Involvement in Legal Processes Immediately After Inhumane Treatment in Azerbaijani Captivity is Incorrect, Says Artsakh Ombudsman

“We have had meetings and discussions with the prisoners of war who returned after the war and with the citizens of the Republic of Artsakh, and I can say that those who have returned from captivity are not in a psychological state to be able to engage in legal processes immediately,” stated Gegham Stepanyan, the Ombudsman of Artsakh, during a discussion regarding the fate and rights of prisoners of war.

According to him, only after undergoing a certain phase of rehabilitation can prisoners be involved in legal processes. He assessed that developing legal processes regarding those who have been repatriated immediately after returning from captivity is not appropriate.

“They go through quite a complicated situation in Azerbaijani captivity. The report of the Human Rights Defender of Armenia documents the types of torture and inhumane treatment our captives undergo during their captivity in Azerbaijan, and my assessment is that from a humanitarian perspective, it is also wrong to engage them in certain legal processes immediately after their return from captivity,” the Ombudsman of Artsakh concluded.