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ETHNIC AZERI MAN RELEASED AFTER BEING HELD FOR 2 MONTHS IN ARMENIA
10.17.2013 18:25 epress.am
Armenia has released Allahverdi Pelengov, an ethnic Azeri and a
citizen of the Republic of Georgia, who was held for two months by
the RA National Security Service. The Public Council for the Defense
of Pelengov had repeatedly stated that Pelengov's rights were being
violated, noting that the Georgian citizen had been picked up in a
place where there is no border as such.
The 44-year-old resident of the village of Burma was detained by
Armenian border guards on Aug. 17. Pelengov's release and return home
was announced by the Caucasus Center of Peace-Making Initiatives
(CCPMI), which coordinates the work of the Public Council for the
Defense of Pelengov in Armenia, citing the defense attorney in this
case, Tigran Sinoyan. According to Sinoyan, Pelengov was released
under the general amnesty declared to mark the independence of the
Republic of Armenia (on Sept. 21).
The criminal case against him was quashed. However, CCPMI notes
that human rights violations and the authorities' inaction on the
Armenia-Georgia border continue to remain current issues.
Earlier, in conversation with Epress.am, Pelengov's attorney Rafik
Safaryan said that Georgian media reports that Pelengov was tortured
in Armenia are untrue. "He is in good health. He has pleaded guilty
for committing the act for which he is being charged. An investigation
is underway," the attorney had said.
Defending the Georgian citizen was the Public Council for the Defense
of Pelengov, which was established in the village of Tekali, Georgia,
from a discussion among locals, human rights defenders, activists, and
journalists on Sept. 14. This council was not so optimistic regarding
the state of the detainee, as Pelengov was deprived of the right to
receive information. The council had appealed to the NSS on several
occasions, asking for a meeting with Pelengov but had been refused.
As the Public Council for the Defense of Pelengov's Armenian
coordinator, human rights defender Georgy Vanyan had told Epress.am,
the council appealed also to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the
Ministry of Justice of both Armenia and Georgia, but it had not yet
received a response from any of these government bodies.
On Aug. 22, Vanyan also appealed to the RA Human Rights Defender's
Office, asking that a rapid response team of human rights defenders
be sent to visit Pelengov. "The only thing the Ombudsman's office
did is to call and verify the detainee's nationality," he said.
According to Vanyan, arresting Pelengov indicates an attempt
to place the Armenia-Georgia border within the context of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, and Armenian security services do not
have the autonomy to prevent this process.
Photo: Baku-APA news agency, taken from Azerbaijan Islamic news
site Deyerler.org
http://www.epress.am/en/2013/10/17/ethnic-azeri-man-released-after-being-held-for-2-months-in-armenia.html
10.17.2013 18:25 epress.am
Armenia has released Allahverdi Pelengov, an ethnic Azeri and a
citizen of the Republic of Georgia, who was held for two months by
the RA National Security Service. The Public Council for the Defense
of Pelengov had repeatedly stated that Pelengov's rights were being
violated, noting that the Georgian citizen had been picked up in a
place where there is no border as such.
The 44-year-old resident of the village of Burma was detained by
Armenian border guards on Aug. 17. Pelengov's release and return home
was announced by the Caucasus Center of Peace-Making Initiatives
(CCPMI), which coordinates the work of the Public Council for the
Defense of Pelengov in Armenia, citing the defense attorney in this
case, Tigran Sinoyan. According to Sinoyan, Pelengov was released
under the general amnesty declared to mark the independence of the
Republic of Armenia (on Sept. 21).
The criminal case against him was quashed. However, CCPMI notes
that human rights violations and the authorities' inaction on the
Armenia-Georgia border continue to remain current issues.
Earlier, in conversation with Epress.am, Pelengov's attorney Rafik
Safaryan said that Georgian media reports that Pelengov was tortured
in Armenia are untrue. "He is in good health. He has pleaded guilty
for committing the act for which he is being charged. An investigation
is underway," the attorney had said.
Defending the Georgian citizen was the Public Council for the Defense
of Pelengov, which was established in the village of Tekali, Georgia,
from a discussion among locals, human rights defenders, activists, and
journalists on Sept. 14. This council was not so optimistic regarding
the state of the detainee, as Pelengov was deprived of the right to
receive information. The council had appealed to the NSS on several
occasions, asking for a meeting with Pelengov but had been refused.
As the Public Council for the Defense of Pelengov's Armenian
coordinator, human rights defender Georgy Vanyan had told Epress.am,
the council appealed also to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the
Ministry of Justice of both Armenia and Georgia, but it had not yet
received a response from any of these government bodies.
On Aug. 22, Vanyan also appealed to the RA Human Rights Defender's
Office, asking that a rapid response team of human rights defenders
be sent to visit Pelengov. "The only thing the Ombudsman's office
did is to call and verify the detainee's nationality," he said.
According to Vanyan, arresting Pelengov indicates an attempt
to place the Armenia-Georgia border within the context of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, and Armenian security services do not
have the autonomy to prevent this process.
Photo: Baku-APA news agency, taken from Azerbaijan Islamic news
site Deyerler.org
http://www.epress.am/en/2013/10/17/ethnic-azeri-man-released-after-being-held-for-2-months-in-armenia.html