Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan made a post on his Facebook page, which reads:
“On 26 May, the European Court of Human Rights issued a ruling in the case of Gurgen Margaryan or, in other words, Case of Makuchyan and Minasyan v. Azerbaijan and Hungary, which has historical significance for the entire human rights system.
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that the brutal murder of Armenian officer Gurgen Margaryan, who was asleep with more than a dozen strokes of an ax by Azeri officer Ramil Safarov, and the subsequent attack on Hayk Makuchyan are consequence of anti-Armenian sentiment. This verdict confirms that the release and glorification of R. Safarov, the privileges granted to him for cruelty, provide impunity for such atrocities, and provide grounds for deepening hatred.
The main point is that the verdict at the level of the international court ruled that there is a systematic policy of discrimination against Armenians in Azerbaijan on the basis of ethnicity.
Siranush Sahakyan played an invaluable role in this case, who was able to present the whole reality to the European Court with a very difficult but very precise work. During the investigation of the case, Levon Gevorgyan did a lot of important work. Ms. Sahakyan and Mr. Gevorgyan presented their enormous work and the value of the court’s decision at a press conference. The role of Nazeli Vardanyan should be emphasized. It would not be so effective to protect the interests of the victims without her hard work in Hungary.
The text of the decision is here:
