HOW THEY SLANDERED VAZGEN MANUKYAN
Vrej Aharonyan

Hayots Ashkharh
Dec 21 2007
Armenia

We have already published Vazgen Manukyan’s announcement in the
previous issue of "Hayots Ashkharh" daily. Leader of the National
Democratic Union demanded to institute a criminal case on the article
entitled as "MENI KAMPF"(My Struggle), published in "Haykakan Jamanak"
daily, 15.12.2007, for slandering and insulting his personality.

By our request Vazgen Manukyan’s representative, member of Attorneys’
Palace Vardan Zurnachyan gave us the copy of this application-complain,
the abbreviation of which we introduce to the attention of our readers.

"I inform You, that a big article has been published in 224 issue of
"Haykakan Jamanak" daily, entitled as "VAZGEN MANUKYAN’S MENI KAMPF"
(my struggle), which has publicly spread obvious lies, discrediting
my honor and dignity. The before mentioned information is combined
with grave and especially grave crimes in my address.

Besides that the author of the article has indecently tried to
humiliate my honor and dignity.

Thus the author of the article Garegin Asoyan, in the purpose of
slandering me: 1) has spread obviously false information, according to
which on September 27, 1996 handwritten documents have been confiscated
from the office of the National Democratic Union, which, as he said,
have been written by me during the period between 1995 parliamentary
elections and 1996 presidential elections.

2) To confirm this obvious false information they have published some
parts of the document in the handwritten form and the other parts in
italics – with the estimations and commentaries of the author.

3) The article has been divided into 8 subtitles. Each of them
contained indecent insults in my address.

4) Aimed at ascribing the written texts to me the author of the
article made false statements, saying that I allegedly speak about
myself in the third person and that I have made remarks about myself
in the handwritten texts, again in the third person.

I have been informed about the confiscation of one handwritten document
from the office of the National Democratic Union, from 17.10.1996
issue of "02" weekly. The documents mentioned in the article are not
written by me. And it hasn’t been confirmed by any competent body that
the documents confiscated from the office of the National Democratic
Party had been written by me.

In such circumstance the editorial staff and the author of the
newspaper didn’t have the right to spread information saying that the
before mentioned documents are written by me. Thus the information
that I have written these documents and that "they have served as a
practical program to come to power and a mechanism to realize this
program" are not grounded, it is an obvious lie and slander against me.

With this article the author went beyond all the limits of journalistic
ethics and morality, by label me as a "criminal", "immoral", "evil",
person a "traitor", "wild fanatic" and "dictator", aimed at humiliating
my honor and dignity.

In fact the author of the article, by the permission or even the
leadership of the editor-in-chief did something, which is envisaged
as crime by articles 135 and 136 of RA Criminal Code.

Based on the before mentioned, I appeal to You, honorable Prosecutor
General, to check all the facts mentioned in my application-complain,
and to institute a criminal case against those who are accused of
insulting and slandering me."