Resolution of the Committee of Constitutional Supervision of the USSR

History

On Acts of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR and its Presidium, and of the Supreme Soviets of the Azerbaijani SSR (Azerbaijani Republic) and the Armenian SSR (Republic of Armenia) Concerning the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast 28 November 1991, No. 28 (2–5)

The Committee of Constitutional Supervision of the USSR, having considered the appeal of the Supreme Soviet of the Republic of Armenia regarding the compliance with the Constitution of the USSR and the laws of the USSR of Part 3, Article 1 of the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 12 January 1989 “On the Introduction of a Special Form of Administration in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast of the Azerbaijani SSR” and Paragraph 3 of the Resolution of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 28 November 1989 “On Measures to Normalize the Situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast,” as well as the appeal of the Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijani Republic regarding the compliance with the Constitution and laws of the USSR of certain acts of the Supreme Soviet of the Republic of Armenia concerning the status of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast, has established the following:

  • The Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 12 January 1989 “On the Introduction of a Special Form of Administration in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast of the Azerbaijani SSR” was adopted in connection with the tension in interethnic relations in and around the NKAO, with the aim of preventing further aggravation and stabilizing the situation in the region.
  • The Decree provided for the establishment of a Committee of Special Administration, simultaneously suspending the powers of the 20th Convocation of the Council of People’s Deputies of the NKAO and its Executive Committee “until the election of a new composition of the Council.”
  • The Resolution of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 28 November 1989 “On Measures to Normalize the Situation in the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast” recognized the necessity of “restoring the activity of the Council of People’s Deputies of the NKAO of the 20th Convocation and its Executive Committee.” However, this resolution was not implemented due to contradictions and deficiencies contained within it. On the one hand, it called for the restoration of the Council and the abolition of the Committee as an extraordinary body; on the other, it spoke of creating a “Republican Organizing Committee” without specifying its purpose or competence.
  • The requirement contained in the resolution that “in restoring the organs of state power and administration of the autonomous oblast, representation of the Armenian and Azerbaijani parts of the population should be proportional to their numbers” was internally contradictory. Since the matter concerned the restoration of the Council of the 20th Convocation, previously elected by the population, the requirement for a different representation could not apply to it. Nor could it apply to any other Council, as Councils are formed on the basis of free elections. It could not apply to the Executive Committee either, since its composition falls within the exclusive competence of the local Council. Thus, the establishment of proportional representation contradicted Articles 95 and 97 of the Constitution of the USSR on universal and equal suffrage.
  • The Committee also established that the Supreme Soviet and the Central Election Commission of the Republic of Armenia issued certain acts concerning the status of the NKAO that departed from the provisions of the Constitution and laws of the USSR. For example, on 1 December 1989, the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR (Republic of Armenia) adopted a resolution “On the Reunification of the Armenian SSR and Nagorno-Karabakh,” and the Central Election Commission decided, in violation of the Constitution, to create electoral districts in the territory of the NKAO (part of the Azerbaijani SSR/Azerbaijani Republic) for elections to the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR (Republic of Armenia).
  • The Committee further noted that acts continue to be issued that violate the status of the NKAO as enshrined in the Constitution of the USSR. For example, on 26 November 1991, the Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijani Republic adopted a resolution “On the Abolition of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast,” thereby violating Articles 86 and 87 of the Constitution of the USSR.

The tragic development of events concerning the NKAO has convincingly demonstrated that any attempts to resolve interethnic conflicts or disputes between republics over territorial or other issues by unlawful means, in violation of constitutional and legal requirements, not only fail to achieve their goals but also lead to the escalation of illegal actions and further aggravation of the situation.

