ECHR: Azerbaijan violated Manvel Saribekyan’s right to life

The European Court of Human Rights ruled that Azerbaijan violated two articles of the Human Rights Convention in respect of Armenian citizen Manvel Saribekyan captivated by Azerbaijan in September, 2010.

The Court has delivered a judgment in case of Saribekyan and Balyan v. Azerbaijan.

The Court ruled that there is a violation of Article 2 of the Convention (right to life) in respect of the death of Manvel Saribekyan; a violation of Article 2 of the Convention in respect of the inadequacy of the investigation into the death of Manvel Saribekyan and a violation of Article 3 (which prohibits torture, and “inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment”) of the Convention in respect of the torture of Manvel Saribekyan.

The Court obliged Azerbaijan to pay 60,000 euros in respect of non-pecuniary damage and 2,200 euros in respects of costs and expenses.

Resident of Armenia's Ttu Jur village Manvel Saribekyan was taken into Azerbaijan’s captivity in September 2010. He was a civilian, a shepherd, while Azerbaijan persistently called him an Armenian “saboteur”. Later the Azerbaijani side reported as if Saribekyan hang himself on October 5.

The Armenian side claims that Saribekyan was either killed or forced to commit a suicide. It was proved by the fact that the Azerbaijani side refused to return his body for a month.

On November 4, Azerbaijan handed his body to the Armenian side.