1.
On August 30-th In Stepanakert
2.
Seminar-training on the problem of missing persons search
3.
On August 30, 2005, in the regions of Nagorno Karabakh the International
Day of Missing Persons was celebrated within the project “Yellow
Tulips”.
4. There are no azeri kept in Karabakh.
THERE ARE NO AZERI KEPT IN KARABAKH
" Nagorno Karabakh does not have hostages, POWs in its territory”-was officially announced by Viktor Kocharyan-head of the state commission on missing persons of Nagorno Karabakh. He gave a positive answer to the question whether hostages had been kept in Karabakh before.
“The Karabakh war was a mockery for two nations”–announced the coordinator of HCA Azerbaijani National Committee Arzu Abdullayeva during the conference organized by “Helsinki Initiative ‘92”-and we understood that if it were an Armenian problem then we could sit and talk at a table”. During the one-day conference human rights defenders, public actors and relatives of missing persons of Armenia , Azerbaijan and Georgia discussed the consequences of the Karabakh war and the influence of the current conflicts of South Caucasus on civilians.
With support of Interchurch Peace Council (IKV) the organizations of HCA South Caucasus network implement activities for the search of missing persons, definition and solution of the social issues of their families and which is more important they want to fix them in the legislative field. After the war, the three countries have not settled the problems of missing persons yet. The problems that are not fixed in legal acts create difficulties in the field of social support for their families. In order to get any assistance, the family must recognize that its missing relative has died. The parents of missing persons who were present at the conference are against this mechanism and they think it is time to regulate this. Arzu Abdullayeva said that their organization had presented about 80 cases to the court. The court decided to keep the status and allocated USD 1100 to families. During the conference, the coordinator of HCA Vanadzor Arthur Sakunts presented a draft law, which defines the status of missing persons of the war and after that, the social problems of their families and the ways of solution. The Dashnak party is interested in the draft law. Preoperational works are carried out to put the law on the agenda of the National Assembly. During this meeting of experts as an example of cooperation between conflict sides was the experience of Georgian-Abkhazian NGOs. Nineli Andriadze who represents the Georgian organization “Molodini”, who is also a member of state commission on missing persons told about the activities carried out jointly with the Abkhazian side. They exchanged the bodies of POWs, carried out repatriation, created a museum of missing persons and POWs, created information database. And what is the most important, as a result of Georgian-Abkhazian events the enemy image was overcome, and Nineli Andriadze who does not have any information on whereabouts of her son, speaks about Abkhazian soldiers with love “as they protected their motherland”. The representative of HCA Georgia and Ukraine presented the conference participants the provisions of International Humanitarian Law and the rights of missing soldiers, citizens in South Caucasus . There was a suggestion to apply to relevant structures of the three countries with a statement stressing the urgent solution of the problems of missing persons and their families. Journalist from Karabakh Karina Ohanyan shared her journalist's experience on publications about the problems of missing soldiers, POWs. The Armenian, Azerbaijani and Georgian delegations met with Arkadi Ghukasyan-president of Nagorno Karabakh. The head of the country, recognized by international society, welcomed such meetings and the necessity of participation of civil society from the viewpoint of peaceful regulation of the Karabakh conflict, appreciated the visit of Azerbaijani delegation to Karabakh and mentioned that Nagorno Karabakh should take part in negotiations. At the same time, regardless of participation, Armenian and Azeri societies must be ready to listen to one another and accept each other not as enemies but as conflict sides. The participants of the conference visited Gandzasar, Shushi, the isolator of Shushi to get familiar with the conditions and the prisoners. The representatives of the Azerbaijani delegation had the opportunity to see the prisoners themselves and disperse their suspicions that there are Azeri people there.
Naira Bulghadarya
On
August 30-th In Stepanakert
In
the frame of the "Yellow Tulips" Project Nagorno-Karabakh
Committee of "Helsinki Initiative-92" in the Stepanakert
and the regions of NK: Mardakert, Martuni, Hadrout,Askeran and Shushi
marked the International Day of Missing Persons.
On
the meetings in the regions with the relatives of missing persons,
representatives of the state commission on the problem of POW, hostagees
and missing persons, journalists and NGOs representatives were present.
In
Stepanakert the office of NKC"HI-92" visited the chairman
of the state commission of POW, hostagees and missing persons Mr.
