Opposition Activist Gevorg Safarian Jailed For 2 Years

YEREVAN (RFE/RL) — A court in Yerevan on Monday sentenced an opposition activist to two years in prison on what he considers trumped-up charges of assaulting a police officer during an anti-government protest staged a year ago.

Gevorg Safarian was among dozens of members of the opposition New Armenia Public Salvation Front who scuffled with riot police as they tried to celebrate the New Year in Yerevan’s Liberty Square early on January 1, 2016. Safarian was arrested and accused of assaulting one of the officers. He went on trial a few months later.

Reading out the verdict, the presiding judge, Mnatsakan Martirosian, said law-enforcement authorities have proved that Safarian punched and knocked down the policeman, Gegham Khachatrian, during the incident. Martirosian provoked angry chants from the defendant’s relatives and supporters present in the courtroom.

“This is what was expected to happen,” Safarian told reporters, reacting to the ruling.

In his concluding remarks at the trial made earlier in the day, the oppositionist again strongly denied the charges brought against him, saying that it was Khachatrian who assaulted him and other protesters. He insisted that the criminal case based on police testimony was “fabricated” in response to his political activities.

“Our judicial system has been reduced to an absurd level,” charged Safarian. “They can jail anyone they want.”

His lawyer, Tigran Hayrapetian, also condemned the verdict and said he will appeal against it. “The court executed a [government] order, rather than delivered a verdict,” he said. “There is no jurisprudence here.”

In a January 2016 statement, Human Rights Watch (HRW) denounced Safarian’s pre-trial arrest as “wholly unjustified.” The New York-based watchdog said he is prosecuted for his political views and should therefore be released from custody.

Opposition Activist Imprisoned in Armenia After Protest

On Monday a court in Armenia sentenced opposition activist, Gevorg Safaryan, to two years in prison. The charges were linked to a scuffle with police during a small New Year’s Eve demonstration one year ago, an incident caught on video that seems to show police harassing and interfering with demonstrators leading an initially calm atmosphere to shift to one of violence.

EXPAND

On Monday, January 17, 2017, an Armenian court convicted and sentenced opposition activist Gevorg Safaryan to two years in prison on charges linked to a scuffle with police during a New Year’s Eve protest one year ago.

 © Photolube

While Safaryan will be imprisoned, no police have been held to account for their role. Once again, Armenian authorities appear quick to punish and silence activists, while refusing to acknowledge any negative, and potentially unlawful, role police may play in disrupting peaceful protests.

Police arrested Safaryan and several others dressed in costume to mark New Year’s Eve in central Yerevan’s Freedom Square with a public event. Organizers had notified city officials about their plans in advance, as required by law. Safaryan is a well-known member of the opposition New Armenia Public Movement and frequent organizer of protests in recent years, much to the ire of the authorities. Yerevan deployed a substantial police presence to the New Year’s Eve event.

The gathering wasn’t large, but as participants tried to place a small New Year’s tree in the square, police quickly stopped them. Safaryan and others pressed on with the event, bringing a man dressed like a holiday tree into the group. When police again intervened, a scuffle broke out. Although the others arrested were released, police charged Safaryan with using force against police, and he has been in custody for more than a year, awaiting trial. Human Rights Watch criticized the lack of reasonable grounds for the pretrial detention.

Safaryan strongly denies the charges and sees his conviction as an attempt to stifle his criticism of the government. The detention – and now conviction – will be quite effective in keeping Safaryan out of public life.

Meanwhile, a criminal investigation into police actions produced no results, and officials closed it. Activists are making their final appeal this month in court against the decision.

It seems that authorities are solidifying an unfortunate tradition of failing to hold to account police who wrongfully interfere with freedom of assembly. They shouldn’t. Traditions are best left for New Year’s Eve and other celebrations. Investigations should mean accountability for those responsible, not just for activists.

Armenia: Opposition Activist Jailed

(Berlin) – Armenian authorities should release a political activist who was arrested during a public gathering on January 1, 2016, and placed in pretrial detention, pending an impartial investigation into the charges against him, Human Rights Watch said today. The authorities should also review police conduct at the gathering and possible police interference with the rights to freedom of thought, expression, and assembly.

Police arrested Gevorg Safaryan at Yerevan’s Freedom Square at about 1 a.m. on New Year’s Day, amid a scuffle during a public event organized by members of the New Armenia Movement, a political opposition group. The authorities charged Safaryan with using violence against the police, and on January 3, a court granted a police investigator’s request to hold Safaryan in pretrial custody for two months.

“Given the minor nature of the incident, two months of pretrial custody is wholly unjustified,” said Giorgi Gogia, South Caucasus director at Human Rights Watch. “Pretrial detention should be a last resort, not the general rule, and only in cases where there is a well-founded fear that the person will evade justice or hinder the investigation.”

In a January 5 letter to Armenia’s prosecutor general, Human Rights Watch expressed concern about the charges against and pretrial detention of Safaryan and called for his release pending an investigation.

Safaryan’s lawyer told Human Rights Watch that the event organizers had notified the Yerevan city authorities in advance about their plans to hold a New Year’s celebration on Freedom Square.

Video footage of the incident available on YouTube shows a major police presence in the square as several dozen participants gathered on New Year’s Eve and in the early hours of January 1. When participants, dressed in costume for the New Year, attempted to bring a small New Year’s tree into the square, police told them they were not allowed to bring the tree there and confiscated it. When Safaryan and several others returned with a man wearing a tree costume, a scuffle broke out between police and some of the participants, and police detained Safaryan and several others.

Police released other participants the same day but charged Safaryan with using force against a representative of an authority under Criminal Code article 316.1, which carries a penalty of up to five years in prison. Safaryan was transferred to Yerevan’s Nubarashen pretrial facility on January 3, after the court approved pretrial detention.

In reviewing police conduct at the event, the authorities should examine the instructions given to the police, Human Rights Watch said. The review should include instructions about the size of the law enforcement presence at the event, its terms of engagement, and any restrictions or conditions placed on the event’s participants, including regarding decorations and costumes.

