Azerbaijan Armenia Conflict
Armenia
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion; however, the law specifies some restrictions on the religious freedom of adherents of minority faiths, and there were some restrictions in practice. The Armenian Apostolic Church, which has formal legal status as the national church, enjoys some privileges not available to adherents of other faiths.There was no overall change in the status of respect for religious freedom during the period covered by this report. In March 2002, the Government abolished the State Council on Religious Affairs (CRA) by presidential decree. The Government continued to reject the application by the Jehovah's Witnesses for legal recognition as a registered religion, and members of the group reported individual acts of discrimination. Other denominations occasionally report acts of dis ... [Read More]
Armenia
As a result of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, particularly within the period from 1988 to 1994, ethnic minorities on both sides frequently have been subject to societal and governmental discrimination and intimidation, often accompanied by violence intended to drive them from the country. Almost all ethnic Azeris living in Armenia in 1988--approximately 185,000 persons--fled to Azerbaijan. Of the 400,000 ethnic Armenians then living in Azerbaijan, 330,000 fled and gained refugee status in Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. As of November 2001, Armenian officials stated that the number of ethnic-Armenians in the country during the year was 264,332. The Government, OSCE, and the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees (UNHCR) did not provide numbers or any other information on refugees in Nagorno-Karabakh. ... [Read More]
Azerbaijan
The number of refugees and IDPs from the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was approximately 800,000; 200,000 of these were refugees, and more than 600,000 were IDPs. There were credible reports that Armenians, including ethnic Armenian immigrants from the Middle East and elsewhere, had settled in parts of Nagorno-Karabakh and possibly other Azerbaijani territories occupied by Armenian forces. Approximately 10,000 to 30,000 Armenians, almost exclusively persons of mixed descent or mixed marriages, remained in Azerbaijan (in addition to Armenians residing in occupied territories). While official government policy allowed ethnic Armenians to travel, low-level officials seeking bribes have harassed citizens of Armenian ethnicity who sought to obtain passports. The Armenian Government continued to prevent the hundreds of thousands of Azerbaijanis who were forced out of their homes in occupied territories from returning. ... [Read More]
Azerbaijan
During the year, a total of three POWs were released, one from Azerbaijan and two from Armenia.The law prohibits forced exile, and the Government did not employ it. e. Denial of a Fair and Public Trial The Constitution provides for an independent judiciary; however, in practice, judges did not function independently of the executive branch, and the judiciary was widely believed to be corrupt and inefficient. Judges preside over and direct trials. The President appoints Supreme and Constitutional Court judges, whom Parliament confirms. The President appoints lower-level judges without confirmation. Qualifying exams for judges were administered periodically as part of a judicial reform effort; however, credible allegations persisted that judgeships were bought and sold. Low salaries for judges and lawyers increased the incentives for bribe taking and ... [Read More]
V. Country Narratives -- Countries A through G
Armenia is a source and, to a lesser extent, a transit and destination country for women and girls trafficked for sexual exploitation largely to the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.) and Turkey. Some evidence indicates that Armenian victims were trafficked to other European countries as well. According to UN estimates, up to 1,000 Armenian women work as prostitutes in the U.A.E. and Turkey, most of whom are victims of trafficking. The Government of Armenia does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking; however, it is making significant efforts to do so. Armenia is placed on Tier 2 Watch List this year because of its failure to show evidence of increasing efforts to combat trafficking over the past year. Specifically, the government failed to disseminate or implement any elements of its January 2004 National Action Plan. The government sho ... [Read More]
Armenia