Viktor Kocharyan who stated infront of the relatives of missing persons,
NGOs representatives and journalists that " to mark this day
is very important as it's demonstrating the fact that we still have
hope to find out the ways of solving the many
problems of missing persons and their relatives". Representatives
of the meetings expressed some recomendations on the activization
of work connected with the search and exchange information about missing
persons.
Viktor
Kocharyan told about the activity of his commission, about the dificculties
connected with the refusal from the Azerbaijani side to coordinate
directly with NK state commission in this issue.
During
the meetings the necessity of clarification of missing persons list
as well as trengthening of the state commision's role in the question
of social problem solution of missing persons relatives was mentioned.
Karen
Ohanjanyan told about the project "Yellow Tulips" implementing
organizations of which are all the committies of HCA in the South
Caucasus. Representatives of this meeting mention necessity to coordinate
efforts of all interested sides and first of all relatives of missing
persons in the solution of this complicated humanitarian problem.
On
August 30-th the state NK TV channel broadcasted meeting in Stepanakert
and informed about other meetiings.
Back
to Top
SEMINAR-TRAINING
ON MISSING PERSONS SEARCH
From
October 30th to November the 1st training-seminar on the problem of
missing persons search was held in the frame of “Yellow Tulip”
project in Stepanakert. This project is implementing by Helsinki Citizens’
Assembly offices: Nagorno-Karabakh Committee of “Helsinki Initiative
– 92”,Ganja , Vanadzor and Tbilisi HCA.
11
relatives of missing persons from NK in general representing a new
NGO “SEARCH”, international advisor of Interchurch Peace
Council(IKV, the Nietherlands) Pascal Bokkers and representatives
of Georgian fund”Molodini”(Ozhidanie) Nineli Andriadze
and Ketevan Gavroshvili took part at the training.
In
the opening of the training took part chairman of NK State Commission
on POW, hostages, missing persons Victor Kocharyan as well as the
head of the Mission of International Red Cross in NK Mirreille Besnard.
The coordinator of NKC “HI-92” Karen Ohanjanyan opening
seminar-training marked the importance of holding such forums directed
to resolution of mostly painful humanitarian problems of present Karabakh
and expressed hope that methodology and technologies of the training
would allow to widen data base on missing persons search.
The
representative of State Commission Victor Kocharyan from his side
notes that NKR authorities are ready to cooperate with the civil society
and relatives of missing persons on the problem of their search.
Mirreille
Besnard marked that International Red Cross Committee is ready to
continue the search of missing persons as well as ready to cooperate
with the interested sides .She also mentioned the importance of holding
psychological rehabilitation of missing persons relatives on the modern
stages and expressed hope for cooperation with NKC “HI-92”
in this issue.
Nineli
Andriadze and Ketevan Gavroshvili clarified the modern methods on
missing persons search (Ante-Morte methodic) that contains all the
data about a missing person including passport , physical and other
data. This methodic with more probability allows by revealing remains
to identify a missing person without doing an expensive analysis on
DNA.
Concluding,
the participants of the meeting directed a letter to High Commissioner
on Human Rights in UN, the president of ICRC and Secretary General
of Council of Europe with the request to help in activisation search
of missing persons in the region of the South Caucasus. The representatives
of the meeting together with the NKC “HI-92’ supported
the idea to create interregional laboratory on remains identification
based on the analysis of DNA in Tbilisi.
Back
to Top
On
August 30, in the regions of Nagorno Karabakh the International Day
of Missing Persons was celebrated within the project “Yellow
Tulips”. Round tables were held on that day in Askeran, Shushi,
Mardakert, Martuni, Hadrut and Stepanakert with the participation
of relatives of missing persons, NGO representatives, representatives
of local authorities and State Commission on prisoners of war and
missing persons, representatives of media, army and former prisoners
of war.
The
aim of the round tables was to raise the interest of the society,
national and international organizations on the problems of missing
persons, on a more serious approach to the work and the solution of
social problems of missing persons.
On
August 30, the public channel of Nagorno Karabakh informed in the
regions of Nagorno Karabakh about the round tables.
Nagorno
Karabakh Committee of “Helsinki Initiative ’92”
together with the organization “Search” organized a visit
to the monument of missing persons in Stepanakert by the participants
of the round table where they put flowers.
Over
150 people took part in the round tables.
Back
to Top