Safaryan has been under investigation since April 2015 on mass disturbance charges, and in May was releasedfrom pretrial custody on his own recognizance. The court used the existing investigation to justify the decision to send him to pretrial custody, without looking into the substance of the new charges.

Holding Safaryan for two months is completely disproportionate given the absence of evidence that he poses a genuine risk to the investigation, Human Rights Watch said.

Article 9(3) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), to which Armenia is a party, states that, “It shall not be the general rule that persons awaiting trial shall be detained in custody.” The United Nations Human Rights Committee, which provides authoritative interpretation of the covenant, has determined that bail should be granted except in cases in which there is a likelihood that the accused would abscond, destroy evidence, or influence witnesses.

“In the absence of any compelling reason for keeping Safaryan behind bars, it’s hard to avoid concluding that the authorities are targeting – and jailing – him to interfere with his peaceful political activism,” Gogia said.

https://youtu.be/9A46SAvWtuQ

https://youtu.be/9A46SAvWtuQ

Human Rights Watch Condemns Beating of Veteran, Calls on Authorities for Accountabilit

(Left) Smbat Hakobian in the RFE/RL studio in Yerevan, Armenia on December 12, 2014. (Right) Smbat Hakobian after being beaten after a protest in Yerevan, Armenia on September 21, 2015 (Source: RFE/RL; Anonymous)

YEREVAN (Arminfo)—Human Rights Watch has condemned the severe beating of Artsakh war veteran Smbat Hakobyan, who was attacked in Yerevan on September 21 after participating in an anti-government protest.

“A member of an independent political group critical of the Armenian government was savagely beaten after a protest in Yerevan, the capital, on September 21, 2015,” Human Rights Watch said today. “The authorities should immediately investigate the beating of Smbat Hakobian, a member of the Alliance of Freedom Fighters, and bring those responsible to account.”

“No peaceful protester should have to fear a brutal beating just for expressing their views,” said Rachel Denber, deputy Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The effectiveness of the investigation into the vicious assault on Smbat Hakobian will be a true test of how seriously the Armenian government takes its commitment to free expression and peaceful assembly.”

Human Rights Watch recalled that Armenia is a party to the European Convention on Human Rights and has clear obligations under the convention not only to respect the right to peaceful assembly, but also to ensure the security of those exercising that right and protect them from unlawful interference by others.

Armenia also has obligations to carry out effective investigations into attacks on bodily integrity and personal security and to ensure that police use of force is in compliance with international standards. Those standards limit use of force to situations in which it is absolutely necessary to respond to physical threats to the police or others and then is strictly proportionate and nondiscriminatory.

“People in Armenia shouldn’t be risking serious injury to take part in a peaceful protest,” Denber said. “The government needs to make clear that anyone who interferes with peaceful protesters will be held accountable to the full extent of the law.”

On September 21 Smbat Hakobyan, an Artsakh war veteran, was severely beaten in the center of Yerevan. A few minutes prior to the incident, Hakobyan, together with a number of civic activists, participated in a protest in front of the office of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), calling for a change in government.

Hakobyan was hospitalized with numerous injuries. He is currently in an intensive care unit and his condition is moderately grave. The beaten veteran was unable to tell investigators the details of the incident.

The activists who helped him say that when their protest was over and the veteran was walking along Abovyan Street, 5-6 people in civilian clothing approached him, showed him what appeared to be an identity document, forced him to enter a fenced area on Abovyan Street, and then proceeded to severely beat him.

The activists say they did not manage to see what car the assailants traveled in. They said that while Hakobyan was being beaten, not a single policeman responded to their calls for help.

To draw attention to the situation, the activists pushed garbage cans into Abovyan Street, disrupting traffic. Only then did police arrive at the scene, the activists say. It is widely rumored that the son-in-law of Ruben Hayrapetyan, the president of the Football Federation of Armenia, is complicit in the beating.

Artsakh war veteran says Ruben Hayrapetyan's security team member was among those who beat him

Smbat Hakobyan, an Artsakh war veteran, who was severely beaten in the center of Yerevan on September 21, has said today, that the person who has beaten him is a member of Armenian Football Federation President Ruben Hayrapetyan's security team and his name is Tigran. "I can not tell whether he still works in Hayrapetyan's security team", Hakobyan said.

Hakobyan told the details of the incident during a talk with journalists in hospital. According to Hakobyan, he had a political dispute with Ruben Hayrapetyan two months ago and at the end of that dispute Hayrapetyan told him "Just you wait!" To note, Artsakh war veterans are conducting an action of protest to support Smbat Hakobyan near the Grigor Lusavorich medical center in Yerevan. 

To note, on September 21 Smbat Hakobyan, an Artsakh war veteran, was severely beaten in the center of Yerevan. A few minutes prior to the incident, Hakobyan, together with a number of civic initiatives, participated in a protest action in front of the office of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA), calling for shift in power.  Hakobyan was hospitalized with numerous injuries and fractures. At the moment he is at the intensive care unit and his condition is moderately grave. A   forensic-medical examination has been appointed and the investigation is being held.

Confrontation between Ruben Hayrapetyan and freedom fighter (video)

The confrontation between President of Football Federation of Armenia Ruben Hayrapetyan and freedom fighter Smbat Hakobyan is underway at the police central department.

The military friends of Smbat Hakobyan, who had gathered in front of the police department, informed “A1+” about it.

To remind, Smbat Hakobyan was brutally beaten in a central Yerevan street. Before the incident he had been taking part in the protest action organized by a number of civil initiatives at the headquarters of the ruling Republican Party with a demand for a government change. He was taken to hospital with numerous bruises and fractures.