ENTRY/EXIT REQUIREMENTS: A passport and visa are required. For stays longer than 21 days, but not exceeding 90 days, an official invitation from a qualifying entity in Armenia is required. Visas may also be purchased upon arrival at the airport in Yerevan. For further information on entry requirements, contact the Armenian Embassy at 2225 R St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20008, tel. (202) 319-1976 and (202) 319-2983; the Armenian Consulate General in Los Angeles at 50 N. La Cienega Blvd., Suite 210, Beverly Hills, CA 90211, tel. (310) 657-6102, or visit the Embassy of Armenia’s website at http://www.armeniaemb.org for the most current visa information. See also our Foreign Entry Requirements brochure for more information on Armenia and other countries. ... [Read More]
Azerbaijan
As a result of conflict in the Nagorno-Karabakh area of Azerbaijan, insurgent forces occupy approximately 15 percent of Azerbaijani territory (in the southwest along the borders with Iran and Armenia). A cease-fire has been in effect in the Nagorno-Karabakh region since 1994, although reports of armed clashes along the cease-fire line and along the border with Armenia continue. Anti-personnel mines are a danger in areas close to the front lines. It is not possible to enter the self-proclaimed "Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh," which is not recognized by the United States, from Azerbaijan. Travelers are cautioned to avoid travel to Nagorno-Karabakh and the surrounding occupied areas. Because of the existing state of hostilities, consular services are not available to Americans in Nagorno-K ... [Read More]
The United States and the Conflict Over Nagorno-Karabakh
The armed conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh, (N-K) lasted from 1990 to 1994. By the time a cease-fire went into effect in 1994, Armenian forces controlled most of N-K, as well as large swaths of adjacent Azerbaijani territory. The fighting, plus the expulsion of Armenians from Azerbaijan and Azerbaijanis from Armenia, produced more than a million refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs). Approximately 100,000 Azerbaijanis remain in refugee camps today, where they face desperate living conditions. Turkey closed its land border with Armenia during the conflict to show solidarity with Azerbaijan and has not reopened it. The United States provides humanitarian assistance to the victims of the conflict, which includes support for housing and school repairs, primary health care, irrigation, potable water and sanitation, subsistence agriculture, micro-finance, and demining. ... [Read More]
Armenia (04/05)
Peace talks in early 1993 were disrupted by the seizure of Azerbaijan's Kelbajar district by Nagorno-Karabakh Armenian forces and the forced evacuation of thousands of ethnic Azeris. Turkey in protest then followed with an embargo of its own against Armenia. A cease-fire was declared between Azeri and Armenian/Nagorno-Karabakh forces in 1994 and has been maintained by both sides since then in spite of occasional shooting along the line of contact between the two. All Armenian governments have thus far resisted domestic pressure to recognize the self-proclaimed independence of the "Nagorno-Karabakh Republic," while at the same time announcing they would not accept any peace accords that returned the enclave to Azerbaijani rule. Some 750,000 ethnic Azeris who fled during the Karabakhi offensives still live as internally displaced persons in Azerbaijan, while roughly 400,000 ethnic Armenians who fled Azerbaijan since 1988 remain refugees, although around 35,000 have accepted Armenian citi ... [Read More]
Azerbaijan (10/04)
The major domestic issue affecting Azerbaijan is the dispute over Nagorno-Karabakh, a predominantly ethnic Armenian region within Azerbaijan. The current conflict over Nagorno-Karabakh began in 1988 when Armenian demonstrations against Azerbaijani rule broke out in both Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia, and the Nagorno-Karabakh Supreme Soviet voted to secede from Azerbaijan. In 1990, after violent episodes in Nagorno-Karabakh, Baku, and Sumgait, the Soviet Union's Government in Moscow declared a state of emergency in Nagorno-Karabakh, sent troops to the region, and forcibly occupied Baku. In April 1991, Azerbaijani militia and Soviet forces targeted Armenian paramilitaries operating in Nagorno-Karabakh; Moscow also deployed troops to Yerevan. Azerbaijan declared its independence from the U.S.S.R. on August 30, 1991. In September 1991, Moscow declared it would no longer support Azerbaijani military action in Nagorno-Karabakh. Armenian militants then stepped up the violence. In October ... [Read More]
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