Armenian human rights defender and CoE Secretary General meet in Strasbourg
Armenian human rights defender Kristinne Grigoryan and Council of Europe Secretary General Marija Pejčinović Burić met in Strasbourg today and discussed the aftermath of the recent fighting along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border.
Grigoryan, according to his office, presented a list of damage to civilians and civilian infrastructure, the environment and other acts prohibited by international humanitarian law and international human rights law following the September 13 Azerbaijani military attack on Armenia.
Grigoryan referred to the crimes committed by the Azerbaijani military against the Armenian prisoners of war and the bodies of the killed military personnel and referred to the cause of these crimes: the systematic policy of Armenophobia and ethnic hatred of Armenians carried out by the Azerbaijani state.
These incidents are summarized in an ad hoc report by the Human Rights Defender published on 16 September and presented personally to the Secretary General.
The Secretary General highly appreciated the work of the Armenian HRD and thanked Grigoryan for their efficient collaboration and the ad hoc report.
The Secretary-General noted the need for the return of Armenian prisoners of war and civilians who are still detained in Azerbaijan, and reiterated her commitment to continue efforts in this direction.
The Secretary General referred to the guidelines of the program implemented with Armenia and underlined the Council of Europe’s willingness to provide continued support, including in the framework of the Armenia-CoE Action Plan.
Ms Marija Pejčinović Burić underlined her support for the implementation of the Human Rights Defender’s mandate, and the parties agreed to continue their cooperation.
Photo credit: Office of the CoE Secretary General.
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