Ծեծի ենթարկված ազատամարտիկ Սմբատ Հակոբյանն այս պահին հանդիպում է ունենում լրագրողների հետ

Ծեծի ենթարկված ազատամարտիկ Սմբատ Հակոբյանն այս պահին հանդիպում է ունենում լրագրողների հետ: Երեկ հայտնի դարձավ, որ ապահովվելու է նրա անձնական անվտանգությունը և հայտարարվեց, որ ազատամարտիկն այսօր կարևոր հայտարարություն կանի: Armlur.am-ի թղթակիցը հայտնում է, որ այս պահին ազատամարտիկը կարդում է  Հայաստանի ֆուտբոլի ֆեդերացիայի նախագահ Ռուբեն Հայրապետյանի հետ տեղի ունեցած հեռախոսային խոսակցության վերծանումները: Վերծանումներից պարզ է դառնում, որ ազատամարտիկն ու ՀՖՖ նախագահը «արա»-ով են խոսել իրար հետ և Ռուբեն Հայրապետյանը Սմբատ Հակոբյանին ասել է` «թարգը տուր»: Ներկայացնում ենք նրանց հեռախոսազրույիցից մի հատված. Սմբատ-Մի քանի անգամ զանգել էիր, հո՞ բան չի եղել։ Ռուբեն-  Էս ի՞նչ կապիկություն ես արել, ցվրվի տնով: Սմբատ- Մենք որևէ կապիկություն չենք անում։ Ռուբեն- Քեզ ասում եմ՞ գնա, վերընգի տանդ, ոտքերդ կջարդեմ․․․ Սմբատ Հակոբյանի խոսքով` Ռուբեն Հայրապետյանը նաև հայոյել է իրեն: Հիշեցնենք, որ ազատամարտիկը ծեծի էր ենթարկվել սեպտեմբերի 21-ին` ինքնիշխանության երթից հետո: Նա հայտարարել էր, որ իրեն ծեծի ենթարկողների մեջ ճանաչել է Ռուբեն Հայրապետյանի թիկնապահներից մեկին, սակայն ավելի ուշ ասել էր, որ պետք չէ ծեծը կապել Ռուբեն Հայրապետյանի հետ: 

Ամբողջական հոդվածը կարող եք կարդալ այս հասցեով՝ http://armlur.am/424358/ 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gl9giV65v2s&feature=share

https://youtu.be/gl9giV65v2s

https://youtu.be/ZAvuEK-0keY

https://youtu.be/zNyTtoAJAVY

24-ամյա երիտասարդի ծեծի ու նրա ավտոմեքենայի վրա կրակելու առեղծվածային պատմությունը. Երիտասարդը հանդգնել է Ռուբեն Հայրապետյանի հորաքրոջ թոռնուհու հետ ծնունդ նշել

Սևան-Երևան մայրուղու վրա կրակոցների և 24-ամյա երիտասարդի դաժան ծեծը կապվում է Հայաստանի ֆուտբոլի ֆեդերացիայի նախագահ Ռուբեն Հայրապետյանի անվան հետ:

«Փաստինֆո»-ի տեղեկություններով՝ երիտասարդը մի խումբ անձանց կողմից դաժան ծեծի է ենթարկվել այն բանի համար, որ հանդգնել է Ռուբեն Հայրապետյանի հորաքրոջ թոռնուհուն հրավիրել իր ծննդյան արարողությանը։

Ավելի վաղ տեղեկացրել էինք, որ դեպքը տեղի է ունեցել օգոստոսի 14-ին. 24-ամյա երիտասարդի ավտոմեքենայի վրա կրակել են, ապա փայտով և մետաղյա ձողով վնասել ավտոմեքենան, այդ ամենից հետո էլ մի խումբ տղաներ նրան ծեծի են ենթարկել, որից հետո նրան նստեցրել են «Լեքսուս» մակնիշի ավտոմեքենայի մեջ ու տեղափոխել Ավանում գտնվող մի սրճարան, որտեղ ևս նրան ծեծել են:

Երիտասարդը, ստացած վնասվածքներով, գտնվում է հիվանդանոցում, նրա մոտ ախտորոշվել է փակ գանգուղեղային տրավմա, գլխի գագաթային շրջանի սալջարդ, պատռված վերքեր:

Նշված օրը երիտասարդի ծննդյան օրն է եղել, և նա այդ օրն իր ընկերուհու հետ Ծաղկաձորում նշելուց հետո վերադառնալիս է եղել, նրանց հետևել են մի խումբ տղաներ, և հենց ճանապարհին կրակել են ավտոմեքենայի վրա, ապա՝ դաժան ծեծի ենթարկել նրան:

 

Armenia: harassment of lawyers working on high-profile cases

We, the undersigned members of the Civic Solidarity Platform (CSP) – a network of human rights NGOs from Europe, the former Soviet Union and North America – are seriously concerned that independent defense lawyers working on high-profile cases in Armenia have been subjected to harassment and obstruction by state agents in the performance of their professional duties. We call on the authorities of the country to put an end to this worrying pattern and ensure that all lawyers can carry out their work without hindrance.

The lawyers who have been subjected to pressure are in particular those who defend individuals charged with various serious crimes related to the July 2016 events, when the armed opposition group Sasna Tsrer seized a police station in Armenia’s capital city of Yerevan. The Sasna Tsrer group demanded the resignation of the president and the release of imprisoned opposition leaders and called on residents to take to the streets to support their demands, a call that was heeded by thousands of people. Police forcefully put down these mass protests.[i] The seizure of the police station ended after a two-week standoff. According to official information, over 60 people have been prosecuted and will stand trial in relation to these events.[ii] The lawyers working on the Sasna Tsrer cases who have faced harassment include Arayik Papikyan, Mushegh Shushanyan and Nina Karapetyants from the Helsinki Association of Armenia, a CSP member organization.

According to information available to us[iii], these and other lawyers working on the Sasna Tsrer and similar high profile cases have been prevented from visiting their clients in detention and denied the opportunity to hold private discussions with them. In other cases, officials at detention facilities have confiscated or destroyed notes from lawyer-client meetings when searching the defendants after the meetings. In this way, the lawyers have been hindered in their efforts to prepare the defense of their clients.

Lawyers working on the Sasna Tsrer and other high-profile cases have also been obstructed in their work in connection with court hearings. Some lawyers have been subjected to lengthy and intrusive security searches when arriving to court. The fact that other participants in the proceedings, such as prosecutors and other lawyers have not had to undergo similar searches suggests that these procedures have been selectively applied. The lawyers targeted have protested against the searches, considering them unlawful as Armenia’s Law on the Bar (article 21) prohibits searches of lawyers during the direct execution of their professional activities. At the same time, national legislation does not regulate the implementation of security searches, including through the use of technical means such as metal detectors in any detail, which allows for arbitrary actions by court bailiffs. When lawyers have refused to undergo searches, court bailiffs have accused them of failing to obey lawful requirements and barred them from accessing the courtroom.

