucasian Executive Committee consider the issue further.

Interestingly, maps from the early 1920s show that the Al lakes were an integral part of Soviet Armenia (noted separately). For instance, in the documents presented, the maps from 1924 and 1926 clearly show the inclusion of the lakes as part of the Armenian SSR (the 1926 map was published in the Great Soviet Encyclopedia).

The issues of utilizing these territories have always been related to the rights of the residents of these areas in Soviet Armenia, primarily concerning economic, property, family sustenance, physical safety, and other vital rights.

During the visits of the delegation led by the Human Rights Defender to the mentioned villages in the Gegharkunik region, farmers noted that similar issues connected to their rights have arisen again now. All this once again confirms that the process of border delimitation in Armenia is directly linked to the rights of the residents, and solutions must be based on professional approaches, local studies, and committee works. Only in this way can it be possible to contribute to the guarantee of people's rights.