Armenia is taking no steps to secure access to its citizens imprisoned in Baku, Human Rights Lawyer Siranush Sahakyan warned this week, after several of the 23 detainees reportedly attempted suicide in recent weeks. The claims come after Azerbaijan forced the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to close its Baku office on September 3, cutting off the only independent access to Armenian prisoners.
The ICRC, which had operated in Azerbaijan since 1992, last visited Armenian detainees in June, checking conditions and facilitating phone calls with families. In a statement from Geneva, the organization pledged to continue negotiations with Azerbaijani authorities, but without a permanent presence its ability to monitor prisoners remains uncertain.
Back in April, Sahakyan’s organization, together with the Union for the Protection of the Interests and Rights of the Peoples of Artsakh, appealed to Armenia’s MFA to delegate consular protection rights to Switzerland, a neutral third country, for Armenians held in Azerbaijan. She said the MFA responded that the issue was “under discussion,” but to this day no positive statement has been made, nor has any request been formally submitted to Switzerland or another neutral state.
Sahakyan stressed that, under the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, Armenia is fully within its rights to entrust a third country with consular duties when direct diplomatic relations are absent. She cited the well-known precedent of the United States in 1979, which delegated protection of its citizens in Iran to Switzerland following the hostage crisis.
“At this moment, Armenia is making no effort to ensure visits to its citizens held in Baku,” Sahakyan said.
Families have reported signs of severe psychological distress during recent phone calls, Sahakyan noted, with some detainees attempting suicide since Red Cross visits stopped. Prisoners are held in complete isolation, without international oversight.
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