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CRIME AND INEVITABLE PUNISHMENT
http://artsakhtert.com/eng/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1591:-crime-and-inevitable-punishment&catid=3:all&Itemid=4
Friday, 24 October 2014 20:32
A trial against the Azerbaijani subversives, Dilham Askerov
and Shahbaz Guliyev, is scheduled for Monday, October 27, in
Stepanakert. Let's remind that in mid-July, they penetrated into the
NKR Karvachar region to commit sabotage-reconnaissance and espionage
activities and were captured by the Karabakh security services. The
third member of the subversive group resisted while being captured and
was killed.
During their short stay in the territory of Nagorno Karabakh,
the group members committed a range of crimes, having killed and
wounded a few citizens of the NKR.
Once official information about the detention of the subversives was
reported, Azerbaijan immediately initiated an information campaign
aimed at presenting them as civilians who had gone to the Karvachar
region to... "visit the graves of their relatives and their homes".
Surely, the Azerbaijani party was and is silent about the fact that
the "walk" was followed by the killing of innocent civilians,
including a teenager, as well as wounding a woman. Like in any
self-respecting state, a criminal case was initiated in the Artsakh
Republicand after the completion of the investigation it was forwarded
to the court.
With the approach of the trial date, the above mentioned propaganda
campaign, comprising both state and public structures of Azerbaijan,
is gaining momentum. Corresponding statements were issued by the
ministries of foreign affairs and defense; a campaign titled "Save the
Hostages>> was launched in social networks in five languages -
Azerbaijani, English, Russian, French, and even Armenian. We can even
say that the issue was raised to the international level.During the
recent visit of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmen to the region,
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev ... urged the mediators to raise
the issue of the soonest release of the Azerbaijani subversives by
Armenia. According to Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Elmar
Mammadyarov, during Aliyev's meeting with the co-chairmen in Baku, the
main issue was the return of the Azerbaijani captives. In other words,
for the Azerbaijani leader the return of the criminals is more
important than the conflict settlement process. Apparently, Aliyev's
successful experience of extradition from Hungary and the subsequent
pardon of the "Budapest killer", who hacked to death a sleeping
Armenian officer, inspired him, gaining the laurels of the criminal's
savior at home. To be frank, they were bloody laurels.
But, let's return to the coming trial, which is zealously opposed by
Azerbaijan. And what is the argument of the Azerbaijani party?
According to official Baku, holding a trial against Azerbaijani
citizens in the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic has no grounds,
and the decision taken by the court cannot have any legal force.
Apparently, the Azerbaijani leadership believes that one can commit
crimes in the territory of the unrecognized Republic without any
punishment, including the heaviest crime of war aimed at annihilating
the self-determined people, using even weapons of mass destruction
banned by international conventions against the civilians. But, any
crime must be followed by inevitable punishment, irrespective of the
recognition or non-recognition of the country, in which it was
committed. As forNagorno Karabakh, regardless of the will of the
criminal authorities of Azerbaijan, it is a subject of international
law with all the ensuing consequences, including legal for the
Azerbaijanis who have committed a crime against our Republic and its
citizens.
Since the declaration of its independence, the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic has taken the path of creating a democratic and legitimate
state, which recognizes and respects the rule of law. The legislative
basis, created during the years of independence and regulating the
political and social-economic relations in the Republic, fully comply
with the norms and principles of international law and does not
contradict them, as recognized by many independent reputable experts.
Based on this legislation, a judicial power has been formed and is
effectively functioning in the NKR, and it will commit an act of
justice over the Azerbaijani subversives. There is no doubt that the
verdict by the NKR court will be objective, unlike Azerbaijan, the
totalitarian regime of which has usurped all the power branches and is
committing legal arbitrariness. The resonant story of the arrest of
prominent human rights activists Leyla Yunus and her husband Arif
Yunus, Intigam Aliyev and Rasul Jafarov, who are accused of alleged
espionage in favor of Armenia, as well as dozens of other opponents of
the current power are an eloquent testimony of this. It isn't
accidental that the Human Rights Watch international human rights
organization called upon the French President, Francois Hollande, to
urge Aliyev at the upcoming meeting with him in Paris to release the
noted four arrested human rights activists. We believe that the
President of Azerbaijan should be concerned about the release of the
noted captives and not the fate of the outright killers.
And the last thing. Aliyev, who grossly violates the democratic and
constitutional rights in his own country, is also violating the rules
of diplomatic ethics, DEMANDING that the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk
Group contribute to the release of the saboteurs. Meanwhile, after
passing the court verdict on this case in Stepanakert, he can only
appeal to the NKR leadership to extradite the criminals, especially
that he has such an experience with Hungary. And the adoption of a
decision is purely the prerogative of the authorities of the Republic
of Artsakh.
