HRC 55th Session: Item 3: Interactive Dialogue with the Special Rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief

05 March, 2024

President,

Armenia thanks Special Rapporteur for the comprehensive report.

We concur with observations of the Special Rapporteur with respect to the structural factors contributing to conditions leading to development of hateful discourse.

In this regard, we would like to recall that the International Court of Justice adopted two binding orders on Azerbaijan to take all necessary measures to prevent the incitement and promotion of racial hatred and discrimination, including by its officials and public institutions, targeted at persons of Armenian national or ethnic origin, as well as to prevent and punish acts of vandalism and desecration affecting Armenian cultural heritage, including churches and other places of worship.

Both orders were not implemented by Azerbaijan, which unabashedly continuous the destruction of the Armenian religious heritage. The UN Special Rappoteur in the field of cultural rights recently reported that the acts of Azerbaijan “may amount to cultural cleansing.” While The Guardian newspaper pinned it “the worst cultural genocide of the 21^st century.”

Meanwhile, the UNESCO Assistant Director General has publicly confirmed that Azerbaijan hinders a fact-finding mission to Nagorno-Karabakh to assess the situation of cultural and religious heritage.

I thank you.

MFA RA
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