Guided by Article 12 of the Constitution of the USSR and Articles 10, 11, 12, and 23 of the Law of the USSR “On Constitutional Supervision in the USSR,” the Committee of Constitutional Supervision of the USSR resolves:

  1. To note that since the provisions of the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 12 January 1989 on the introduction of a special form of administration in the NKAO and the suspension of the powers of the Council of People’s Deputies of the NKAO lost force following the adoption of the Resolution of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 28 November 1989, there is no need for their legal assessment in terms of compliance with the Constitution and laws of the USSR. At the same time, the Committee draws attention to the fact that the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR did not have the authority to suspend the activities of any Councils of People’s Deputies.
  2. The second part of Paragraph 3 of the Resolution of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 28 November 1989 “On Measures to Normalize the Situation in the NKAO,” which hindered the restoration of constitutional organs of power and administration in the NKAO and thereby the exercise by residents of the oblast of constitutional rights provided for in Articles 39 and 48 of the Constitution of the USSR, does not comply with Articles 95 and 97 of the Constitution of the USSR, which establish the principle of universal, equal, and secret suffrage.
  3. The Resolution of the Supreme Soviet of the Armenian SSR (Republic of Armenia) of 1 December 1989 “On the Reunification of the Armenian SSR and Nagorno-Karabakh,” as well as the decision of the Central Election Commission of the Armenian SSR (Republic of Armenia) of 23 February 1990 concerning elections of People’s Deputies, do not comply with Articles 74, 76, 78, and 79 of the Constitution of the USSR.
  4. The Resolution of the Supreme Soviet of the Azerbaijani Republic of 26 November 1991 “On the Abolition of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast” does not comply with Articles 86 and 87 of the Constitution of the USSR.
  5. To affirm that efforts to overcome the conflict between the Azerbaijani Republic and the Republic of Armenia in connection with the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast can only be pursued on the basis of respect for the Constitution of the USSR, the laws of the USSR and of the republics, the rights and lawful interests of their citizens, and the annulment of all unconstitutional acts concerning the NKAO, with the restoration of the powers of legitimate organs of authority, as was recognized in the Joint Communiqué of the leaders of the RSFSR, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and Armenia adopted on 22 September 1991, and in the decision of the State Council of the USSR of 27 November 1991.
  6. Chairman of the Committee of Constitutional Supervision of the USSR S. Alekseev
  7. (Source: M. Mityukov, The Forerunners of Constitutional Justice: Views, Projects, and Institutional Preconditions, Moscow, 2006, pp. 146–149. Also published in Status of Nagorno-Karabakh in Political-Legal Documents and Materials, Yerevan, 1995, pp. 82–84.)

Sample Ballot of the Referendum on the Proclamation of Independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, held on 10 December 1991

Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Referendum 10 December 1991

Ballot for Voting

Do you agree that the proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic should be an independent state, independently determining the forms of cooperation with other states and communities?

YES NO (unwanted option to be crossed out)

Central Electoral Commission

Act of the Group of Independent Observers

On the Results of the Referendum on the Independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Stepanakert, 10 December 1991

Beginning on 10 December 1991, a group of independent observers was present in the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic to monitor the conduct of the referendum on the status of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.

Observer groups worked in the city of Stepanakert, and in the districts of Askeran, Hadrut, Martakert, Martuni, and Shaumyan. The observers visited more than 30 polling stations and were present during the counting of votes.

The independent observers state:

  • The preparation, conduct, and tabulation of the referendum were carried out in accordance with the “Temporary Regulation on the Conduct of the Referendum of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic.”
  • Eighty-one electoral districts were established in the territory of Nagorno-Karabakh. The list of districts and addresses of district electoral commissions was published in the newspaper Soviet Karabakh.
  • The electoral rolls included 132,328 persons entitled to vote.

The referendum question was formulated as follows: “Do you agree that the proclaimed Nagorno-Karabakh Republic should be an independent state, independently determining the forms of cooperation with other states and communities?”

Ballots in three languages—Armenian, Azerbaijani, and Russian—contained the above question and the words “YES” and “NO” (with the unwanted option to be crossed out). Ballots in one of the three languages (at the voter’s choice) were issued upon presentation of a passport and signature.

No violations in the voting procedure, issuance of ballots, their format, or the counting of votes were detected by the observers.

