Alen Simonian's Remarks Are Highly Dangerous, Says Taguhi Tovmasyan

The newspaper "Zhoghvorud" reports that for several days now, the social and political circles have been discussing the content of a secretly filmed video featuring the Speaker of the National Assembly, Alen Simonian, where he speaks about captured servicemen in the past tense.

In this regard, the Chairperson of the National Assembly's Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs, Taguhi Tovmasyan, stated: "I can say that Alen Simonian has echoed Nikol Pashinyan, as this was the collective view of the authorities. No matter how much they meet with the parents of the captives and try to stage tearful scenes claiming to be concerned, doing everything possible and impossible, we know that within the government there exists an attitude and opinion, which Simonian inadvertently made public. As the NA Speaker, his words are highly dangerous in terms of the fact that the Republic of Armenia, as a country, is obligated to uphold the constitutional rights of every citizen and protect them."

Tovmasyan further questioned: "Does this mean that Armenia is abandoning its citizens and its obligations to protect their rights? This is highly dangerous. Regardless of the circumstances in which our compatriots were captured, it is the constitutional duty of the Armenian government to bring them back safe and sound to Armenia."

When asked how the authorities could secure the return of captives if Azerbaijan refuses, Tovmasyan responded: "In the November 9 statement, it is clearly stipulated that all captives must be returned—everyone for everyone. However, after that, two documents were signed, while the Armenian authorities should have ensured the full implementation of the points of the trilateral statement before starting discussions on other communication topics. Why did they begin discussions on another topic without fulfilling the captives' return provision and even signed documents?"

For the complete article, refer to today’s edition of the newspaper.