Human rights activists urge Armenian authorities to release body of murdered Chechen woman for burial
The human rights organisation NC SOS Crisis Group has launched a petition calling on Armenia to release the body of Aishat Baimuradova to be buried in Chechnya. Baimuradova’s body has been kept by the authorities for more than three months after her murder in Yerevan.
The authorities in Yerevan have not allowed Baimuradova’s handover to her relatives or friends. Human rights defenders stress that there are people ‘from human rights activists to Aishat’s friends’ who are ready to organise her burial.
In a statement, the NC SOS Crisis Group called on Armenian authorities to ‘release the body and allow a proper farewell and burial’, noting that this is important both for the friends and loved ones of the murdered woman and ‘to demonstrate an adequate and dignified attitude towards the victim’. They called on people to sign the petition on Change.org demanding assistance in ensuring a more transparent investigation into Baimuradova’s murder and prompt information about the progress of the case.
The authors of the petition also proposed creating a rapid response mechanism for cases of enforced disappearances, killings, and other serious human rights violations in Armenia ‘in order to avoid similar tragedies in the future’.
At the time of publication, only 64 people had signed the petition.
Baimuradova was found dead at the end of October in Armenia’s capital, Yerevan. She had fled Chechnya to escape domestic violence and managed to leave Russia, after which she settled in Armenia. There, she ‘led the ordinary life of a young woman, worked, and ran social media accounts, hoping that in another country she would be safe’, the petition says.
According to the authors of the petition, after moving, Baimuradova continued to receive threats — ‘both from relatives and from other people from the Chechen Republic’ — in connection with her escape and her critical attitude towards ‘local, social, political, and religious norms’.
Friends lost contact with her on 15 October, and a few days later she was found dead. According to preliminary information, the woman was poisoned, but the exact cause of death has still not been officially disclosed.
Human rights defenders say that the killing of Baimuradova may be classified as a so-called ‘honour killing’, a practice that is widespread in the North Caucasus. According to preliminary investigative data, representatives of the Chechen Republic, including individuals linked to the regional authorities, were involved in organising the killing. It is assumed that they left the territory of Armenia immediately after the crime was committed.
Earlier, the NC SOS Crisis Group had already launched a petition calling for a fair and prompt investigation into the killing of Baimuradova. Human rights defenders believe that the public attention and resonance surrounding the case led to investigators identifying another suspect who left the crime scene, and that two suspects were placed on a wanted list and criminal cases were opened against them.
OC Media
