Lawyer: Ruben Vardanyan’s prosecution lacks legal basis

PanARMENIAN.Net - Human rights advocate Siranush Sahakyan, also representing Ruben Vardanyan’s family and a member of his international legal team, stated that the over 200-page indictment against him reveals charges that lack legal foundation and are purely politically motivated. She emphasized that these violate both international law and basic principles of fair trial.

According to her, the document raises several critical issues:

First, in contradiction to fundamental legal principles, the indictment uses Ruben Vardanyan’s Armenian identity as the basis for prosecution. His ethnicity is presented as the primary evidence for guilt.

“This undermines the foundation of modern justice—nullum crimen sine lege (‘no crime without law’)—and the requirement of individual criminal responsibility,” she said.

Second, the indictment defines the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh, home to around 150,000 Armenians, as a criminal organization. This contradicts the international legal principle of peoples’ right to self-determination. The indictment misinterprets this right as incitement to hatred, criminalizing a political entity long involved in OSCE Minsk Group negotiations. Moreover, Vardanyan is held accountable for events that occurred up to 30 years before his arrival in Nagorno-Karabakh.

Third, Vardanyan is charged with illegally crossing Azerbaijan’s state border, which led to his arrest on September 27, 2023. However, at that time, the Lachin Corridor was under Russian peacekeepers’ control, and Azerbaijan had committed in the November 9, 2020 trilateral statement to guarantee free movement through the corridor.

The International Court of Justice (ICJ) reaffirmed this right in binding decisions issued on February 22 and July 6, 2023, mandating unimpeded two-way movement of people, vehicles, and goods. Similar rulings have been issued by the European Court of Human Rights.

Thus, there is no legal basis for Vardanyan’s arrest. The Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh has always been regarded by the international community as a disputed territory. Yet the indictment treats the region’s legal status and border regime as established facts, committing a logical fallacy (petitio principii) by using the disputed claim as its own justification.

Finally, the indictment labels the "Aurora" humanitarian initiative—co-founded by Ruben Vardanyan and aimed at helping vulnerable populations—as an entity financing terrorism. This accusation is groundless given "Aurora’s" global reputation as a respected humanitarian project aiding people affected by crises. By this logic, humanitarian aid to refugees and conflict-affected populations is criminalized.

In summary, the indictment is not only politically driven but also distorts legal principles and sets a dangerous precedent, according to Sahakyan.

She also noted that seven Armenians currently detained in Baku have already received lengthy prison sentences based on politically motivated and legally baseless charges. This violates internationally recognized standards of justice and due process. Sixteen more detainees are expected to face the same outcome.

In September 2023, following a nine-month blockade and the ethnic cleansing of the Armenian population in Artsakh, Azerbaijan captured former Artsakh presidents Arkadi Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan, Arayik Harutyunyan, former state minister Ruben Vardanyan, foreign minister Davit Babayan, and several other former leaders. The fabricated charges they face could result in life sentences. Their trial, widely deemed as a sham, began in Baku on January 17.