Ruben Vardanyan and Veronika Zonadbend at the Aurora Prize Ceremony in Venice, Italy in 2021
Former Artsakh State Minister Ruben Vardanyan’s wife, Veronika Zonabend, issued a statement on Wednesday providing an update on her initiative to organize a humanitarian mission, with the participation of the families of Armenian hostages, to visit their relatives in Baku.
Zonabend announced the initiative last month and now, in an open letter, she is appealing to international groups and government officials to support and assist her in making the mission a reality.
In her most recent statement, Zonabend emphasized that the initiative is exclusively humanitarian in nature and is intended to facilitate a meeting with the Human Rights Commissioner of Azerbaijan, visit Armenian citizens detained in the country, and deliver letters, photographs and other permitted personal items from their families.
Among the individuals she is appealing is Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, seeking his assistance in coordination and practical support from the Armenian government. Zonbend is also calling on European Union’s Foreign Affairs chief, Kaja Kallas, seeking diplomatic attention and possible assistance from European institutions.
According to Zonabend, the initiative is being pursued through official and diplomatic channels to ensure transparency and the safety of all participants.
She stressed the importance of guaranteeing every stage of the potential visit, including entry into Azerbaijan, access to the detainees, and the safe return of the delegation.
“It is essential for the participants and their families to understand that this initiative is being prepared in an official framework and with the necessary guarantees, so that the visit does not pose a risk to anyone’s life or safety,” she said.
As part of the effort, Zonabend said she had sent open letters to several officials and institutions, including Azerbaijan’s Human Rights Commissioner, Sabina Aliyeva, asking for support in organizing the visit under the auspices of her office and in creating the necessary conditions for it to take place.
She also appealed to the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross, Mirjana Spoljaric Egger, requesting that the organization consider ways to support, advise on, or participate in the visit within the scope of its humanitarian mandate.
Zonabend said that for those held in prolonged detention, such an initiative carries profound humanitarian significance.
“Their condition, the conditions of their detention, and their connection to their families must not be left unaddressed or left to depend solely on closed and irregular mechanisms,” she said.
She added that the initiative is rooted in fundamental human rights: enabling families to know what is happening to their loved ones, to send them messages of support, and to ensure they know they have not been forgotten.
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