Statement by Mr. Mher Margaryan Charge d’Affaires a.i., at the Security Council Open Debate: “Protection of civilians in armed conflict”

22 մայիսի, 2018

Mr. President,
We thank the Polish Presidency for organizing today’s open debate and for providing the concept note. We thank Secretary General António Guterres for his report on “Protection of civilians in armed conflict” and for recommendation contained therein. We are also grateful to the Director General of the International Committee of the Red Cross Mr. Yves Daccord, and the civil society representative Ms. Hanaa Edwar for their insightful briefings.

This debate is an opportunity to recommit ourselves to international humanitarian law in particular to full compliance with the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols, without any reservations, as a crucial framework for protection of civilians throughout conflicts.

The Report of the Secretary General depicts the bleak situation surrounding civilians living in conflict and affected areas, with a shocking statistics of tens of thousands of fatalities only in 2017 and many more suffering injuries. We have taken note of many alarming developments and threats faced by the civilians in conflict areas in the report. We share the view of the Secretary General that the gravity, scale and urgency of the current situation must be matched by a robust international protection mechanisms.
Indeed, in too many parts of the world today we are faced with the rise of the ideology of hatred, racial discrimination, with the situations where the right to life of the human being is increasingly threatened. Systematic and gross violations of human rights, the use of force and economic coercion, lack of international protection are among the main factors fueling the increased risks to life. We strongly condemn violations of the international humanitarian law and international human rights law, including attacks on humanitarian and medical personnel, as well as violence, threats and intimidation against journalists and media workers.

Equally disturbing are the perceptions of inevitability of civilian losses and civilian sufferings in armed conflicts.
The principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence in humanitarian action must be fully respected; unimpeded humanitarian access must be secured to prevent sufferings of the civilians caught in conflict.

Armenia’s commitment to promoting the importance of safety of children and students in armed conflict is reflected in its endorsement of the Safe School Declaration. Promoting the norms of international humanitarian law and raising awareness in this regard is an important element in Armenia’s security sector governance. International humanitarian law is incorporated in the curricula of Armenia’s military educational institutions. We also highly appreciate the cooperation with the ICRC in implementation of training projects and reaching out to the people affected by conflicts, who are in need of humanitarian assistance.

Mr. President,
The civilian population of Nagorno Karabakh and the bordering regions of Armenia have been consistently exposed to serious humanitarian risks. The military aggression of Azerbaijan against Nagorno Karabakh in April 2016 not only violated the Ceasefire Agreement, signed in 1994, and the Trilateral Agreement on the consolidation of ceasefire regime of 1995, but also incurred grave violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law, including barbaric acts commensurate to war crimes and crimes against humanity. It inflicted losses amongst the civilian population, including children, women and elderly.

Moreover, in a clear violation of humanitarian law, the authorities of Azerbaijan have been placing military installations in civilian settlements and using them as a Launchpad for shelling along the line of contact with Nagorno Karabakh.

Mr. President,
By pursuing a policy of criminalization of those who visit Nagorno-Karabakh, including journalists and Parliamentarians from all over the world, the Government of Azerbaijan demonstrates that it is prepared to conduct unprecedented mass atrocities in the region. It is well known that perpetrators try to limit information flow and freedom of movement in order to better conceal their ongoing and planned crimes.

What is also alarming is that the leadership of Azerbaijan continues to inject hatred against Armenians, a fact that has been confirmed and condemned by many human rights organizations and bodies, including by the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination in its concluding observation on the Azerbaijani report, published in 2016.

Protection of civilian population requires full and unrestrained access by the ICRC, UNHCR and UN treaty bodies to conflict areas, including to places of detention and monitoring of conditions of captives in conflict situations. The authorities of Nagorno Karabakh fully cooperate with the ICRC mission in Stepanakert, which has regular access and ability to verify the humanitarian situation on the ground.

The principles of humanity, impartiality, neutrality and independence in humanitarian action must be fully respected. Attempts to politicize a purely humanitarian issue and refusals to cooperate at the level of relevant authorities on missing persons demonstrates a clear intention to deliberately impede progress in this area.

Mr. President,
International presence in conflict areas and monitoring and verification mechanisms are of utmost importance for protection of civilians in armed conflicts. Armenia fully supports the creation of an investigative mechanism into ceasefire violation and expanding of monitoring capacities of the Office of the Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in Office in NK. Implementation of these clear-cut agreements would enable international community to investigate and verify all cases of the ceasefire violations and human casualties as well as identify the party responsible.
Placing human life above the malicious political manipulations requires genuine will, free from hatred and intolerance, which, regrettably are currently in deficit in certain places. We are convinced that in order to effectively protect civilians, the primary role should be assigned to early action on warning signs of deteriorating situations that could potentially result in conflicts or resumption of hostilities.

It is imperative to recognize and combat extremist and fundamentalist ideologies emanating from certain countries and terrorist or other criminal groups that encourage hatred and discriminatory attitudes towards neighbors, minorities or simply those with different identities.

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