The absence of the lawyers from the courtroom has, again, resulted in court orders, requesting the country’s Chamber of Advocates to take disciplinary measures against the lawyers. Such court orders have also been issued when lawyers have refused to continue to take part in hearings after their clients have been temporarily removed from the courtroom for alleged violations of court regulations. In these instances, the lawyers have not been allowed to plead or file motions, which has prevented them from carrying out their professional duty to defend the interests of their clients. Court-issued requests for disciplinary sanctions have, among others, been issued in relation to Arayik Papikyan, Mushegh Shushanyan and Nina Karapetyants. In addition, the Public Prosecutor’s Office and police have requested the Chamber of Advocates to take disciplinary measures against Arayik Papikyan and Mushegh Shushanyan because of comments made by them in social media posts and media interviews regarding irregularities during the ongoing court proceedings, as well as broader developments in Armenia. The Chamber of Advocates has initiated disciplinary proceedings in these cases and the proceedings are currently under way.

In accordance with Armenia’s Law on the Bar (article 39.1), the Chamber of Advocates may initiate disciplinary proceedings against lawyers on the basis of requests by courts or other state bodies over apparent violations by lawyers of the Law on the Bar or the Code of Conduct of Advocates. If found guilty, lawyers may be warned, ordered to undergo retraining courses, fined, or deprived of their license to practice law (article 39.9).

It is disturbing that several lawyers are now facing disciplinary proceedings and may be subject to disciplinary sanctions, potentially including disbarment for refusing to comply with arbitrary and unjustified requirements and restrictions by court bailiffs and courts, as well as for exercising their right to freedom of expression. We are also concerned about the impartiality of the disciplinary proceedings, in particular given biased views expressed in media interviews by the chair of the Chamber of Advocates and some members of the board considering the issue of disciplinary measures. It is of further concern that lawyers, with respect to whom courts have repeatedly issued orders requesting disciplinary measures in the course of legal proceedings may be banned from continuing to work on the cases in question. This may result in that the court instead appoints public defenders against the will of the defendants, thereby violating their right to have access to a lawyer of their choice, as protected by Armenia’s Constitution (article 67.2), the European Convention on Human Rights (article 6, part 3с) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (article 14, point 3b).

In this context, we also recall that the UN Basic Principles on the Role of Lawyers[iv] set out governments shall ensure that lawyers are able to perform their professional functions without intimidation, hindrance, harassment or improper interference, and that they are not identified with their clients or their clients’ causes as a result of discharging their functions. These principles, further, provide that governments shall respect the confidentiality of lawyer-client communications and consultations and ensure that detainees have adequate opportunities, time and facilities to receive visits and be consulted by lawyers, without delay, interception or censorship. According to the principles, lawyers may not be denied the right to appear before courts on behalf of their clients unless they have been disqualified in full conformity with the principles. Any disciplinary hearings against lawyers should be held before an impartial body and be subject to an independent judicial review, and lawyers should not suffer sanctions for any action taken in accordance with recognized professional duties, standards and ethics. The principles also stress that lawyers have the right to take part in public discussion of matters concerning the law, the administration of justice and the protection of human rights without suffering professional restrictions.

In a further worrying development, in addition to those described above, we have been informed that police used heavy-handed treatment against lawyers defending clients in Sasna Tsrer cases on 28 June 2017. As a commotion took place in the yard outside Yerevan’s Avan and Nor Nork District Court, where hearings are held, police reportedly pushed lawyers Lusineh Sahakyan, Inessa Petrosyan, Arayik Papikyan, Mushegh Shushanyn and Ara Zakaryan and restricted the freedom of movement of them and lawyer Tigran Hayrapetyan as these tried to intervene in support of a young man being taken to a police car. The incident was witnessed by journalists, relatives of the defendants and other individuals present in the courtyard. The same day, several defendants were also allegedly subjected to ill-treatment by police, including by being beaten in the court basement.[v] Investigations into the alleged ill-treatment of the defendants and lawyers were opened with a delay and are not known to have rendered any results so far. Under international and national law, the Armenian authorities have an obligation to ensure that any allegations of ill-treatment are investigated in a thorough and impartial manner and that those responsible are held accountable.

In view of the concerns outlined above, we call on the authorities of Armenia to:

• Ensure that lawyers working on the Sasna Tsrer and other high-profile cases are not subjected to harassment and obstruction in the execution of their professional duties.
• Ensure that lawyers working on these cases are not prevented from meeting and communicating in private with their clients, or from appearing before the court on behalf of their clients on arbitrary and unlawful grounds.
• Ensure that disciplinary or other sanctions are not initiated against lawyers because of their refusal to comply with arbitrary and unjustified requirements and restrictions, their exercise of their right to freedom of expression, or legitimate actions taken by them in accordance with their professional duties and ethics.
• Carry out prompt, thorough and impartial investigations into the allegations of ill-treatment of lawyers and their defendants on 28 June 2017 and hold all officials responsible for ill-treatment accountable.
• Uphold international fair trial standards during all court proceedings, including those in the cases against individuals tried over the July 2016 events involving the Sasna Tsrer group and other high-profile cases.

We also call on the Chamber of Advocates to:

• Refrain from conducting disciplinary proceedings and imposing disciplinary measures against lawyers on any other grounds than those involving apparent violations of the Law on the Bar and the Code of Conduct of Advocates.

Signed by the following CSP members:

Jailed Radical Opposition Leader Goes On Trial

A trial of Zhirayr Sefilian began in Yerevan on Friday almost one year after the radical opposition figure was arrested on charges of plotting an armed revolt against the Armenian government.

Sefilian, who leads the Founding Parliament opposition movement, stands accused of acquiring weapons and forming an armed group in late 2015 to seize government buildings in Yerevan. Several other suspects in the case are also under arrest and are defendants in the trial.

Justice Tatevik Grigorian, the judge presiding over the proceedings, made a decision today to adjourn the hearing as the lawyer of one of the defendants was absent. The next court hearing is scheduled for May 30.

