The Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission, co-chaired by Chris Smith and Jim McGovern, held a hearing on human rights violations in Azerbaijan at 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 19. The hearing was supported by the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA).<\/p>\n

“The government of Azerbaijan has a bad record in human rights. According to Freedom House, “power in Azerbaijan’s authoritarian regime continues to be in the hands of Ilham Aliyev—who has been president since 2003—and his family”.<\/p>\n

Related issues include the condition of POWs and political prisoners, the status of Armenian cultural sites in Nagorno-Karabakh, and the right of Armenians to return to Nagorno-Karabakh.<\/p>\n

“We welcome the chairmanship of Congressmen Chris Smith and Jim McGovern in holding Aliyev accountable, pushing back on Azerbaijan’s aggression, and charting a safe and sustainable path for the return of Artsakh Armenians under global mandate and international protection. Fortunately, members of Congress are stepping up on a bipartisan basis to confront the failures of the past two administrations to arm Azerbaijan, commit genocide, and abandon Artsakh,” ANCA Executive Director Aram Hambaryan said.<\/p>\n

The three witnesses announced at the hearing were Gegham Stepanyan, the former human rights defender of the Republic of Artsakh, Garnik Krkonyan, an international lawyer and a member of the Committee for the Defense of the Fundamental Rights of the People of Artsakh, and Keith Waters, a co-founder and executive director of Crude Accountability.<\/p>\n