On February 26, Azerbaijani media released videos from Ruben Vardanyan's trial. The footage showed bruises and injuries on Vardanyan's face.
"In international humanitarian law, there is a principle stating that if a person enters a detention facility without injuries and in good health but later shows signs of harm, the state bears responsibility unless it proves that the injuries resulted from natural causes and were not inflicted as torture. In this case, the Azerbaijani court has provided no explanation for the origin of these injuries. This means that instead of conducting an investigation into the apparent signs of torture, the individual is subjected to further public torture for being Armenian, for expressing views on the Artsakh conflict, and for defending the people of Artsakh from international crimes. What we see here is an act of demonstrative revenge, which also contradicts the principles of humanitarianism," said Siranush Sahakyan, head of the Center for International and Comparative Law, in an interview with "Hetq."
The human rights defender emphasizes that Armenia must use all possible means to protect Armenians facing persecution in foreign countries for political or other reasons. In this particular case, Armenia's responsibility is even greater, as one of the defining factors of the persecution is nationality and ethnic identity.
"Under these circumstances, Armenia has taken no steps to delegate the protection of rights to other consular services, meaning that it lacks information about the actual condition of its own citizens. Without this information, it is also unable to carry out proper political and diplomatic efforts. We do not see any consistent work being done to address this gap," said Sahakyan.
According to her, society can also play a role in this matter. Active efforts should be made to collaborate with civil society organizations in various countries and use different means of public pressure to draw the international community’s attention to this issue.
"Ruben Vardanyan is a co-author and co-founder of numerous humanitarian initiatives and has made a significant contribution to addressing global issues. Therefore, we cannot allow individuals with such a background to remain in a state of legal vulnerability. Public pressure is crucial to ensuring that international organizations take greater responsibility and understand that Armenian society is resolute in demanding the protection of its rights," added Sahakyan.