Gegham Stepanyan: Today only 13 Armenians live in Artsakh

ArmInfo. Before 2020, Artsakh had a population of around 150,000 residents in. As of today, only 13  Armenians are left there. Artsakh Ombudsman Gegham Stepanyan stated  this on November 14 during a press conference discussing "The Impact  of Azerbaijani Aggression on Human Rights and Environmental  Protection".  

As the human rights activist noted, this is the picture  that illustrates the reality that exists in Azerbaijan and on the  global stage regarding human rights issues. "There are grounds for  action, but in practice, this remains only on paper or at the level  of efforts made by individual human rights defenders, while political  figures remain inactive," Stepanyan explained.

In this regard, he emphasized that holding the UN Climate Conference  (COP29) in Baku after the ethnic cleansing in Artsakh is clear  evidence that the Armenian people are faced not with a lack of  condemnation, but also with the practice of encouraging crimes in the  international arena.  At the same time, according to the Artsakh  Ombudsman, the blockade was nothing but a tool of ethnic cleansing by  Azerbaijan. "There is nothing to hide here: this was an action that  Azerbaijan openly declared before the blockade began. I am still  surprised that the international community responded only at the  level of statements, without taking any real action," Stepanyan said.

He mentioned that in front of the entire world, 120,000 civilians  were subjected to various tortures and trials for many days. In this  regard, the human rights activist noted that during the blockade,  there were cases of death from exhaustion and malnutrition, and the  most vulnerable groups of the population suffered from a lack of  medicine, while the world limited itself to statements.  "It took a  huge effort from us to get the International Committee of the Red  Cross to release statements containing unbiased information about the  situation. It is wrong when even humanitarian organizations should be  compelled to issue such statements," Stepanyan emphasized, adding  that this indicates existing problems in the human rights protection  system.

In discussing specific cases, the Artsakh Ombudsman recalled Vagif  Khachatryan, who was abducted by Azerbaijani soldiers at the  checkpoint on the Hakari Bridge in front of the ICRC.  "For this  reason, there were cases when people were too scared to leave and  expressed a preference to die rather than be captured by the  Azerbaijanis. These instances highlight the dilemma faced by the  Artsakh and the challenging situation they were in," Stepanyan  explained. The Artsakh Ombudsman expressed regret that despite the  public disclosure of the events, Azerbaijani authorities faced no  consequences for their actions, but were also supported by many  countries, as demonstrated by the hosting of COP29 in Azerbaijan.

"After this, it is difficult to speak about human rights and values,"  Stepanyan added.  Addressing the situation with vulnerable groups of  the population, the Artsakh Ombudsman highlighted the scarcity of  food and medicine. He emphasized that people with chronic diseases  faced significant challenges in obtaining necessary medicines during  the blockade. "The inadequate international response allowed  Azerbaijan to engage in further aggression in September 2023,  resulting in ethnic cleansing," Stepanyan concluded.