FORUM 18 NEWS SERVICE, Oslo, Norway
The right to believe, to worship and witness
The right to change one’s belief or religion
The right to join together and express one’s belief
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Friday 23 September 2005
ARMENIA: NEW WAVE OF JEHOVAH’S WITNESS SENTENCES BEGINS
Shaliko Sarkissian became the first Jehovah’s Witness who abandoned
alternative service because it remains under defence ministry control to
be punished. On 15 September a court in the capital Yerevan imprisoned him
for two and a half years for “desertion”. The trial of another, Garik
Bekjanyan, is imminent, while a further dozen await trial. An OSCE
official expressed alarm to Forum 18 at the “growing number” of Jehovah’s
Witness prisoners. The Council of Europe and the OSCE have condemned
Armenia’s failure to introduce a genuine civilian alternative to military
service. But Sedrak Sedrakyan of the Defence Ministry’s legal department
rejects all complaints, insisting that his ministry has “no control” over
the alternative service. He dismisses all concerns about the Jehovah’s
Witnesses. “We believe all this has been organised to make a show,” he
told Forum 18.
ARMENIA: NEW WAVE OF JEHOVAH’S WITNESS SENTENCES BEGINS
By Felix Corley, Forum 18 News Service
All 22 Jehovah’s Witnesses who abandoned their alternative military
service because it remains under defence ministry control and does not
provide a genuine civilian alternative to military service now face severe
punishment. First to be punished was Shaliko Sarkissian, sentenced to two
and a half years’ imprisonment on 15 September by a court in the capital
Yerevan, Jehovah’s Witness sources told Forum 18 News Service on 20
September. Most of the others have already been arrested and are awaiting
trial. But Lieutenant Colonel Sedrak Sedrakyan, head of the Defence
Ministry’s legal department, dismissed concern about their fate. “We
believe all this has been organised to make a show,” he told Forum 18 from
Yerevan on 21 September. “We did all we could to allow them to serve their
alternative service quietly.” He denied categorically that the alternative
service is under military control, an assertion rejected by the Jehovah’s
Witnesses and the Yerevan office of the Organisation for Security and
Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
Sarkissian was one of two Jehovah’s Witnesses doing his alternative
service at Nork infectious diseases hospital and one of thirteen Jehovah’s
Witnesses to abandon their alternative service in August. He was found
guilty by Yerevan’s Nork-Marash District Court of violating Article 365(1)
of the Criminal Code, which punishes “desertion”.
“Shaliko Sarkissian was one of our people who had accepted alternative
service but left when he realised that alternative service came under the
control of the military,” Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18. “These
conscientious objectors are prepared to perform genuine alternative
civilian service.”
An official of the OSCE in Yerevan expressed alarm at the “growing number”
of Jehovah’s Witness prisoners. “This is a worrying trend as their
imprisonment violates Armenia’s Council of Europe commitment,” the
official, who preferred not to be named, told Forum 18 from Yerevan on 20
September. “This certainly will not help Armenia’s international
reputation.”
On joining the Council of Europe in 2001, Armenia committed itself to
adopting a genuine civilian alternative to military service for those not
able to serve on grounds of conscience, but failed to meet this
commitment. “The recent steps taken by the Armenian government certainly
are alarming and show blatant disregard for their adopted obligations
before the Council of Europe,” the Jehovah’s Witnesses complain.
The alternative service law – which came into force on 1 July 2004, and
was amended by parliament on 22 November 2004 and again on 24 December
2004 – provides for “alternative military service” of 36 months and
“alternative labour service” of 42 months, both under the ultimate
oversight of the defence ministry, thus failing to meet its commitments.
The OSCE official expressed concern about the law. “We think the
alternative service law was not drafted and implemented in good faith. The
OSCE was involved in the drafting process but the Armenian authorities
disregarded our views.” The official said the law must ensure a genuine
civilian alternative to military service and must not be punitive in
length.
The Council of Europe agrees. “We believe there should be a clear civilian
alternative to military service in Armenia,” Krzysztof Zyman of its
directorate general for human rights told Forum 18 from Strasbourg on 20
September. He regretted that repeated requests to the Armenian government
and its representation at the Council of Europe for copies of the latest
amendments to the alternative service law have been ignored. “We are
urging the Armenian authorities to cooperate with the Council of Europe so
that the alternative service law meets European standards,” Zyman added.
Article 6 of the law states that issues related to alternative service are
dealt with by the military. Article 13 mentions that workers are assigned
by the Military Conscription Committee. Article 14 says that the
alternative service call-up is organised and supervised by the military.
Those doing alternative service are required to wear uniforms, are clothed
and fed by the armed forces, have identity cards reading “Armed Forces of
the Republic of Armenia”, are under military supervision and control and
subject to military punishment if they fail to meet their obligations.
However, Sedrakian of the defence ministry denies this. “Those doing
alternative service are under the control of the Social Care Ministry and
the Health Ministry,” he claimed to Forum 18. “The Defence Ministry has no
control over them and has nothing to do with them. Passports are routinely
taken off conscripts when they are called up and the same goes for those
doing alternative service. But their identity cards make no reference to
the armed forces. That is impossible.” He denied that those doing
alternative service are fed or clothed by the army, insisting that the
defence ministry receives no financial allocation for these purposes.
Sedrakian insisted that army officers have no right to give orders or
instructions of any sort to those doing alternative service. “In the first
few days as the system was being established there were contacts with the
Defence Ministry, but no control,” he maintained. “We simply checked where
they were housed to make sure everything was OK.”
He claimed that for the autumn call-up due shortly, each applicant for
alternative service will be considered by a commission. “Only one member
of this commission will be from the Ministry of Defence – the rest will be
officials of the government administration.”
The first Jehovah’s Witnesses to abandon the alternative service quit in
May (see F18News 17 May 2005
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Of the other Jehovah’s Witnesses who abandoned their alternative service
in August, on 17 August the Republic Court of Appeal reversed the decision
of the Centre-Marash District Court to release Garik Bekjanyan and ruled to
arrest him. He faces charges under Article 361(1) of the Criminal Code and
his trial is expected imminently. On 17 August the Gegarkunik Region
Prosecutor’s Office charged Vagarshak Margaryan, Baris Melkumyan, Gagik
Davtyan and Artur Chilingarov under Article 361(5). They were arrested the
same day.
On 22 August, the Gegarkunik regional prosecutor’s office instituted
criminal cases against seven more, Tigran Abrahamyan, Garazat Azatyan,
Vahe Grigoryan, Hayk Khachatryan, Gegarin Melkonyan, Henrik Safaryan, and
Karlen Simonyan. All were charged under Article 361(4). Other regional
prosecutor’s offices have summoned other Jehovah’s Witnesses who had
refused to continue the alternative civilian service to which they were
assigned.
Meanwhile, other Jehovah’s Witnesses called up since the extent of
military control over the alternative service became clear continue to be
sentenced. In the town of Talin in western Armenia, Hakop Muradyan was
sentenced on 15 September to one and a half years’ imprisonment under
Article 327 of the Criminal Code, which punishes refusal to perform
military service. Muradyan, who was arrested on 2 August, does not intend
to appeal against the sentence.
Other such sentences earlier this year include two years’ imprisonment
handed down to Yenok Ivanyan on 1 July and a prison term of one and a half
years handed down to Hrachya Sarkissian on 16 August. Both were sentenced
under Article 327.
A printer-friendly map of Armenia is available at
<;Rootmap=armeni>
(END)
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