Armenia Appeals to ECHR and ICJ Over Parukh Incidents

Currently, the government of Armenia has filed two interstate complaints against Azerbaijan with the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). This was stated to Radio Liberty by Armenia's representative on international legal matters, Yeghishe Kirakosyan.

The first interstate complaint was submitted on February 1, 2021, concerning violations of the convention committed during the 44-day war unleashed by Azerbaijan and the subsequent period. Specifically, the government asserts that Azerbaijan has violated the rights of the population of Artsakh and Armenia, including the right to life, freedom from torture and inhumane treatment, inviolability of personal life, property rights, personal and family life, education, and several other rights. The government has attached numerous and extensive pieces of evidence to the complaint.

The first interstate state complaint is currently under review. Public hearings regarding the complaint will take place in 2023. Armenia submitted the second interstate complaint against Azerbaijan last June, when illegal trials began in Baku, and an application for interim measures was also filed.

Yeghishe Kirakosyan emphasizes, “The scope for interim measures by the European Court is limited and is generally applied to eliminate or prevent the immediate risk under Articles 2 and 3 of the Convention (the right to life and prohibition of ill-treatment or torture). However, based on certain precedent-setting law established by the European Court, we have attempted to take the case in this direction as well. Considering the obviously illegal nature of the trials, we requested the European Court to apply interim measures to safeguard the rights outlined in Article 6, allowing us either to suspend the proceedings or enable us, as representatives of those individuals, to communicate with them. The court did not grant this request; however, Armenia has again submitted the evidence it gathered.

In reference to the incidents in Parukh, Armenia has supplemented the complaints filed with the ECHR and the International Court of Justice (ICJ). In the spring, Azerbaijanis were terrorizing the residents of Parukh and Karaglukh with loudspeakers. Concurrently, other human rights violations were occurring in Artsakh, including interruptions in gas supply and terror tactics employed against the population (messages with constant threats were disseminated via loudspeakers), which are evidently aimed at ethnic cleansing.

Yeghishe Kirakosyan states that these acts primarily violate the conditional measures imposed by the ICJ on December 7. Additionally, they create direct violations of rights guaranteed by the European Convention.

“In this regard, we have filed a request for interim measures with the European Court and sent a letter to the ICJ, describing the circumstances of violations and requesting specific actions from the court in this regard. Unfortunately, we do not have new developments in this direction. We had also asked the ICJ to take steps according to its recently reformed rules to set up a committee of three judges to start monitoring compliance with the decision made in 2021. There has been no news on that either,” he adds.

The representative on international legal matters assures that continuous and consistent work is being undertaken, responding to Azerbaijan's counterarguments through correspondence or attempting to substantiate the Armenian side's positions more convincingly before the court. The same process is also ongoing with the European Court. The Armenian side has requested an interim measure, with some evidence submitted on March 24, followed by new arguments a week later. Our application and the court’s decision coincided with the moment when gas supply resumed; thus, the court did not apply any measures and noted in its decision that gas supply was restored,” says Kirakosyan.

The representative on international legal matters of Armenia highlights that the presence of Azerbaijani forces in the indisputable sovereign territory of Armenia, since May 12, 2021, not only violates Armenia's territorial integrity but also undermines the rights of residents in the adjacent communities. In many cases, individuals, due to circumstances, are unable to fully utilize their properties, grazing lands, or arable fields. Steps are also being taken to prove these violations,” states Yeghishe Kirakosyan.