After the court hearing Sefilian’s lawyer Tigran Hayrapetian claimed that the investigative body had failed to prove the oppositionist indeed committed the acts he is charged with.

State prosecutors claim that the alleged plot was foiled when the weapons allegedly acquired by Sefilian were discovered by the police. According to their indictment submitted to the court, some members of the armed group also refused to participate in what the prosecutor describe as Sefilian’s plan to launch an attack that would have endangered the lives of Armenian army soldiers. The investigators have not yet elaborated on this allegation.

Sefilian and other senior members of Founding Parliament deny the charges as politically motivated.

Sefilian was arrested in June 2016 less than one month before three dozen gunmen affiliated with Founding Parliament seized a police station in Yerevan. The gunmen demanded that President Serzh Sarkisian free their leader and other “political prisoners” and step down. They surrendered to law-enforcement authorities following a two-week standoff which left three police officers dead.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chz5muA9-7Q&feature=share

«Հիմնադիր խորհրդարան»-ի հանրահավաքին այսօր ելույթ ունեցավ նաև «100-ամյակն առանց ռեժիմի»-ի շարժման առաջնորդ Ժիրայր Սէֆիլյանը, ով նշեց, որ ռեժիմը նպատակ է ունեցել իրենց մինչև 2017թ. փակել բանտերում, սակայն իրենք կարողացան դա թույլ չտալ: «Նրանք նաև հույս ունեին, որ Բերձորյան ահաբեկչությունից հետո մենք կոտրվելու էինք: Նրանք հույս ունեին, որ մեզնից շատերն առնվազն պետք է հիվանդանոցում մնային, բայց այդպես չեղավ: Նրանք ստիպված դիմեցին վերջին քայլին` բանտարկելով մեզ: Նրանց հաջողվեց մեկուսացմել մեզ և դրա հետևանքով սարսափ առաջացնել», – նշեց նա: 

Ամբողջական հոդվածը կարող եք կարդալ այս հասցեով՝ http://armlur.am/364258/ 

Opposition Alliance Reports Election-Related Crime

An opposition alliance has asked authorities to look into some alleged evidence suggesting that vote buying by Armenia’s ruling party during municipal elections in Yerevan earlier this month had a “systematized and centralized” nature.

Head of the parliamentary faction of the opposition Yelk alliance Nikol Pashinian on Wednesday enclosed with the application to the prosecutor-general some documents that were found in the garbage can near one of the campaign offices of the Republican Party of Armenia (HHK). (Hence, the documents in Armenia are known as ZibiLeaks).

The documents in question, Yelk says, mention the sums of money and services rendered in concrete addresses as well as instructions for campaigners for the organization of the process of distributing money among citizens.

According to the opposition bloc, police were also involved in this process, as one of the documents was faxed from a telephone number belonging to the police.

Yelk MP Edmon Marukian said that they will be consistent in ensuring that prosecutors open proceedings into the case and punish those responsible.

“We have collected this evidence and have vowed to be consistent,” he said.

Yelk polled 21 percent in the May 14 municipal elections and will form the second largest faction in Yerevan’s Council of Elders. The HHK swept the elections with over 71 percent and its top candidate Taron Markarian retained his mayoral position.

The HHK has all along denied it ever offered cash or services to voters.

Postanjian Appeals Election Body’s Decision In Administrative Court

Leader of the opposition Yerkir Tsirani party Zaruhi Postanjian on Wednesday filed an action with the administrative court to annul the results of the May 14 municipal elections in Yerevan.

Yerkir Tsirani finished third in the race of three political forces with 8 percent of the vote and will have five members in the 65-seat Council of Elders dominated by the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK).

Last week the opposition party appealed the results of the vote at the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) demanding that it annul the outcome of the elections due to “large-scale fraud implemented by the HHK with the assistance of police officers” that, according to the party, included vote buying, guidance of voters, as well as violence against Postanjian and her proxy.

The CEC turned down the application, arguing that no evidence was provided to substantiate Yerkir Tsirani’s claim.

After submitting her claim to the administrative court, Postanjian again insisted in an interview with RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) that the HHK won the elections due to fraud and pressure on voters.

“Citizens did not have the opportunity to exercise their voting right, and some, being intimidated, did not even participate in the elections,” Postanjian claimed. “Because for them it was clear that if a mayoral candidate and a proxy can be subjected to violence, then how can it be an election?”

Postanjian, who ran for mayor in the May 14 ballot, personally went to one of HHK campaign offices located in HHK candidate, incumbent mayor Taron Markarian’s home district of Avan on the day of the voting to expose what she claimed was a vote buying scheme. Along with her daughter, Lilit Drampian, who also acted as her proxy she was forced out of the HHK premises by police officers called in by ruling party activists.

In a statement released shortly after the incident Postanjian, then a member of the National Assembly, claimed violence was used against her and her daughter, who suffered a concussion. She also deplored the lack of response from appropriate law-enforcement bodies to the incident. The Special Investigative Service of Armenia later launched two probes in connection with the incident.

Representatives of the HHK deny using any vote buying or pressuring voters in any elections, insisting that the votes garnered by the party show that it remains the most popular political force in Armenia.

Postanjian-Led Party Challenges Yerevan Election Results

The Yerkir Tsirani party led by opposition parliamentarian Zaruhi Postanjian has asked the Central Election Commission (CEC) to annul the results of the Sunday municipal elections in Yerevan, claiming large-scale fraud and violations, including vote buying, by the ruling party.

Yerkir Tsirani, which was founded only weeks before the elections, managed to poll nearly 8 percent of the vote, entitling it to forming a minority five-member faction in the 65-seat Council of Elders of the Armenian capital.

Another opposition force – the Yelk alliance – gained 21 percent of the vote in the elections won by the ruling Republican Party of Armenia and its incumbent mayor Taron Markarian by a landslide (over 71 percent).

In its application to the CEC, Yerkir Tsirani claimed large-scale fraud implemented by the HHK with the assistance of police officers that included vote buying, guidance of voters, as well as violence against Postanjian and her proxy.

