As soon as Nazeli Baghdasaryan assumed the post of Shirak governor and set foot in the governor’s office building, on November 9, the relatives of the captives came to meet her. They had gathered in front of the entrance of the Shirak regional administration building. Referring to the issue of prisoners, Nazeli Baghdasaryan said, “I think this particular position should not have solved this problem as effectively as possible, because during the tenure of the two previous governors I have always dealt with those issues when I was not constrained to meet with the relatives of the prisoners. I think they will prove it. At the moment, almost half of the 62 captives in the region have returned, but active processes are underway for the return of the others. I do not hide the fact that I had a larger spectrum in terms of powers as a deputy, particularly using parliamentary diplomacy.
You know, I have recently been involved in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to take on this important function. In our last PACE resolution, I insisted on certain provisions related to the return of special prisoners, in particular, separating the prisoners of Khtsaberd, their status issue. You know that illegal criminal cases have been initiated in the Baku court that have no legal basis. And all that is reflected in several international documents. Do you know that we have a parallel process in the UN Criminal Court, where we try to solve this issue with some small, modest investments?
Regarding the return of the captives, I must say that the process is continuous. We had a great achievement when during the trial the prisoners were convicted under certain criminal articles; the relatives thought that they would not return. The last five returnees, who were from Shirak region, proved that the trial was in fact a staging, even being convicted, they returned to the homeland.”
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The newly-appointed governor said that she was hopeful that this issue would be resolved during her tenure. She mentioned that there was not a single returned prisoner whom she would not meet, accompany to a medical examination, or not arrange a meeting with relatives. “I have a certain obligation, regardless of my position or profession,” Nazeli Baghdasaryan concluded.
Nune AREVSHATYAN
