The notes written by blogger Alexander Lapshin after obtaining freedom confirm once again that hatred towards Armenians is deeply rooted in Azerbaijan that it is implemented with high state support and is directed against ethnic Armenians. The result of that policy is that already torture against not only ethnic Armenians, but also everyone having any association with ethnic Armenians is encouraged and is considered as an honorable act. It is evident that “black lists” in Azerbaijan are components of the policy of hatred against Armenians.
Immediately after publication of details about Alexander Lapshin’s arrest in Minsk, the RA Human Right Defender presented the above-mentioned considerations to international institutions. Of them, the OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, the European Ombudsman Institute presented their position in relation to Alexander Lapshin’s extradition. The OSCE Representative’s position on this matter was that in case of Alexander Lapshin’s extradition to the Azerbaijani side, he would be subjected to unfair treatment, as a revenge for his journalistic activities and for expressing his opinions, including those on fundamental questions relating to human rights in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. According to the European Ombudsman Institute, the decision to extradite Alexander Lapshin is a real threat to freedom of speech and media, constituting the foundation of European values, and seriously endanger human rights values.
The visits of international colleagues to and their work in Artsakh are considered and will be considered legitimate. It is required to carry out intermittent and persistent work to achieve recognition by the civilized world of the Artsakh part of our motherland, with its democratic institutions.
We will continue the work in this direction to the maximum of RA Human Right Defender’s status and resources. The phenomenon of the so-called Azerbaijani “black list” shall be subject to a legal ban: it is part of the policy of hatred against Armenians and does not have any legitimate description.