Postanjian, who ran for mayor in the elections, personally went to one of HHK campaign offices located in Markarian’s home district of Avan on the day of the voting to expose what she claimed was a vote buying scheme. Along with her daughter, Lilit Drampian, who also acted as her proxy she was forced out of the HHK premises by police officers called in by ruling party activists.

In a statement released on Monday Postanjian claimed violence was used against her and her daughter, who suffered a concussion. She also deplored the lack of response from appropriate law-enforcement bodies to the incident.

Listing these and other violations observed during the elections, the opposition party also alleged that election-related documents kept at the safes at electoral precincts had been tampered with in favor of the HHK.

“We demand that, based on Article 142 of the Electoral Code, the results of the elections be annulled, as the above-mentioned violations have had an impact on the outcome of the elections and cannot be redressed,” the opposition party said.

The concerns stated by Yerkir Tsirani, Yelk and some other Armenian political and civic groups were echoed on Monday by local observers, who spoke about a wide range of violations, including pressure on voters, use of administrative resource, open ballot, guidance of voters, the presence of ‘fake’ observers acting as ruling party proxies at polling stations, obstructions to the work of observers and even violence and threats against them, during a press conference in Yerevan.

HHK representatives have brushed aside the accusations, insisting that “the few violations” registered during the elections could not have any significant impact on the outcome of the vote that otherwise represented “a serious step forward” in comparison with the previous municipal polls.

CEC Chairman Tigran Mukuchian also suggested that separate incidents and violations reported during the vote could not overshadow the electoral process as a whole and that the process took place in accordance with the requirements of the Electoral Code.

Armenian Ruling Party Again Accused Of Vote Buying

With two days to go before municipal elections in Yerevan, the opposition Yelk alliance demanded on Friday that the ruling Republican Party (HHK) and its top candidate, incumbent Mayor Taron Markarian, be disqualified from the race because of what it called vote buying.

The demand was lodged with the Central Election Commission (CEC) the day after a correspondent for “Haykakan Zhamanak,” a newspaper close to Yelk’s mayoral candidate Nikol Pashinian, claimed to have witnessed distribution of vote bribes at an HHK campaign office in the city’s Malatia-Sebastia district.

The journalist, Anna Zakharian, said she saw local voters emerging from the office with 20,000-dram ($41) notes as well as ballots marked for the HHK and Markarian in their hands. She said she entered the office and started filming it with her mobile phone before being confronted by HHK activists working there. Zakharian claimed that they wrested the phone.

“Haykakan Zhamanak” released afterwards a short video which it said they tried unsuccessfully to delete. It shows people approaching a man sitting at a table and calling out their names inside the overcrowded office.

Pashinian and other Yelk leaders rushed to the scene later on Thursday, demanding that the Armenian police search the HHK office and stop the alleged vote buying. They complained afterwards that police officers alerted by them sealed but did not enter the premises.

The HHK’s campaign headquarters issued a statement, meanwhile, denying the Yelk allegations as “utter disinformation.”

Armenia - Yerevan Mayor Taron Markarian speaks at an election campaign rally in Erebuni district, 21Apr2017.

Yelk appealed to the CEC the following morning, demanding that the commission seek a court ruling that would disqualify the HHK and Markarian. In a separate petition, it also demanded that the commission ask the police to deploy officers at the HHK’s campaign offices across the city.

One of the opposition bloc’s representatives, Artak Zeynalian, said the Malatia-Sebastia incident is indicative of the HHK’s systematic recourse to vote buying both in the mayoral race and recent parliamentary elections.

The CEC was due to meet and consider the demands later in the day.

The CEC chairman, Tigran Mukuchian, declined to confirm or deny the alleged vote buying when he spoke to RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) on Friday. He said the incident is being investigated by law-enforcement authorities. The latter issued no statements to that effect as of late afternoon.

Mukuchian also denied that HHK campaigners in Malatia-Sebastia obtained valid ballots before the mayoral polls in violation of Armenian law. He claimed that they only used ballot samples as “propaganda material.”

Meanwhile, Yelk claimed to have uncovered evidence of vote buying at an HHK office in another Yerevan district, Arabkir. In a live Facebook broadcast, Pashinian demonstrated what he called HHK documents detailing distribution of vote bribes to local residents. He urged supporters to join a Yelk demonstration which was due to be staged in the area later in the day.

The HHK, which is headed by President Serzh Sarkisian, was already accused of buying votes during the April 2 parliamentary elections. Opposition groups say that the illegal practice was instrumental in the ruling party’s landslide election victory.

In an April 3 report, European observers cited “credible information about vote-buying, and pressure on civil servants and employees of private companies.”

A spokesman for the HHK subsequently admitted that vote bribes were handed out by some candidates. But he insisted that they did not have a “substantial impact” on the election outcome.

RFE/RL Reporter Assaulted During Yerevan Vote

A correspondent for RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) covering Sunday’s municipal elections in Yerevan was assaulted by government loyalists after witnessing distribution of cash to voters outside a campaign office of the ruling Republican Party (HHK).

The journalist, Sisak Gabrielian, saw a group of other citizens receiving money from another person shortly after they came out of the office located in the city’s central Kentron district.

“Did you vote for Taron?” one man asked them, referring to Yerevan’s incumbent Mayor Taron Markarian, who is affiliated with the HHK. “Yes, we did,” replied one of the citizens.

Gabrielian then went into the office and tried to interview HHK activists working there. Clearly taken aback, they immediately moved hid their papers lying on an office desk. One of them claimed that they are sharing pastry recipes with local residents.

Moments later, some of the young men started verbally abusing and jostling Gabrielian, who was thus forced to stop filming them with his mobile phone. One of them hit the journalist with his hat.

Gabrielian then heard threats from another man, who presented himself as an HHK-affiliated member of Yerevan’s outgoing municipal council. The man apologized to the RFE/RL correspondent shortly afterwards.

The HHK leadership and law-enforcement authorities did not immediately comment on the incident.

Gabrielian was already assaulted while witnessing a similar distribution of cash to voters in another HHK campaign office in Yerevan during the April 2 parliamentary elections. One man was subsequently charged with obstructing “legitimate professional activities of a journalist.” Law-enforcement authorities backed, however, HHK claims that that the ruling party was paying its local activists’ “wages,” rather than buying votes.

