Ex-official responds to Armenia`s premier

ArmInfo.   is essentially an attempt to the scale of the political agenda by excluding a topic that is not only  of historical but also strategic importance for the Armenian people>.  A similar point of view was expressed by the former chairman of the  State Revenue Committee of Armenia, David Ananyan.

According to Ananyan, these and similar statements are aimed at  artificially marginalizing the public-civil movement initiated by the  .

Ananyan is convinced that the emphasis on the opposition of , which is observed in the rhetoric of the ruling  circles, is dangerous and at the same time conscious and deliberate  behavior aimed at undermining national unity. In this way, the  government is trying to present the struggle of the Artsakh people as  some kind of local or even narrowly targeted protest, deliberately  ignoring the fact that the demands put forward by the Council are of  pan-Armenian and national significance. These demands concern the  fundamental rights of each of us and are equally important for all  our people, regardless of their geographical location, he emphasized.

According to him, from a political point of view, the Council's  actions can be seen as an important initiative that forms a  nationally oriented agenda. This is not just a response to existing  problems, but an attempt to systematically understand and present  national interests in the form of a political and legal demand to the  authorities.

A logical question arises: why is such a clear national agenda, so  focused on fundamental human rights, rationalized or discredited by  the authorities? There is only one answer: the state and political  thinking of the authorities has long been transformed into a  pragmatic one, placing their own and/or third-party interests and  goals above national interests.

Forming a clear, structured and legally sound agenda for the Council  is a significant problem for the current government, since it is  forced to either accept this agenda and implement it, or demonstrate  a refusal, which in fact means evading the performance of its main  function. In this context, the government is faced not only with a  dilemma of political action, but also with a real danger of finally  losing the last vestiges of the legitimacy of its power in the eyes  of society.

This is where we all have to work. We are obliged to make the TWELVE  points put forward by the Council a public call-demand for each of us  at the same time>, - wrote David Ananyan.

Earlier the demanded that the Government of the Republic of Armenia,  represented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, take a number of  specific measures to protect the rights of the people of Artsakh.  Among numerous other international mechanisms and opportunities, they  identified the following measures: 1. To appeal to the UN High  Commissioner for Refugees and the Council of Europe with a request to  initiate the development and implementation of international  mechanisms aimed at ensuring the collective, safe, dignified,  sustainable and self-determined return of the people of Artsakh. 2.  To appeal to the OSCE Minsk Group within the framework of its  international mandate with a request to initiate an international  process aimed at a peaceful and fair settlement of the Karabakh  conflict and ensuring the return of the people of Artsakh to their  homeland on the above-mentioned conditions. 3. To appeal to  specialized structures of the UN, OSCE, Council of Europe and  countries with embassies in Baku with a request to ensure the  presence of international observers at the fabricated of  Armenians. 4. Call on any neutral and willing country (e.g.  Switzerland) to establish an in their  embassy in Baku and to ensure access to consular services for  Armenian prisoners. 5. Activate the OSCE Moscow Mechanism for the  urgent protection of the rights of Armenians held hostage and  tortured in Azerbaijan. 6. Make the full and safe release of Armenian  prisoners of war a non-negotiable precondition for signing any  possible interstate agreement with Azerbaijan. 7. Update interstate  complaints filed with the ECHR and the International Court of  Justice, presenting new facts of torture of prisoners, destruction  and appropriation of cultural heritage, private and public property  in occupied Artsakh. 8. Call on UNESCO and the Council of Europe to  send a monitoring mission to Artsakh to study and document the  criminal actions of the Azerbaijani authorities against cultural  heritage, state and private property. 9. Call on relevant  international organizations and individual states to impose sanctions  against Azerbaijan based on the international crimes committed  against Armenians. 10. Ensure that Armenia and/or partner states  submit state applications to the International Criminal Court  demanding an investigation and punishment of those responsible for  the forced displacement of the people of Artsakh and other  international crimes. 11. Call on relevant states to apply the  principle of universal jurisdiction and initiate criminal prosecution  of Azerbaijani officials and military personnel based on the  international crimes they have committed.