Stepanakert’s Holy Mother of God Hovanu Cathedral was vandalized. Monument Watch:

Cultural vandalism continues in Artsakh. the target is the mother church of Stepanakert

Monumentwatch. From the videos shot by Azerbaijani users in Stepanakert, it can be seen that two of the windows of Stepanakert’s Holy Mother of God Hovanu Cathedral were broken. Although the building is completely standing and outwardly undamaged, the damage to the windows of the structure representing the Armenian face of the city, which were not damaged before, is a concern. This shows that the monument was vandalized:

Unfortunately, we do not have fresh photos, videos to understand the picture and situation inside the church.

Let’s remind that Stepanakert Cathedral was built in 2019 and is one of the important symbols of the city.

Our response

Deliberate damage to the windows of St. Astvamor Hovanu Cathedral of Stepanakert 1954 The Hague Convention (“Convention on the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict”) Article 4 and In 1954 1999 attached to the Hague Convention. Second protocol It is a gross violation of Article 9.

Article 4, paragraph 3 of the Hague Convention directly obliges the parties to “prohibit, prevent and, if necessary, suppress any form of theft, robbery or misappropriation of cultural property and any act of vandalism”. And according to Article 9 of the Second Protocol of 1999, the party controlling the area is obliged to prohibit and prevent any modification of the cultural value or change in the nature of its use, which aims to hide or destroy cultural or historical evidence. Disruption of the appearance of the church is just such a modification.

As the controlling party of the Armenian cultural heritage, Azerbaijan bears international legal responsibility for not preserving the integrity of the cultural value and not preventing acts of vandalism. Since the cathedral is an important symbol of the Armenian identity of the city, such actions aim to destroy the traces of the Armenian cultural heritage of the area, which is contrary to the principles of UNESCO and international humanitarian law.

on December 7, 2021 International Court of Justice (in the case of “Armenia vs. Azerbaijan”) applied urgent measures and obliged Azerbaijan to “take all necessary measures to prevent and punish acts of vandalism and desecration directed at Armenian cultural heritage, including churches and other places of worship”.

The damage to the Stepanakert church means that the state is not fulfilling the mandatory decision of the international high court. In addition, International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD) cultural vandalism is often seen as part of ethnic cleansing and racial discrimination. Article 5 of the Convention guarantees the right of everyone to participate equally in cultural life. Targeting Armenian spiritual leaders violates the fundamental right of Artsakh Armenians to enjoy their cultural heritage.

Deliberate targeting or damage to cultural property not used for military purposes, 1999 Hague Convention Article 15 of the Second Protocol qualifies as a serious violation, which may also lead to individual criminal responsibility.

Monument Watch, “Artsakh cultural of inheritance monitoring» academic platform