Armenian opposition and civic groups maintain that the party headed by President Serzh Sarkisian heavily relied on vote buying to win the April 2 ballot. European monitors similarly cited “credible information about vote buying.”

An HHK spokesman admitted on April 5 that vote bribes were handed out by some candidates. But he insisted that they did not have a “substantial impact” on the election results.

Opposition Leader Forced Out Of Ruling Party Office

Armenia - Police forcibly remove Zaruhi Postanjian, an opposition mayoral candidate, from a campaign office of the ruling Republican Party in Yerevan, 14May2017.

Կիսվել

Կարդալ մեկնաբանությունները

Police in Yerevan on Sunday forcibly removed Zaruhi Postanjian, an opposition mayoral candidate, from a campaign office of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) which she accused of bribing voters.

Postanjian, who was accompanied by her teenage daughter, entered the office located in the city’s northern Avan district during voting in municipal elections. She tried to get hold of what she described as lists of local resident who were paid by the HHK to vote for Yerevan’s incumbent Mayor Taron Markarian.

HHK activists working there rejected the demands during an ensuing altercation. They and Postanjian accused each other of violent conduct when they continued to bitterly argue in front of journalists.

“Nobody has the right to enter our office without permission,” shouted a middle-aged man managing the office.

The head of the HHK chapter in Avan, who also arrived at the scene, likewise argued that under Armenian law citizens not affiliated with a particular party are not free to enter its premises. He denied buying votes, while admitting that HHK offices in the district keep “lists of our voters.”

“Evidence of election fraud is kept in those drawers,” Postanjian told policer officers called up by the HHK activists. She demanded that they confiscate and examine the documents in her presence.

A police colonel said he will do that after all unauthorized persons leave the office. A furious Postanjian refused to leave it before being dragged away by other officers. They seemed intent on detaining her but changed their mind at the last minute.

Postanjian’s daughter, Lilit Drampian, was apparently driven away from the scene. The police insisted afterwards that she was not detained, however. Drampian suffered a concussion and was taken to a hospital, according to her mother.

Armenia -- Opposition mayoral candidate Zaruhi Postanjian gives a press conference in Yerevan, 14May2017

Postanjian, who is one of the two opposition candidates running for the post of Yerevan mayor, defended her actions and condemned the police at a news conference held later in the day. She argued that vote buying is illegal in Armenia.

In a written statement, the Armenian police said the use of force was justified because Postanjian defied the law-enforcement officers’ orders. The statement also said that she broke into the HHK office and tried to search it in breach of Armenia’s laws.

Still, a separate statement by the Office of the Prosecutor-General said that the police will investigate Postanjian’s allegations. It also said that it will assign another law-enforcement body, the Special Investigative Service, to deal with the Avan incident.

Tigran Mukuchian, the pro-government chairman of Armenia’s Central Election Commission (CEC), denounced Postanjian’s actions. “It is unacceptable when someone enters a campaign office and tries to paralyze its work,” he told reporters.

Postanjian’s Yerkir Tsirani party and the Yelk alliance, the other opposition contender in Yerevan’s mayoral race, have repeatedly accused the CEC of turning a blind eye to systematic vote buying by the HHK. Yelk went as far as to demand on Friday that President Serzh Sarkisian’s party be disqualified from the race. The CEC rejected the demand.

http://araratnews.am/vostikannereh-ehntrateghamasic-teghaphoxel-en-khveatherthiknerov-paharaneh-tesanyuth/

Իշխանությունների զազրելի գործողությունները՝ կեղծված ընտրություններից հետո

Օհանյան-Րաֆֆի-Օսկանյան դաշինքի հայտարարությունը 

Ապրիլի 2-ի կեղծված ընտրություններին հետևեցին իշխանությունների ոչ պակաս զազրելի գործողությունները:

Ապրիլի 14-ին Վարչական դատարանը, իշխող ՀՀԿ-ի քաղաքական ղեկավարության ակնհայտ ուղղորդմամբ, մերժեց Օհանյան-Րաֆֆի-Օսկանյան դաշինքի հայցադիմումը, որով պահանջվում էր պարտավորեցնել ԿԸՀ-ին ստեղծել ընտրությունների ժամանակ էլեկտրոնային հատուկ սարքերում կուտակված մատնահետքերի միասնական բազա և կատարել դրանց համադրում՝ բացահայտելու համար կրկնաքվեարկությունները: Այսպիսով, ևս մեկ անգամ փաստվեց, որ Հայաստանի Հանրապետության ներկայիս արդարադատության համակարգը ծառայում է ոչ թե արդարության և օրինականության ապահովմանը այլ իշխանությունների պարտադրված կեղծիքին:

Մինչ այդ՝ ապրիլի 12-ին, ՀՀ Վճռաբեկ դատարանը մերժել է Վերաքննիչ դատարանի կողմից Անդրիաս Ղուկասյանի հանդեպ կալանքի կիրառման և գրավի միջնորդության վերաբերյալ մերժման դեմ բողոքը: Այսպիսով, Անդրիաս Ղուկասյանը մյուս բոլոր քաղկալանավորների և քաղբանտարկյալների պես շարունակում է մնալ ճաղերի ետևում:

Մինչդեռ այսպես կոչված մարդու իրավունքների պաշտպանը քաղաքացիների իրավունքները պաշտպանելու փոխարեն, գերազանցելով իր լիազորությունները և ստանձնելով դատախազի կարգավիճակ, օրերս հանդես եկավ մեղադրական «եզրակացություններով»՝ Սարի թաղի դեպքերի հետևանքով մինչ օրս քաղաքական հետապնդումների ենթարկվող քաղաքական գործիչների և քաղաքացիական ակտիվիստների գործողությունների մասին: Նշված գործով քննությունն ավարտական փուլում է, և շուտով գործերը քննվելու են դատարանում, և դժվար չէ կռահել թե ինչին է փորձում իշխանությունների պատվերով նախապատրաստել հասարակական կարծիքը մարդու իրավունքների կեղծ պաշտպանը:

