On Armenia’s Contribution to the 49th Session of the UN Human Rights Council

06 April, 2022

The 49th Session of the UN Human Rights Council (HRC) took place in Geneva from 28 February to 1 April 2022. It was the longest session in the history of the HRC. It was the first HRC Session in which Armenia participated as a member of the HRC Bureau and Vice-President of the Council. In that capacity H.E. Andranik Hovhannisyan, the Permanent Representative of Armenia, presided over a number of the HRC meetings, as well as participated in the decision-making and implementation of the organizational and procedural matters of the HRC Bureau.

H.E. Ararat Mirzoyan, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, participated in the High-Level Segment of the HRC session on 28 February 2022. In his remarks Foreign Minister Mirzoyan addressed, among other issues, the democratic processes in Armenia and especially emphasized the early parliamentary elections held in June 2021.

He extensively spoke about the human rights violations committed by Azerbaijan in Artsakh and the bordering regions of Armenia. The Minister noted that the Azerbaijani authorities ignored or declined to give a proper response to the communications of the UN Special Procedure Mandate Holders on the use of mercenaries, extrajudicial executions, arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, destruction of religious and cultural heritage in the context of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

The Foreign Minister underlined that unconditional, unimpeded, unhindered and unfettered access of the UN and its bodies to the people in need should be ensured, wherever they are and in all circumstances. Minister Mirzoyan called upon the international community to take responsibility for ensuring unconditional access of the UN bodies to the whole territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. He paid a particular attention to the draft resolution on Prevention of Genocide traditionally initiated by Armenia.

Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan also had a number of official meetings in Geneva, in particular with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet.

On 28 February at the United Nations Office at Geneva an official inauguration ceremony was held for the photo exhibition dedicated to the 30^th anniversary of Armenia’s accession to the UN. The event and the exhibition were organized by the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Armenia in Geneva. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan and the Director-General of the UN Office at Geneva Tatiana Valovaya delivered welcoming remarks at the opening of the event. The photographs included in the exhibition were depicting milestones of Armenia’s membership to the UN, the activities of our country within the framework of the Organization and the projects implemented by the UN in Armenia.

The High-Leve Segment was followed by the discussions on the human rights issues such as the fight against racism, xenophobia, torture and inhuman treatment, human rights of the persons with disabilities, protection of the rights of the child, adequate housing, protection of the human rights defenders, protection of the human rights in the context of the fight against terrorism, religious freedoms, protection of cultural heritage etc.

The delegation of Armenia delivered 44 statements in its national capacity presenting our country’s priorities on the above-mentioned human rights issues and spelling out our national approaches and best practices. During the Session a number of interactive dialogues were held on the country-specific human rights situations.

During the general debates and interactive dialogues of the Session, Armenia presented the facts of gross and flagrant violations of the international human rights law and international humanitarian law committed by Azerbaijan in Artsakh and in the bordering regions of Armenia. Armenia drew the attention of the UN bodies and member States to the Azerbaijani policy of non-compliance with its international obligations on the prisoners of war and civilian detainees, as well as to the deliberate destruction of the indigenous Armenian religious and cultural heritage, impediments Azerbaijan created for the access of international organizations to Artsakh, violations of the rights of the victims of forced displacement, as well as Azerbaijan’s policy of racially-motivated discrimination and hate towards Armenians. Armenia raised the issues of restrictions of fundamental freedoms, prosecution and killings of human rights defenders, as well as extreme manifestations of government-instigated anti-Armenian hate in Azerbaijan.

Delegation of Armenia specifically referred to the recent instances of the incursions of the Azerbaijani armed forces into Nagorno Karabakh as well as acts of the deliberate harassment by Azerbaijan, such as hindering gas supply, repetitive ceasefire violations and the siege of Parukh village. Armenia also presented to the Council the details of the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice on Azerbaijan.

During the Session Armenia circulated three Note Verbales as official UN documents that addressed the Nagorno Karabakh issue and the massacres of Armenians in Sumgait and Baku.

The 49^th session of the HRC adopted without a vote (by consensus) the resolution on Prevention of Genocide that is traditionally initiated by Armenia. The resolution is a testimony to Armenia’s continuing and resolute commitment to the international efforts for prevention of genocide. The Resolution stresses the need to fight the denial of genocide, emphasizes that biased accounts or denial or justification of past instances of genocides may increase the risk of reoccurrence of violence. The Resolution encourages intensification of the conflict risk analysis to assess the risks of perpetration of genocide and calls for cooperation with civil society, religious organizations and leaders.

The Resolution further addresses the issue of misuse of new technologies, including the threats of disseminating disinformation and hate speech through social media platforms. Among other issues raised in the Resolution, the Council decided to hold an intersessional meeting to mark the 75^th anniversary of the 1948 Convention and to discuss the role of social media platforms and their instrumentalization by those seeking to spread hate leading to real-world discrimination and violence.

Among other initiatives of the 49^th Session of the HRC, Armenia co-sponsored the resolutions on the freedom of religion or belief, cultural rights and cultural heritage, rights of people with disabilities, human rights defenders, adequate housing, human rights and terrorism, as well as on the rights of persons belonging to national, ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities.

Armenia also made general comments and explanations of vote on six resolutions adopted by the Session, highlighting inter alia the protection for human rights defenders and independent national human rights institutions operating in the situations of conflicts, as well as addressing the preservation of the cultural heritage.

The next, 50^th Session of the UN Human Rights Council will start in June 2022.

The reports on Armenia’s participation in the preceding HRC Sessions, as well as the statements delivered by the Permanent Mission of Armenia are available online at the following website: https://switzerland.mfa.am/en/news .

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