HAMLET GHUSHCHIAN ADMITS HIS WRONGDOING TO PARTIALITY FOUND PLACE IN FILM ABOUT SAMVEL BABAYAN
Noyan Tapan
May 16 2006
YEREVAN, MAY 16, NOYAN TAPAN. TV journalist Hamlet Ghushchian
apologizes to Samvel Babayan, the former Commander of the Artsakh
Defence Army, the Chairman of the “Dashink” (Alliance) party for
one-sidedly presenting facts in the film shot about the latter. He
stated about it at the May 15 meeting taken place at the “Pakagits”
club. After March 22, 2000, attempt made upon NKR President Arkadi
Ghukasian’s life, of organization of which Samvel Babayan was accused,
H.Ghushchian, who was the head of the “Or” (Day) information program
of the “Armenia” TV then, shot the “The Hell’s and Heaven’s Ruler”
film dedicated to those events. According to the journalist, Samvel
Babayan’s supporters’ opinions did not find place in the film as
there was nobody expressing such opinions then. And according to
H.Ghushchian, facts presented in the film and operative shootings
used in it were given by the NKR authorities, particularly, by the
Prosecutor’s Office, Tax Inspectorate, State Television of Artsakh.
“Factually, a number of officials of legal structures of that time
and especially Prosecutor General Mavrik Ghukasian led us into error,”
H.Ghushchian stated. According to him, after the film many people were
sure that S.Babayan and his supporters were worthly panished. According
to H.Ghushchian, only in few months after the legal procedure opinions
were expressed that the action brought aganist the General has a
political colouring, and that the accusations found place in the
criminal case “not so much correspond to reality.”
H.Ghushchian presented the document given to him by the “Dashink”
party, according to which, facts concerning more than 80 cars,
goldenware and diamonds of 3 mln dollars total value, etc. belonging
to Samvel Babayan were exaggerated in the information submitted
to him then. The journalist who returned Armenia after having been
absent for 3 years, visited Samvel Babayan. The latter, according to
H.Ghushchian, showed knightly attitude and forgave him. “Journalist’s
ethics requires that I, first of all, apologize to former Commander
of the Artsakh Defence Army, Lieutenant General Samvel Babayan and to
all those televiewers, who, factually, were given wrong information,”
H,Ghushchian stated. He informed that he is going to shoot a new
film about Samvel Babayan in which the two sides’ opinions will be
presented. Responding colleagues’ questions, H.Ghushchian stated that
either in 2000 or now he did not and does not implement anybody’s
order, he is not a member of any party, including the “Dashink” party,
and his statement does not relate to state elections expected in the
country. H.Ghushchian informed that from Moscow where he worked as
the press secretary at Chairman of the Union of Armenians in Russian
and the World Armenian Congress Ara Abrahamian, he returned getting
a proposal from businessman Hrant Vardanian to head the “Grandmedia”
TV holding which is being newly created.