Human rights defender Siranush Sahakyan is going to appeal to the European Court of Human Rights in the case of the former Minister of State of Artsakh, philanthropist Ruben Vardanyan, who was imprisoned in Azerbaijan for almost three years and sentenced to 20 years in prison. The international law specialist notes that they finally managed to get Vardanyan’s verdict, which was necessary to start a process at the European Court.

“We are in the preparatory stage, after weeks the case will be submitted,” Sahakyan told Azatut. “In the case of Ruben Vardanyan, we will show that the accusation is political, no individual criminal act was ever carried out by Vardanyan. The right to collective self-determination has been illegally qualified as terrorism, while there can be no punishment without an act provided for by law,” the human rights defender emphasized.

As for the other 15 Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan’s prisons, among whom is the former military-political leadership of Artsakh, Baku still refuses to provide them and their public defenders with the verdicts that were published eight months ago. In other words, the 15 Armenian prisoners are still deprived of the opportunity to get acquainted with their verdicts, in particular, what actions were attributed to them and based on what evidence.

“I think they are trying to hinder the process of submitting international complaints, and we also do not rule out that the verdict is not even finalized, because the trial itself was fictitious, and the outcome of the trial was shaped by a political order. I think it takes time for the entire law enforcement system to present some reasons in that judicial act, because they realize that these processes are transferred to international courts,” said the international law specialist.

Human rights defender Siranush Sahakyan says that in order to apply to the European Court of Human Rights, it is necessary to have the judgments. If the judicial authorities of Azerbaijan continue not to provide it, they will receive it already through the ECHR. The Inter-Asia Court made an interim decision, according to which the authorities of Azerbaijan must submit the verdicts of 15 Armenian citizens to the European Court by August 31.

“If they don’t give it to the European Court, we will have allegations of violation of human rights of a new quality here, I think the Azerbaijani authorities will not go that way and will at least give the judgments to the court,” emphasized Sahakyan.

In February, the Baku military court sentenced 16 Armenian prisoners, including the military-political leadership of Artsakh, to life or long imprisonment.

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