Ruben Vardanyan criticizes Armenian ombudsperson over response to Baku prisoners appeal

Ruben Vardanyan, the former cabinet leader of Nagorno-Karabakh, has criticized Anahit Manasyan, Armenia’s ombudsperson, for a passive response to his call to organize family visits for Armenian prisoners held in Baku.

“I have reviewed the response of the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia, Ms. Anahit Manasyan, to my appeal. I will not publicly assess her position. That is a matter between her and her conscience. I will say simply: I am genuinely sorry. God will be your judge,” he said in a statement relayed during a phone call with his family and published on Thursday.

Also read: Ruben Vardanyan urges Armenia to arrange family visits for Baku captives

Last month, Manasyan responded to Vardanyan’s appeal by arguing that her mandate applies exclusively within Armenia and cannot be used to address the situation of Armenian nationals held abroad.

“If the protection of Armenian citizens held in Azerbaijani prisons does not fall within the mandate of Armenia's Human Rights Defender, then whose mandate is it?” Vardanyan said in his latest response.

He also argued that while Armenia engages with Azerbaijan on normalization efforts and trade, it has acted passively on the issue of detainees. Vardanyan accused the government of “failing to establish any sustainable and coherent mechanism for communication with [the captives].”

The issue has grown more acute after Azerbaijan expelled the International Committee of the Red Cross last year. The organization had previously maintained access to Armenian detainees, who were on trial at the time, and served as a key channel of communication with the outside world.

Speaking in parliament on Thursday while presenting her annual report, Manasyan addressed the issue of visits to Armenian prisoners in Baku.

“A visit cannot be aimed at having Armenia’s Human Rights Defender go to another country to carry out monitoring. If monitoring isn’t the goal, then what is? We need to clearly define the purpose,” she said.

Manasyan emphasized the importance of securing the prisoners’ release, reiterating the limits of her mandate.

“As for the Defender’s mandate, it’s important to remember that while we are talking about Armenian citizens, that does not mean the office can exercise its authority on the territory of another state,” Manasyan added.

Vardanyan was detained by Azerbaijan in October 2023. This February, he was sentenced to 20 years in an Azerbaijani prison on charges including financing terrorism, forming illegal armed groups, and illegally crossing the state border. He rejects the accusations as politically motivated.

The same month, Azerbaijan sentenced seven other former Karabakh leaders who remain in custody. Only two, former presidents Arkadi Ghukasyan and Bako Sahakyan, avoided life sentences, each receiving 20-year terms.

Karabakh’s former parliamentary speaker Davit Ishkhanyan also addressed Manasyan on Wednesday, calling on her to seek the disclosure of the full texts of the indictments and verdicts issued against the detainees. According to earlier reports, the prisoners were not provided with written copies of the indictments in a language they could understand, as those documents reportedly exist only in Azerbaijani.

Earlier in January, Armenia secured the release of four civilian detainees and says it continues negotiations with Baku over the remaining prisoners. Parliamentary speaker Alen Simonyan called on Baku to release the captives in his speech at the Inter-Parliamentary Assembly in Istanbul last month. Azerbaijani officials, however, have indicated that the release of former Karabakh leaders is not under consideration.