Զուգահեռաբար իշխող վարչախումբը հարձակում է գործում իր ապօրինությունների բացահայտման ուղղությամբ քայլեր կատարած քաղհասարակության ներկայացուցիչների հանդեպ: ՀՀԿ-ական ուսուցիչների կողմից նախընտրական շրջանում ադմինիստրատիվ ռեսուրսի չարաշահումը բացահայտած «Իրազեկ քաղաքացիների միավորում» հասարակական կազմակերպության դեմ 30 ուսուցիչների կողմից հայցերի կազմակերպված ներկայացումը դատարան ևս պետք է դիտարկել քաղաքական հաշվեհարդարի շրջանակներում: Այսպիսով, իշխանությունները իրենց կամակատարների ապօրինությունների իրավական գնահատականը տալու և դրանց հեղինակներին պատժելու փոխարեն քաղաքական հետապնդում են սկսել այդ ապօրինությունները բացահայտած հասարակական կազմակերպության դեմ:

ՍԱՍ սուպերմարկետների ցանցի սեփականատեր, ՀՀԿ-ի անդամ Արտակ Սարգսյանի օգտին սեփական աշխատակիցներից ձայներ կորզելու՝ օրերս բացահայտված ապօրինի մեթոդաբանությունը ևս այլ կերպ, քան հաշվեհարդարի սպառնալիքներով ուղեկցվող քաղաքական հետապնդում անվանել հնարավոր չէ:

Օհանյան-Րաֆֆի-Օսկանյան դաշինքը դատապարտում է վերը թվարկված բոլոր ապօրինությունները և իր զորակցությունը հայտնում բոլոր քաղբանտարկյալներին և քաղաքական հետապնդումների ենթարկվող քաղաքացիներին և կազմակերպություններին:

School Chiefs Sue Civic Group Over Pre-Election Scandal

The directors of 30 public schools and kindergartens have sued an Armenian civil society group that tricked them into confessing that they told their staffs and children’s parents to vote for the ruling Republican Party (HHK) in this month’s parliamentary elections.

They are seeking a formal apology and a total of 60 million drams ($124,000) in damages for the scandalous revelations which they say compromised their “honor and dignity.”

The Union of Informed Citizens (UIC) revealed late last month that its activists posing as HHK representatives telephoned 136 schools and kindergarten chiefs across Armenia. It said 114 of them admitted drawing up lists of children’s parents as well as schoolteachers and kindergarten staff who pledged support for the HHK in the April 2 polls.

The UIC said the lists were submitted to local government bodies or HHK campaign offices. It also publicized audio of those phone conversations.

Armenian opposition forces portrayed the revelations as further proof of their allegations of HHK foul play in the parliamentary race. Some of them demanded that the Central Election Commission (CEC) seek a court ruling that would disqualify the HHK from the race. The CEC rejected those demands.

The HHK admitted that many school principals are campaigning for its election victory. But it claimed that they are doing so “beyond their work hours and work duties.”

An HHK deputy chairman, Armen Ashotian, approved of the lawsuit when he spoke to RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) on Tuesday.

Harutiun Harutiunian, a lawyer representing the plaintiffs, claimed that the UIC revelations amounted to defamation of character. “My clients unequivocally assert that they did not abuse administrative resources,” he said.

Daniel Ioannisian, an UIC activist, countered that his civic group accused the ruling party, rather than the principals, of such abuses. “Let the Republican Party sue us and say that it didn’t abuse administrative resources,” he said. “In that case, we would have something to discuss.”

“We didn’t say that the principals are abusing administrative resources,” Ioannisian told RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). “We only presented facts and evaluated the whole thing.”

The activist also claimed that the legal action was orchestrated by the HHK leadership in retaliation against the embarrassing revelations. It is aimed at restricting freedom of expression in Armenia, he said.

In a preliminary report released on April 3, European election observers mentioned the UIC recordings in the context of “credible reports of pressure and intimidation on voters, especially on private and public sector employees.”

Tankian Blasts Lawsuit Against Armenian Civic Group

Armenian-American rock musician Serj Tankian has condemned the pro-government directors of 30 schools and kindergartens in Armenia for suing a civic organization that exposed their highly controversial involvement in the ruling HHK party’s parliamentary election campaign.

“Someone bringing attention to corruption and injustice should be praised not prosecuted,” Tankian wrote on his Facebook page on Wednesday.

“If the school principals involved feel embarrassed at the revelation of their inappropriate actions, they should go after those that put them in that position, not a journalist,” he said.

The directors are seeking a formal apology and a total of 60 million drams ($124,000) in damages from the Union of Informed Citizens (UIC) and its most prominent activist, Daniel Ioannisian. They claim that UIC actions compromised their “honor and dignity.”

UIC activists posed as HHK representatives when they telephoned 136 schools and kindergarten chiefs across Armenia in the run-up to the April 2 elections. The vast majority of them admitted drawing up lists of students’ parents as well as schoolteachers and kindergarten staff who pledged to vote for the HHK.

The UIC said the lists were submitted to local government bodies or HHK campaign offices. It portrayed audio recordings of the phone conversations as further proof that the ruling party is abusing its administrative resources to win the elections.

Tankian met with Ioannisian and other civic activists when he arrived in Armenia late last month to monitor the vote together with several other ethnic Armenian artists from the United States and Canada. In his Facebook message, the lead singer of the rock band System Of A Down praised Ioannisian for his “efforts in journalistic activism.”

The court case against the UIC has also been denounced by other Armenian society representatives as well as the opposition Congress-HZhK alliance.

“This is the authorities’ style,” Levon Zurabian, a leading member of the alliance, told RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) on Thursday. “When they organize electoral fraud at a state level and when we present evidence of that, it turns out afterwards that the law was broken not by the person who gave vote bribes but the person who exposed them.”

Zurabian also decried the fact that the overwhelming majority of school principals in Armenia are affiliated with the HHK.

The HHK leadership has defended the controversial lawsuit, while denying that it told the school chiefs to take the UIC to court. Armen Ashotian, a deputy chairman of the party, said on Wednesday that the principals are right to defend themselves against “information aggression.”