Armenian activists oppose new agreements with Azerbaijan

Today, in Yerevan, a protest action has been held in front of the Ministry of Justice building (MoJ). The protestors claim it is unacceptable to conclude any agreements with Azerbaijan until the provisions of the peace agreement on the exchange of prisoners of war have been fulfilled.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on December 5, 2020, Azerbaijan and Armenia agreed to exchange POWs under the principle of "all for all." On December 15, 44 people returned to Armenia, and 14 ones returned to Azerbaijan.

The protest action in front of the Armenian MoJ's building was broadcast live on the "News.am" YouTube channel. The video caught dozens of activists, and some of them were holding posters in their hands.

The activists have been worried about unofficial information concerning a secret agreement to be signed in Moscow on January 11, explains Ruben Melikyan, an organizer of the today's protest action, a former human rights defender in Nagorno-Karabakh, the head of the human rights organization "Legal Path".

"The authorities are to inform their citizens about this document. It is the citizens' right to be informed. We no longer want to live in illusions, as it was during the whole war, when the real picture at the front was reported post factum. We demand to report the information about what we will concede or acquire under the agreement and what legal content the document does have," emphasized Ruben Melikyan as translated from the Armenian language by the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

According to the human rights defender, the new agreement has been prepared in conditions when the agreement of November 10, which provided, in particular, for a full exchange of prisoners of war, remains unfulfilled.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on January 8, 2021 at 03:56 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.