PACE RAPPORTEUR ON PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS IN ARMENIA WELCOMED THE MITIGATION OF THE STATE OF EMERGENCY

Mediamax
March 11, 2008

Yerevan /Mediamax/. Rapporteur of the parliamentary Assembly of the
Council of Europe (PACE) on presidential elections in Armenia John
Prescott today welcomed the lifting of two provisions of the State
of Emergency.

As Mediamax was told in Yerevan Office of the Council of Europe, John
Prescott, in particular, welcomed the lifting of the suspension of
the activities of political parties and NGOs, which he specifically
called for during his recent visit.

"I now call upon the authorities to lift the remaining provisions
of the declaration of the State of Emergency, especially those that
limit the freedom of the media", Prescott stated.

He confirmed his position, voiced earlier, according to which the
only manner in which the current crisis can be resolved is through
the recognition of the authority of the Constitutional Court and its
ruling on the outcome of the Presidential elections, the lifting of
the State of Emergency and the restoration of individual Human Rights
and Freedoms, the establishment of an independent inquiry into the
circumstances that led to the events on 1 March 2008 and the start
of a dialogue between all political forces on the necessary political
and electoral reform.

John Prescott will report on his findings and conclusions to the
President of the Assembly at the meeting of the PACE Bureau in Paris
on 13 March 2008.