ARMENIA RETAINS VOTING RIGHTS IN COUNCIL OF EUROPE’S PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY
Gayane Abrahamyan

EurasiaNet
June 26 2008
NY

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe has voted
to give Armenia another six months to comply with its demands
for liberalization following the March 1 crackdown on opposition
protestors. The June 25 decision could have resulted in suspension
of Armenia’s voting rights in the body – a move that many opposition
members and human rights activists within Armenia argue is still
warranted.

In a report released on the day of the vote, the Assembly expressed
disappointment with "the delay in implementing the concrete measures
to comply with its demands," but opted to give the Armenian government
the benefit of the doubt. "[T]he Assembly acknowledges that the time
given to the Armenian authorities was short," the report reads.

Armenia has been given until January 2009 to comply with the
resolution’s terms or face a possible suspension of its PACE voting
rights.

In its Resolution 1609, issued on April 17, PACE called on the
Armenian government to lift restrictions on public rallies, to launch
an independent inquiry into the March 1 crackdown on opposition
protestors, to set up a dialogue with opposition parties, and to
release those individuals imprisoned "on seemingly artificial and
politically motivated charges."

Two PACE co-rapporteurs recently evaluated as "unsatisfactory"
the progress made to date in meeting those demands. [For details,
see the Eurasia Insight archive].

The government counters that it has already met PACE’s main demands
by relaxing some restrictions on public demonstrations – a June 20
rally held by ex-President Levon Ter-Petrosian is cited as a case
in point – and by setting up a temporary parliamentary commission to
look into the events of March 1.

"Granting extra time for further implementation of the resolution shows
that PACE appreciates the government’s steps, so we will continue to
do our best to return Armenia to a normal political life," ruling
Republican Party of Armenia spokesperson Eduard Sharmazanov told
EurasiaNet.

Despite Sharmazanov’s optimism, however, the report indicated that
strong concerns persist about Armenia’s response to the resolution.

While Ter-Petrosian’s rally was viewed as a key test of the
government’s willingness to allow opposition demonstrations after the
violence of March 1, the Assembly, the report states, "insists that
the Armenian authorities should now allow rallies to be organized by
the opposition without placing undue restrictions on them."

As expected, the body also urged that prosecutors drop charges against
those imprisoned after March 1 for reasons other than violence or
"other criminal offenses."

In line with that demand, the Assembly has called for the Armenian
parliament to "adopt a general amnesty law" or for President Serzh
Sarkisian to pardon all those who are not connected to the ten
fatalities that resulted from the March 1 clash.

The measure is seen as intended to encourage a broader-based dialogue
between the government and opposition. Ter-Petrosian stated at his
June 20 rally that he will talk with officials only if "political
prisoners" are released.

A call has also gone out for changes to Armenia’s criminal
code. Articles that allowed "[a] significant number of persons" to
be charged with usurpation of power and causing mass disorder "are
problematic as they allow for broad interpretation, leave excessive
discretion to the prosecutor" and "fail to give clear guidance on the
dividing line between legitimate expressions of opinion and incitement
to violence."

The report also cautioned that "a [court] verdict based solely on a
single police testimony without corroborating evidence or independent
witnesses cannot be acceptable."

To date, 53 detainees have received prison sentences and 12 have
received suspended prison sentences. Seventeen individuals are in
jail awaiting trial; 11 others have been charged, but released after
signing a document that forbids them from leaving the country.

Opposition parties, however, have characterized the government’s
measures as superficial at best. Many government critics say that
they are less than pleased with the PACE decision.

"We are concerned with the time PACE has given [for Armenia to comply
with its resolution], as it is too long and means our relatives will
stay in prison for the next six months," Melissa Braun, the American
wife of Ter-Petrosian’s campaign manager, Alexander Arzumanian, one
of the detainees, told EurasiaNet. Braun was taking part in a June
25 protest in front of the Yerevan office of the Council of Europe
organized by wives of the March 1 detainees. "We have passed on a
letter to the president of the PACE, Louis Maria de Pucchi, asking
[him] to be more consistent."

Human rights activist Artur Sakunts, chairman of the Vanadzor office
of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly, says that PACE’s decision was
"a political decision that is not the objective evaluation of the
human rights situation in Armenia." Sakunts doubts that the extra
time allotted for compliance with PACE resolution 1609 will lead to
any changes.

"In reality, Armenia has not shown progress and PACE understands it
very well," he said.

One senior opposition politician, though, who was recently released
from prison, argues that the latest resolution is harsher and more
likely to discipline the government.

"The major advantage as compared to resolution 1609 is that the
problems and the requirements here are more exact and the authorities
will have less space to maneuver and override the requirements,"
Suren Surentyants, a member of the Republic Party’s political council,
told EurasiaNet.

One political analyst agrees.

"The pressure is so intense that the authorities will be forced to
take the report into consideration and go for certain concessions
this time," predicted Stepan Danielian, chairman of the Cooperation
for Democracy non-governmental organization.

Meanwhile, Armenians on both sides of the political fence are left
watching and waiting.