In its plenary session on March 13, the European Parliament (EP) adopted the resolution on \u201cThe Case of Unlawful Detention and sham trials of Armenian hostages, including high-ranking political representatives from Nagorno-Karabakh by Azerbaijan\u201d with 523 votes in favor, 3 against, and 84 abstentions. This vote was preceded by a parliamentary debate on the subject on the 12th of March.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The resolution acknowledges the detention of 23 Armenian POWs and mentions their capture following the \u201cethnic cleansing\u201d of Nagorno-Karabakh, a situation that requires international monitoring and observation which the European Union should facilitate. The European Parliament denounces the \u201cunjust detention\u201d and \u201cinhumane and degrading treatment\u201d of the 23 Armenian hostages and demands their immediate release, citing evidence of abuse, torture and unlawful legal practices. Crucially, in addition to demanding the release of the captives and urging Azerbaijan to comply with its commitment to the Geneva Convention, the resolution calls on the EU executive to enact targeted sanctions against the Azerbaijani officials guilty of the mistreatment, particularly judges Jamal Ramazanov, Anar Rzayev and Agayev and prosecutors involved in the sham trials.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the parliamentary debate yesterday, multiple MEPs called out the \u201cStalinist\u201d nature of the sham trials and criticized the EU executive and the Commission for disregarding the serious abuses of human rights by Azerbaijan. MEP Vytenis Povilas ANDRIUKAITIS (S&D) demanded sanctions against Azerbaijan, deeming the ethnic cleansing of Armenians from NK \u201ca war crime\u201d. MEP Miriam Lexmann (EPP) denounced the \u201cethnic cleansing\u201d conducted by Azerbaijan against the Christian Armenians of NK and reiterated calls for sanctions against the country while stipulating that any peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia should ensure the protection of the rights of the Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh. French MEP Nathalie Loiseau (Renew Europe) called on Commissioner Kallas personally to visit Armenia and the civilian monitoring mission of the EU in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The adopted motion specifically mentions the mistreatment and deteriorating health of Ruben Vardanyan, who has been undergoing hunger strike for more than 20 days and calls on the EU Executive to demand the presence of EU and Member State representatives during the trials and the ability to regularly visit the hostages, including by the EU Special Representative on Human Rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The European Parliament had previously mentioned the prosecution of the Armenian captives in its resolution adopted on the 19th<\/sup> of December in which the EP had denounced the continuous repression and prosecution of journalists and opposition figures in Azerbaijan. In this context, the resolution had used the detention of Armenian POWs as an example of the unwillingness of Azerbaijan to comply with its international obligations. Additionally, it also demanded \u201cto suspend the 2022 EU-Azerbaijan memorandum of understanding on the strategic partnership in the field of energ<\/em>y\u201d, a provision that is reiterated in the newly adopted resolution.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These calls further indicate the growing international consensus on the necessity to pressure Azerbaijan, demand the immediate release of the hostages and, most importantly, enact sanctions against the Azerbaijani authorities who continue to disregard all international agreements on the lawful and just treatment of detainees. The resolution strongly condemns Azerbaijan for violating the \u201cfundamental rights\u201d of the Armenian captives and calls for an independent investigation into their mistreatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The EAFJD welcomes this development and reiterates its call to the EU Executive to adhere to the resolutions of the European Parliament on this matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe EU Executive can no longer ignore the plight of the Armenian hostages\u201d, stated EAFJD President Kaspar Karampetian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe EP adopted a resolution which strongly condemns the sham trials, calling them sham trials, fully understanding the unlawful nature of the proceedings which are being used to not only intimidate the 16 Armenian hostages but also Armenia and the Armenian people. Targeted sanctions and establishing observational missions by the EU are the first steps towards claiming justice for the series of Armenophobic policies that Azerbaijan continues to enact to this day\u201d, concluded Karampetian.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" In its plenary session on March 13, the European Parliament (EP) adopted the resolution on \u201cThe Case of Unlawful Detention and sham trials of Armenian hostages, including high-ranking political representatives from Nagorno-Karabakh by Azerbaijan\u201d with 523 votes in favor, 3 against, and 84 abstentions. This vote was preceded by a parliamentary debate on the subject […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":23348,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[115],"tags":[143,405],"class_list":["post-23350","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-european-armenian-federation-eafjd","tag-405"],"yoast_head":"\n