The observers consider it necessary to note that the referendum was conducted under conditions of armed aggression against the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, manifested in continuous shelling of the city of Stepanakert and other settlements with various types of weapons, including rockets and artillery. On the day of voting, 10 Armenians were killed and 11 wounded as a result of shelling. The majority of women and children in Stepanakert spend nights in basements; kindergartens, nurseries, and schools are closed. On the night of 11–12 December, an artillery shell struck one of Stepanakert’s schools. The city’s water supply system was blown up; there is no bread or medicine.

A total of 108,736 persons participated in the referendum, amounting to 82.2% of registered voters. The overwhelming majority of those who did not participate were residents of Azerbaijani-populated settlements.

Upon opening the ballot boxes, 108,736 ballots were found; 95 ballots were declared invalid.

Voting results:

  • “YES” – 108,615 (99.89% of those who participated in the vote)
  • “NO” – 24 (0.02% of those who participated in the vote)

According to the “Temporary Regulation on the Conduct of the Referendum of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic,” a decision submitted to referendum is considered adopted if more than half of those listed on the electoral rolls participate in the vote. Taking into account the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenants on Human Rights, the independent observers declare:

The Population of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Overwhelmingly Voted for Independence

Afanasyev Yuri Nikolaevich – People’s Deputy of the USSR and RSFSR Smirnov Vladimir Sergeyevich – People’s Deputy of the USSR Nazarov Boris Lazarevich – Chairman of the Human Rights Information Center Proshechkin Evgeny Viktorovich – “Democratic Russia” Voevodsky Konstantin Emmanuilovich – International Congress on Human Rights of the CSCE, St. Petersburg Human Rights Center Polyakova Ella Mikhailovna – “Memorial,” “Soldiers’ Mothers Movement,” St. Petersburg Burkova Inessa Emelyanovna – Committee of the Russian Intelligentsia “Karabakh” (KRIK), Moscow Sinyanskaya Galina Petrovna – “Movement Against Violence,” Moscow Lunina Elena Vladimirovna – Moscow Committee of Parents of Servicemen Alekseyevsky Kirill Mikhailovich – Voters’ Club of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR, Moscow Kulikova Galina Pavlovna – International Congress on Human Rights of the CSCE, Society of Russian Culture “ODA” Samodurov Yuri Vladimirovich – International Sakharov Congress Suprunenko Olga Igorevna – People’s Deputy of the Moscow Soviet Shalygin Gennady Fedorovich – People’s Deputy of the Moscow Soviet Titov Vyacheslav Konstantinovich – People’s Deputy of the Moscow Soviet Tavrizov Alexey Grigoryevich – “Memorial” Fedorov Vladimir Vladimirovich – Anti-Fascist Center, Moscow Kalinkin Nikolai Ivanovich – “Memorial” Dashkevich Vladimir Sergeyevich – Committee of the Russian Intelligentsia “Karabakh” (KRIK) Babushkin Andrey Vladimirovich – People’s Deputy of the Moscow Soviet Gorban Viktor Vasilievich – People’s Deputy of the Moscow Soviet Danilov Vitaly Alekseevich – International Congress on Human Rights of the CSCE, Independent Association for the Protection of the Rights of the Armenian Population of Karabakh Kichmar Nikolai Ivanovich – International Congress on Human Rights of the CSCE, People’s Rukh of Ukraine, Sevastopol

In the presence of correspondents from U.S. television, Agence France-Presse, Le Quotidien de Paris (France), Photo Agency of Great Britain, Spanish Information Agency, Bulgarian Television, Russian Television, Megapolis-Express, Izvestia, Moscow News, Literary Gazette, Stolitsa, Panorama, Radio Russia, Echo of Moscow.

City of Stepanakert (Status of Nagorno-Karabakh in Political-Legal Documents and Materials, Yerevan, 1995, pp. 85–87)

Appeal of the Executive Committee of the Council of People’s Deputies of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic

To the Chairman of the Supreme Soviet of the Republic of Belarus S. Shushkevich, President of Russia B. Yeltsin, President of Ukraine L. Kravchuk Request for the Admission of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic into the Commonwealth of Independent States Stepanakert, 12 December 1991

Expressing the will of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh, I address you as the initiators and founders of the new Commonwealth of Independent States. Our people fully support the path you have defined for overcoming the protracted political and economic crisis that has engulfed the former USSR and each of its republics.

