Evidence will show Azerbaijan, which ratified the treaty in 1995,
guilty of serious and persistent breaches
GENEVA, April 16,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Center for Truth and Justice
(CFTJ), an international human rights organization dedicated to the
documentation of atrocity crimes via firsthand evidence, will
present violations committed by Azerbaijan in the upcoming United Nations
compliance review of Azerbaijan's
adherence to its obligations under the Convention Against Torture
and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
(CAT).
At the April 15-May 10 review,
CFTJ representatives will offer evidence of serious and persistent
breaches by Azerbaijan of its
obligations under CAT. This assessment, which will take place in
Geneva, marks a critical step in
holding Azerbaijan accountable for
its human rights violations.
The CFTJ's delegation will be led by Philippe Larochelle, an international lawyer
with extensive experience in international human rights cases who
has appeared before the International Criminal Tribunal for
Rwanda, the International Criminal
Court, the Supreme Court of Canada, and the Special Tribunal for
Lebanon, and has represented
applicants in individual cases before the UN Committee Against
Torture.
"Azerbaijan has been torturing
and holding Armenian prisoners and hostages in custody without due
process. They must be held responsible for their inhuman treatment
aimed specifically at those ethnically Armenian," said CFTJ
President Gor Mnatsakanyan.
The Convention Against Torture, which was adopted by the UN
General Assembly in 1984 and ratified by Azerbaijan in 1995, explicitly prohibits
torture and other forms of ill-treatment. State parties are
obligated to prevent and punish acts of torture within their
jurisdiction, ensuring the protection of all individuals from such
practices.
Harrowing parts of extensive testimonies that CFTJ has recorded
from Armenian POWs who were held captive in Azerbaijani prisons can
be found here.
https://www.cftjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/CFTJ-POW-Quotes.pdf
Recorded testimonies of the Armenian prisoners of war establish
the involvement of state actors that carried out systematic acts of
violence, battering them physically as well as psychologically with
degrading and racist language, withholding food, water, hygiene,
and proper housing, coercing them to sign false confessions in
Azerbaijani without an interpreter, beating them to and from court
and torturing them for prolonged periods without any medical care
or contact with family or friends.
Those who carried out this systematic prolonged physical and
psychological torture of Armenian prisoners of war include
Azerbaijani soldiers, special forces, military commanders, jail
guards, medical personnel, interrogators, prosecutors, and
judges.
Evidence suggests that torture and ill-treatment persist in
Azerbaijan, often with impunity.
Among Azerbaijan's illegal
actions:
- During both the 2020 and 2023 wars against Nagorno-Karabakh,
the Azerbaijani authorities detained some 200 Armenian civilians
and military personnel. Dozens remain in Azerbaijani jails
illegally, and although some await trials, others are subject to
lengthy jail terms and even torture. Several soldiers and civilians
remain missing to this day.
- Azerbaijan has declared 300
former leaders of Nagorno-Karabakh wanted for alleged
war crimes. Eight of these leaders were detained and humiliated in
front of cameras, before being transferred to prisons in
Baku.
- An unknown number of Armenian civilians have been taken hostage
since 2020 by Azerbaijani security personnel in and around
Nagorno-Karabakh and even within the borders of Armenia.
- Additionally, Armenian prisoners of war (POWs) remain in
Azerbaijani prisons, enduring an unknown amount of persecution.
Based on testimonial evidence from repatriated POWs, it is
suspected that there are dozens more being held in detention in
Azerbaijan, which Azerbaijan has neither claimed nor
denied.
A report submitted by the CFTJ to CAT in advance of the
proceedings (read it here) illustrates in detail the POW issue is
perhaps especially egregious.
https://www.cftjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/CFTJ-POW-Quotes.pdf
During the assessment period, CFTJ will engage with relevant
stakeholders, including government representatives, civil society
organizations, and UN bodies, to present findings, advocate for
accountability measures, and urge Azerbaijan to fulfill its obligations under
the Convention Against Torture.
The CFTJ is calling on the Committee to be unequivocal in its
condemnation of Azerbaijan's
persistent and egregious breaches of the Convention and to take
urgent measures aimed at justice, reparation, and non-recurrence.
As the primary monitoring body of the CAT, this Committee is
uniquely positioned to condemn Azerbaijan's flagrant disregard of the
Convention, one of the most fundamental in the pantheon of core
human rights instruments.
Most importantly, the CFTJ calls on the international community
for the immediate and unconditional release of all Armenian POWs
and hostages, as they remain at urgent risk of torture based on
their ethnic identity.
About the Center for Truth and Justice (CFTJ):
The Center for Truth and Justice (CFTJ) is an international human
rights organization committed to documenting atrocity crimes and
pursuing accountability for perpetrators. Through legal clinics
overseeing the collection of direct evidence from survivors, and
advocacy, CFTJ works to create and use legal records to attain
accountability.
For media inquiries or further information, please
contact:
Milena Mailyan, Esq. at
376220@email4pr.com, 818-804-6909
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SOURCE Center for Truth and Justice