Human Rights Defender Anahit Manasyan Reports to British Media on the State of Rights Protection for Residents of Border Areas

The Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia, Anahit Manasyan, gave an interview to representatives of British media on April 24. This information was provided by the Office of the Human Rights Defender.

During the meeting, the Defender presented the issues related to human rights in Armenia to representatives from The Guardian, The Independent, The Guardian/The Critic, The Telegraph/The Critic Adam Smith Institute, BBC, and UnHerd. She addressed rights issues concerning individuals forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh.

Anahit Manasyan emphasized that to assess the situation regarding the protection of rights for displaced persons, visits have been conducted since September 24, 2023, by her and her staff in the registration centers located in Kornidzor, Goris, and Vayk, where individual interviews have been held with more than 350 displaced individuals. During this period, information was gathered regarding incidents involving civilian deaths, torture, desecration of bodies, mutilation, and other forms of ill-treatment prohibited by international law.

This information has been included in the special report of the Human Rights Defender, which was presented to international organizations and actors responsible for human rights protection, including a section proving the veracity of the information.

The Defender also addressed the situation concerning the protection of rights for residents of border areas of the Republic of Armenia. In this context, Anahit Manasyan mentioned that on April 11 and 12, she held meetings in the Tavush region with residents and administrative leaders of the communities of Movses, Nerk’in Karmiraghbyur, Berkaberd, Voskepar, Voskavan, and Kiran, where issues were documented.