We share the ideas underlying the creation of the new Commonwealth and its peoples, in which the politics of totalitarianism and the domination of one nation over another are excluded. The people of Nagorno-Karabakh, among the first to raise the banner of the struggle for democracy, have for four years under extremely difficult conditions sought self-determination and the independent and free resolution of their future.

In the nationwide referendum held on 10 December, the overwhelming majority of the population of Nagorno-Karabakh expressed its will by supporting the previously proclaimed independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, which independently chooses the forms of cooperation with other states and communities.

For the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, the only acceptable solution to this issue is accession to the Commonwealth of States under your leadership as an equal member.

I ask you to urgently consider the question of admitting the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic into the Commonwealth.

Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Council of People’s Deputies of the NKR L. Petrosyan

(Status of Nagorno-Karabakh in Political-Legal Documents and Materials, Yerevan, 1995, pp. 89–90)

Declaration on the State Independence of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic

Stepanakert, 6 January 1992

Proceeding from the inalienable right of peoples to self-determination, based on the will of the people of Nagorno-Karabakh expressed through the Republican referendum held on 10 December 1991; Recognizing responsibility for the fate of the historic homeland; Affirming loyalty to the principles of the Declaration on the Proclamation of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic of 2 September 1991; Striving for the normalization of relations between the Armenian and Azerbaijani peoples; Seeking to protect the population of the NKR from aggression and the threat of physical annihilation; Developing the experience of independent popular self-government of Nagorno-Karabakh in 1918–1920; Expressing readiness to establish equal and mutually beneficial relations with all states and communities of states; Respecting and adhering to the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Final Document of the Vienna Meeting of the CSCE participating states, and other universally recognized norms of international law—

The Supreme Soviet of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic affirms the independent statehood of the NKR.

The NKR is an independent state, with its own national flag, coat of arms, and anthem. Throughout the territory of the NKR, the Constitution and laws of the NKR are in force, as well as international and legal acts regulating the observance of human rights and freedoms.

All power in the NKR belongs to the people of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, who exercise their authority and will through nationwide referenda or representative bodies.

All residents of Nagorno-Karabakh are citizens of the NKR. Dual citizenship is permitted. Citizens of the NKR are under the protection of the NKR, which guarantees the rights and freedoms of its citizens regardless of nationality, race, or religion.

To protect its citizens and ensure the security of the population, the NKR establishes armed forces, law enforcement, and state security bodies subordinate to the highest organs of authority. Citizens of the NKR perform military service on the territory of the NKR. Military service of NKR citizens in other states, as well as the presence of armed forces of other states on the territory of the NKR, is permitted only on the basis of interstate treaties and agreements.

The NKR, as a subject of international law, conducts an independent foreign policy, establishes direct relations with other states, and participates in the activities of international organizations.

The land, subsoil, airspace, natural, material, and spiritual resources of the NKR are the property of its people. The procedure for their use and ownership is determined by the laws of the NKR.

The economy of the NKR is based on the principle of equality of all forms of property and the provision to all citizens of the NKR of equal opportunities for full and free participation in economic life.

The NKR recognizes the primacy of human rights, ensures freedom of speech, conscience, political and social activity, and all other civil rights and freedoms recognized by the international community. National minorities are under the protection of the state. The state structure of the NKR guarantees the possibility of full participation of national minorities in the political, economic, and cultural life of the republic. Any discrimination on national grounds is prosecuted by law.

The state language of the NKR is Armenian. The NKR recognizes the right of national minorities to use their native language without restriction in economic, cultural, and educational spheres.

The basis for the creation of the Constitution and legislation of the NKR is this Declaration and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

(Status of Nagorno-Karabakh in Political-Legal Documents and Materials, Yerevan, 1995, pp. 88–89) 752

Yuri Barsegov “Nagorno-Karabakh in International Law and Global Politics”

Artatsolum

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