ARMENIAN WEB SITE CRITICAL OF OFFICIALS’ FAILURE TO ACCOUNT FOR RESHUFFLE

Golos Armenii web site, Yerevan
29 Mar 04

Personnel changes in the Armenian police (the chief of Yerevan’s
police directorate, Col Aram Zakharyan, has been promoted to chief of
the department for state protection of the Armenian police; his
replacement as Yerevan police chief is Col Nerses Nazaryan, former
chief of the capital’s Erebuni-Nubarashen police department. The chief
of Yerevan’s traffic police has also been replaced. This post has
been taken over by Markar Oganyan, who until now was in charge of the
State Traffic Police of Yerevan and the republic). Such changes in the
law-enforcement agency and the Armenian Prosecutor-General’s Office
gave rise to numerous semi-truthful rumours (as published), which
happens whenever those who take decisions do not bother to explain
them.

The opposition press rushed to explain the reshuffle and also the
dismissal of some prosecutors in the capital’s communities and their
replacement by others by the upcoming actions of radicals to change
power. Alas, neither the president, nor the justice minister nor the
new prosecutor-general have so far commented on the dismissal of
prosecutors.

Under the presidential decrees, Akop Babayan has become the prosecutor
of the Erebuni community (replaced Mikael Badiryan), Dzhon Farkhoyan
has become the prosecutor of the Shengavit community (instead of
Aleksandr Garibyan), Gevork Tovmasyan has become the prosecutor of the
Avan and Nor-Nork communities (replaced Armen Sardaryan), Gagik
Khachikyan has become the prosecutor of the Achapnyak and Davidashen
communities (instead of Ovannes Stepanyan).

(Passage omitted: known appointments)