Series of events were held by Ombudsman on the 27th anniversary of Khojaly Genocide

As it’s known, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan signed the Order on the 27^th anniversary of the Khojaly Genocide dated February 5, 2019, and implementation of relevant measures was considered therein. Also the Plan of Actions on the commemoration of the 27^th anniversary of the Khojaly Genocide was approved by the relevant Order with the purpose of involving the attention of the world community to this tragedy.

A range of events regarding the Khojaly Genocide were also held in accordance with that Order in the Office of the Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan, its regional and resource centers.

The Statement of the Ombudsman on the 27^th anniversary of the Khojaly Genocide was brought to the attention in the commemoration event held in the Office. This Statement is addressed to the UN Secretary-General, UN Security Council, UN Office of High Commissioner for Human Rights, UN Office of High Commissioner for Refugees, UN Human Rights Council, to the heads of UNICEF, UNESCO, European Union, Council of Europe, OSCE, to International and European Ombudsman Institutes, Asian Ombudsman Association, OIC and the Ombudsman Association of its member states, European Network of Ombudsmen for Children, International Peace Bureau, ombudsmen of different countries, embassies of the Republic of Azerbaijan abroad and foreign embassies in our republic and the Azerbaijani Diaspora.

Within the commemoration events and conferences organized by the Embassies of the Republic of Azerbaijan in the foreign countries and Azerbaijani Diaspora organizations the Statement of the Commissioner is delivered and distributed to the participants. The Embassy of our country in Kuwait sent that Statement to the Parliament, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kuwait, also to other ministries, accredited embassies in this country and international organizations.

It was stated that the crime committed in Khojaly city of Azerbaijan during the night from the 25^th to the 26^th of February jointly by the Armenian armed forces and the 366 Motorized Rifle regiment of the former Soviet army stationed in Khankendi city should be assessed as genocide in terms of international law. A large number of heavy military equipment of this regiment were suddenly deployed to the city, the perpetrators annihilated mercilessly the civilian Azerbaijanis who were forced to leave the city in horror,  residency objects and social infrastructure were razed and burned down.

During the Khojaly Genocide committed 27 years ago, besieged by the Armenian armed forces, 613 compatriots, including 106 women, 63 children, 70 elderly were killed because of their national origin; hundreds of civilians were severely injured; 1275 people were taken hostages. 8 families were totally exterminated, 130 children lost one, whereas 25 children lost both parents, at the same time numerous captives and hostages were subjected to merciless torture. Thus, first of all, the right to life and other fundamental rights of these people were grossly violated. Our National Leader Heydar Aliyev had a special urge on the Khojaly Genocide in 1994, and in February of the same year Milli Mejlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan gave legal and political assessment to the Khojaly genocide.

The President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev makes efforts, puts forward initiatives to put an end to this aggression continuing for about 30 years, the peaceful settlement of the conflict and repeatedly states the necessity of resolution of the conflict within the territorial integrity of our country in accordance with the norms and principles of international law, withdrawal of occupying forces from the Azerbaijani lands at the tribunes of reputable international organizations. It has also been reflected in the decisions of international organizations in this regard, including the Resolution of the European Parliament adopted on December 12, 2018 that emphasized the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan.

The international awareness campaign “Justice for Khojaly” carried out in many countries and cities with support of the Heydar Aliyev Foundation at the initiative of Leyla Aliyeva, the Vice-President of the Foundation plays an important role in the recognition of Khojaly tragedy as an act of genocide in the world.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is the first international organization that recognized Armenia as an aggressor and Khojaly tragedy as genocide.

Parliaments of more than 10 countries recognized the Khojaly Genocide according to the international law, legislative bodies of 22 US States adopted relevant resolutions.

This massive killing of human beings in Khojaly by the Armenian aggressors is a fact of genocide and one of the gravest crimes against humanity. Thus, the UN General Assembly Resolution 96(I) states, genocide is a denial of the right of existence of entire human groups, shocks the conscience of mankind and is contrary to the moral law, the spirit and aims of the UN, and the world community condemns it.

International legal definition of the genocide crime is defined in the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide adopted by the Resolution 260 (III) of the UN General Assembly of 9 December 1948. The commitment of criminal deeds during the Khojaly Genocide in a pre-planned manner and with the intention of mass murder of people on the ground of their nationality qualifies this as an act of genocide. During the aggression against Azerbaijan, all the elements of the crime of genocide set out in the mentioned Convention were applied, but unfortunately such terrible acts of genocide executed against Azerbaijani civilians through the history, including the Khojaly Genocide has not yet received legal and political assessment in the international community, organizers and perpetrators of this international crime were not prosecuted or properly punished and no action has been taken for this purpose.

At the end, the statement was concluded emphasizing the necessity of legal-political assessment of the international organizations regarding the Khojaly Genocide, fulfillment of the Armenian side the decisions asserted in the international legal documents on this conflict and the calls to peace and justice, also the punishment of the criminals that killed innocent civilians by bringing them to justice tribunal.

Moreover the Commissioner Elmira Suleymanova, representatives of the Ombudsman Office, Azerbaijan Woman and Development Centre and Azerbaijan Child and Youth Peace Network resource centers attended the event dedicated to the 27^th anniversary of the Khojaly Genocide by the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

The Commissioner made a broad speech in the event, noted that all of us have lived with a grief in our hearts, there were heavy results of that tragedy and Armenian aggression.  She stated that besides Khojaly, the Armenian nationalists and terrorists also committed massacres in Karkijahan, Malibayli, Gushchular, Garadagli, Agdaban villages and other dwelling places in Azerbaijan, and it is the duty and obligation of every compatriot to deliver the Azerbaijani truth, information regarding Nagorno-Karabakh and seven adjacent districts to the world.

It should be mentioned that some time ago within the nationwide petition campaign under the motto “We are peace envoys! Join us!” signatures of more than 310, 000 students from different points of our country, including the refugee and IDP children were collected to be addressed to the world community, as well as Deputy Secretary-General of the UN and Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict with the purpose of informing them on the Azerbaijani realities with the children’s own applications, in this campaign members of the Leadership School actively participated.

It was also pointed out that within the Peace month-long campaigns declared by the Ombudsman information was given on the occupation policy of Armenia. Moreover, the Commissioner visits Jojug-Marjanly village and holds meetings with the locals, officers and soldiers there. Letters written by a member of the Leadership school with her lyceum classmates to the soldiers within the campaign of “Letter to soldier” was welcomed warmly by the military servants.

The Commissioner then presented diplomas and rewards to the winners of the composition competition on the topic of “Let’s deliver Karabakh realities to the world”.

The events on the 27^th anniversary of the Khojaly Genocide were also managed in the Leadership School, Resource Centre for the Elderly. Staff members of the Office delivered information on the topic, children recited poems on the subject.

Such series of events were held by the Ganja, Sheki, Jalilabad and Guba Regional Centers accordingly at the schools, in villages of Gazakh, Aghstafa, Khojaly rayon Kosalar village school situated Ganja, Zagatala, Gakh, Gabala, Mingachevir, Lankaran, Jalilabad, Khizi, Siyazan, Guba, including the historical-ethnography museum there.

At the initiative of the Commissioner events were also organized by the staff of the Office and regional centers at the schools in the capital and regions where the Hierarchic Child Rights Education project was carried out, and the relevant Statement of the Commissioner was delivered.