Leonid MARTIROSSIAN
Editor-in-Chief of Azat Artsakh newspaper
http://artsakhtert.com/eng/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1591:-crime-and-inevitable-punishment&catid=3:all&Itemid=4
Friday, 24 October 2014 20:32
A trial against the Azerbaijani subversives, Dilham Askerov
and Shahbaz Guliyev, is scheduled for Monday, October 27, in
Stepanakert. Let's remind that in mid-July, they penetrated into the
NKR Karvachar region to commit sabotage-reconnaissance and espionage
activities and were captured by the Karabakh security services. The
third member of the subversive group resisted while being captured and
was killed.
During their short stay in the territory of Nagorno Karabakh,
the group members committed a range of crimes, having killed and
wounded a few citizens of the NKR.
Once official information about the detention of the subversives was
reported, Azerbaijan immediately initiated an information campaign
aimed at presenting them as civilians who had gone to the Karvachar
region to... "visit the graves of their relatives and their homes".
Surely, the Azerbaijani party was and is silent about the fact that
the "walk" was followed by the killing of innocent civilians,
including a teenager, as well as wounding a woman. Like in any
self-respecting state, a criminal case was initiated in the Artsakh
Republicand after the completion of the investigation it was forwarded
to the court.
With the approach of the trial date, the above mentioned propaganda
campaign, comprising both state and public structures of Azerbaijan,
is gaining momentum. Corresponding statements were issued by the
ministries of foreign affairs and defense; a campaign titled "Save the
Hostages>> was launched in social networks in five languages -
Azerbaijani, English, Russian, French, and even Armenian. We can even
say that the issue was raised to the international level.During the
recent visit of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairmen to the region,
President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev ... urged the mediators to raise
the issue of the soonest release of the Azerbaijani subversives by
Armenia. According to Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan Elmar
Mammadyarov, during Aliyev's meeting with the co-chairmen in Baku, the
main issue was the return of the Azerbaijani captives. In other words,
for the Azerbaijani leader the return of the criminals is more
important than the conflict settlement process. Apparently, Aliyev's
successful experience of extradition from Hungary and the subsequent
pardon of the "Budapest killer", who hacked to death a sleeping
Armenian officer, inspired him, gaining the laurels of the criminal's
savior at home. To be frank, they were bloody laurels.
But, let's return to the coming trial, which is zealously opposed by
Azerbaijan. And what is the argument of the Azerbaijani party?
According to official Baku, holding a trial against Azerbaijani
citizens in the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic has no grounds,
and the decision taken by the court cannot have any legal force.
Apparently, the Azerbaijani leadership believes that one can commit
crimes in the territory of the unrecognized Republic without any
punishment, including the heaviest crime of war aimed at annihilating
the self-determined people, using even weapons of mass destruction
banned by international conventions against the civilians. But, any
crime must be followed by inevitable punishment, irrespective of the
recognition or non-recognition of the country, in which it was
committed. As forNagorno Karabakh, regardless of the will of the
criminal authorities of Azerbaijan, it is a subject of international
law with all the ensuing consequences, including legal for the
Azerbaijanis who have committed a crime against our Republic and its
citizens.
Since the declaration of its independence, the Nagorno Karabakh
Republic has taken the path of creating a democratic and legitimate
state, which recognizes and respects the rule of law. The legislative
basis, created during the years of independence and regulating the
political and social-economic relations in the Republic, fully comply
with the norms and principles of international law and does not
contradict them, as recognized by many independent reputable experts.
Based on this legislation, a judicial power has been formed and is
effectively functioning in the NKR, and it will commit an act of
justice over the Azerbaijani subversives. There is no doubt that the
verdict by the NKR court will be objective, unlike Azerbaijan, the
totalitarian regime of which has usurped all the power branches and is
committing legal arbitrariness. The resonant story of the arrest of
prominent human rights activists Leyla Yunus and her husband Arif
Yunus, Intigam Aliyev and Rasul Jafarov, who are accused of alleged
espionage in favor of Armenia, as well as dozens of other opponents of
the current power are an eloquent testimony of this. It isn't
accidental that the Human Rights Watch international human rights
organization called upon the French President, Francois Hollande, to
urge Aliyev at the upcoming meeting with him in Paris to release the
noted four arrested human rights activists. We believe that the
President of Azerbaijan should be concerned about the release of the
noted captives and not the fate of the outright killers.
And the last thing. Aliyev, who grossly violates the democratic and
constitutional rights in his own country, is also violating the rules
of diplomatic ethics, DEMANDING that the co-chairs of the OSCE Minsk
Group contribute to the release of the saboteurs. Meanwhile, after
passing the court verdict on this case in Stepanakert, he can only
appeal to the NKR leadership to extradite the criminals, especially
that he has such an experience with Hungary. And the adoption of a
decision is purely the prerogative of the authorities of the Republic
of Artsakh.
Leonid MARTIROSSIAN
Editor-in-Chief of Azat Artsakh newspaper