MP urges PACE not to leave Armenian prisoners 'one-on-one with the dictator'

Armenian MP Hayk Mamijanyan, head of the opposition Pativ Unem faction, addressed the plenary session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on Friday, calling attention to the plight of Armenian prisoners held in Azerbaijan. His full remarks are provided below.

"Honourable Chair,

Dear colleagues,

I'm going to speak about Armenian hostages in Baku.

Today is the last day of this session and all of us are anxiously awaiting our return home and the moment we can see our loved ones. I'm sure all of you have texted and called them many times to see how are they doing. Because we love them and we care about them.

Imagine if you couldn't do so. Unbelievable, huh? But the relatives of the Armenian hostages kept in Azerbaijani prisons are deprived of that opportunity. After the closing of the Red Cross office in Baku, we and the relatives have no clue about the well-being of our compatriots. And we can speak that it's big politics, conflict, international deals, blah blah blah, but it's not. It's human lives, human tragedies.

There are reports of suicide attempts, hunger strikes among the hostages. It is a shame, but we don't even have the exact number of our brothers who were unlawfully taken hostage by Azerbaijan. Maybe some of them are not alive anymore.

So I ask you, Mister President, Mister Secretary General and my colleagues from member states: please delegate your ambassadors in Baku to visit Armenian hostages kept in Azerbaijani prisons.

Please act immediately as a proof that humanity is still alive. Don't leave them one-on-one with the dictator.

Thank you.

And Mister President, with all due respect, I know of your efforts, and we are extremely thankful for that, but that's what I was talking about. It's fighting symptoms, not the cause.

Thank you."