20-year-old conscript Davit Gishyan, whose video about bandaging his wounded shoulder was actively spread on Azerbaijani telegram channels, was returned dead yesterday. On September 19, the Azerbaijani side returned his body along with the bodies of 31 servicemen.
“Azerbaijan grossly violated Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights (“Right to Life”) and killed a captured soldier,” Hasmik Samvelyan, the spokesperson of the RA representative for international legal affairs, told Forrights.am, informing that regarding Gishyan’s murder they have already appealed to the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) today.
In addition to Article 2 of Human Rights, the Armenian side also applied on the basis of Article 3 of the ECHR, which protects a person from torture, defining: “No one shall be subjected to torture or to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.”
“Davit Gishyan’s body was returned even though we saw him alive in the video. Davit Gishyan was actually killed in captivity. Today, we have already informed the ECHR that Azerbaijan has grossly violated the European Convention on Human Rights,” said the spokesperson of the representative of the Republic of Armenia on International Legal Affairs.
The International Committee of the Red Cross, which mediates between Azerbaijan and Armenia regarding the return or exchange of bodies of prisoners and servicemen, refuses to comment on the information about the killing or torture of Armenian prisoners of war.
“We do not comment on specific cases on the public platform. Issues related to possible captives, about which there are problems and questions, naturally, are in the center of our attention. We work confidentially on such issues, and this concerns only the dialogue between us and the authorities of the respective countries,” Zara Amatuni, head of the ICRC delegation’s communication and prevention program in RA, told us.
With the application sent to the ECHR, the Armenian side demands that an urgent measure be quickly applied to Azerbaijan. “In response to our application sent on September 13, the European Court gave Azerbaijan a deadline until September 22 to provide information about the whereabouts of the captives, to provide medical certificates, if any. But now we demand that an urgent measure be applied quickly”, says Hasmik Samvelyan.
Artak Zeynalyan, representative of the interests of Armenian prisoners of war at the ECHR, told “Azatutyun” [Radio Liberty] that a preliminary investigation should be conducted to find out the circumstances of the death of Armenian soldier Davit Gishyan. “Has the state fulfilled its responsibilities to guarantee and protect life?” We are talking about any state. Naturally, a forensic examination should be carried out, and Azerbaijan bears the responsibility for his life. We have a video showing that he is under the jurisdiction of the Azerbaijanis alive, he is being bandaged, at first glance he has a penetrating chest wound.”
Ըստ իրավապաշտպանի, զինվորի կյանքի համար պատասխանատվություը կրում է հենց Բաքուն և հե’նց այդ երկրում պետք է քննություն կատարվի՝ պարզելու թե արդյո՞ք նա սպանվել է, թե՞ մահացել է ստացած վնասվածքներից պատշաճ բուժօգնություն չստանալու հետևանքով։ «Եթե պատշաճ բուժօգնություն չի ցուցաբերվել, դա ևս արդեն նյութական իրավունքի խախտում է, իրավունքի նյութական բաղադրատարրի խախտում է», -ասել է Զեյնալյանը։
According to the human rights defender, Baku is responsible for the soldier’s life and an investigation should be conducted in that country to find out whether he was killed or died from his injuries as a result of not receiving proper medical care. “If proper medical care was not provided, it is already a violation of the material right, a violation of the material component of the rights,” said Zeynalyan.
It should be noted that today it was finally officially announced that 20 servicemen were captured as a result of Azerbaijan’s armed aggression. According to the data provided by the Security Council of Armenia, there are evidences of cases of torture, mutilation, and illegal killing of captured or dead Armenian servicemen by the Azerbaijanis.
In addition, the number of dead and missing persons as a result of the aggression reaches 207, including 3 civilians killed, the location of 2 civilians is considered unknown, 293 servicemen and 3 civilians were injured.
Hasmik Hambardzumyan