“The Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan considers the allegations made at a press conference held in Armenia on September 4, claiming that persons of Armenian descent convicted for crimes they committed are subjected to discrimination based on religious affiliation in Azerbaijan, tortured, that Christian religious symbols are destroyed, that they are denied access to the ‘Bible’ and forced to read the ‘Quran’, to be unfounded and biased, and assesses them as an attempt aimed at disrupting the ongoing peace negotiations.”
elchi reports that the Azerbaijani Ombudsman Sabina Aliyeva stated this in response to the allegations made by the Armenian human rights defender.
It was noted that presenting such serious accusations to the public as facts without providing any credible evidence does not align with the principles of human rights protection:
“In particular, attempts to link issues related to individual persons with religious affiliation and to shift them into the plane of Christian-Muslim confrontation are unacceptable. Azerbaijan is a multi-ethnic and multi-confessional secular state. The country treats the provision of rights and freedoms of persons belonging to different religious confessions equally and respects their freedom of religion. It is unacceptable to link criminal liability determined by the court with the ethnic origin of the persons and to present the punishment that those persons are serving on legal grounds for their committed acts as ‘ethnic or religious persecution’. Criminal liability is determined not by a person’s ethnic origin or religious belief, but by the nature of the committed act, the evidence collected regarding that act, and the legal assessment of the court.
During the monitoring and visits carried out by the Ombudsman’s National Preventive Group at various times, confidential meetings were held with persons of Armenian descent detained in the territory of Azerbaijan, their medical and psychological conditions were assessed, and the rights and freedoms enshrined in international documents were explained to them in their native language. During the monitoring carried out, it was determined that the rights and freedoms of those persons were ensured in accordance with international standards, without discrimination, and that they had access to medical care and other necessary services. In this regard, the Ombudsman emphasizes the necessity of distinguishing activities in the field of human rights protection from statements serving political purposes and confrontational rhetoric. Making serious accusations such as ‘torture’, ‘religious persecution’, and discrimination based on religious affiliation without being based on verified facts serves to mislead public opinion, disrupt peace negotiations, and create confrontation on religious grounds.”
It was stated that such irresponsible approaches are particularly worrying against the background of the ongoing peace process between Azerbaijan and Armenia:
“Sustainable peace is possible not only through political and legal agreements but also by strengthening trust between societies and refraining from intolerance and hate speech. Presenting unverified information on religious grounds deepens mistrust between societies and harms the environment necessary for peace and reconciliation. Human rights protection does not accept the distortion of facts for political purposes and the creation of an image of an enemy based on religious affiliation. Persons working in this field must be responsible in their statements, base them on objective and verified facts, and refrain from rhetoric that could damage peace and mutual trust.”