YEREVAN, APRIL 10, ARMENPRESS. Upon receiving the news from Artsakh about the massacre in the Maraga village on April 10, 1992, the Against Legal Arbitrariness NGO was the first to document the happening. Today, director of the NGO Larisa Alaverdyan is voicing the horrendous events and calls on to pay greater attention to the study of these events and legal processes relating to it, because crimes do not have an expiry date.
“It’s no coincidence that after two-three days of the events Baroness Caroline Cox visited the village. People were massacred in Maraga because they were Armenians, helpless and with no possibility of resistance – the slaughter was planned in these very conditions,” Alaverdyan told reporters, adding that the massacres of Maraga differ from the genocidal actions in Sumgait, Baku, Ganja and other more than 300 settlements with one thing, that these events were committed by the newly independent Azerbaijan, whereas the others by the Soviet Azerbaijan.
Larisa Alaverdyan said Maraga was a very developed and wealthy village where no military operations took place.
“Military operations of those times happened near Talish, Mataghis and other locations, but in case by understanding that there is a danger almost everybody was evacuated from Maraga, few were left, who didn’t leave Maraga due to being ill or having small children. Azerbaijanis clearly saw this, and by understanding that helpless, ill people and women with small children can be there they planned these actions. This was a genocidal plan,” she said.
Alaverdyan said that the organization had prepared a package already in 1996, taking testimonies and eye witness accounts about the massacres and handed it over to the government of Artsakh, who were able to find international organizations. The case was presented to the UN Human Rights Commission. One hearing on the matter took place in the commission.
“We were further finding people who were taken hostage, the killings were done in an unspeakable manner – witnesses of the killings were developing mental issues and insanity after seeing it,” she said.
Alaverdyan said it is about the killing of nearly 5 dozen people, 5 dozen hostages, as well as 19 people who are still missing. Detailed work was done with hostages.
“This was committed by the modern Azerbaijan, this state is at least responsible to say what happened to these people. We once again decided that a legal package must be formed and taken to international organizations. This isn’t amateur level work, it required experts of comprehensive group, who must work, and have the responsibility in the future to report to the people – what happened”, she said.
Marina Grigoryan, author of the Ordinary Genocide project, added that massive work is being done in the information sector, however this is already a legal issue.
“Azerbaijan never talks about Maraga, this is strange but reasonable – they confirmed that the Armenophobic policy of Azerbaijan doesn’t have anything to do with who is in power – the policies and methods are the same. Azerbaijan is constantly reminding us about it – two years ago they almost repeated Maraga in Talish. Nuremberg is yet to come, and I am happy that our MPs and politicians are spreading this idea – that Azerbaijan must be subjected to a Nuremberg process”, she said.
English –translator/editor: Stepan Kocharyan