Ombudsman of Azerbaijan met with the Vice President of Bulgaria

The Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ms. Sabina Aliyeva met with the Vice-president of Bulgaria Ms. Iliana Iotova.

During that meeting held within the frames of the official visit of the Azerbaijani Ombudsman to Bulgaria, the sides had discussions on the development of relations between the two countries.

In her speech, the Ombudsman thanked Ms. Iotova for the warm welcome. The Ombudsman spoke about the international relations of the nstitution, informed about the reports and appeals addressed to the world community.

The Ombudsman said that Azerbaijanis were subjected to ethnic cleansing by Armenia, and the human rights of our citizens, who were forced to live as refugees and IDPs for about 30 years, were grossly violated. She also spoke about the number of Azerbaijanis missing as a result of the First and Second Karabakh Wars, noting that Armenia has not yet provided any information about them.

During the meeting, it was also noted that extensive construction works are being carried out in the liberated territories. The Azerbaijani Ombudsman reiterated that mines planted in those areas are a serious obstacle to this process, especially to the returning of IDPs to those lands. It was also noted as a result of mine explosions many Azerbaijanis were killed and injured due to Armenia's failure to provide maps of landmines. It was noted that calls for the support of the international community in this area and the issuance of mine maps are of particular importance.

In turn, Ms. Iotova thanked the Ombudsman for the detailed information. She welcomed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Office of the Ombudsman of Azerbaijan and the Bulgarian Commission for Protection against Discrimination in terms of developing relations.