PACE MONITORING COMMITTEE REMAINS CONCERNED ABOUT THE LIMITED PROGRESS WITH REGARD TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF RESOLUTIONS 1609 AND 1620

ArmInfo
2008-10-02 17:44:00

ArmInfo. The PACE Monitoring Committee remains concerned about the
limited progress with regard to the implementation of Resolutions
1609 and 1620.

As the Council of Europe Office on Armenia told ArmInfo, Thursday,
the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council
of Europe (PACE) has received the report from the Human Rights
Commissioner regarding his visit to Yerevan from 13 to 15 July 2008
and is extremely alarmed about its findings and conclusions that show
that only limited progress has been achieved regarding key demands
of the Assembly.

The committee therefore invited the Human Rights Commissioner to
return to Yerevan and report back to the committee at its meeting in
Paris on 17 December 2008.

While noting the positive steps made regarding establishment of an
independent and credible inquiry, the Monitoring Committee remains
extremely concerned regarding persons deprived of their liberty in
relation to the events on 1 and 2 March 2008. In Resolution 1620
(2008), the Assembly made it clear that "the cases still under
investigation should be closed or promptly brought before the courts";
"a verdict based solely on police testimony without corroborating
evidence cannot be acceptable" and that "the cases under Articles
300 and 225 of the Criminal Code should be dropped unless there is
strong evidence that the accused have personally committed acts of
violence or ordered, abetted or assisted to commit them".

In that respect, the committee took note that, while the investigations
regarding persons in preventive detention have now closed, the cases
against seven, all charged under articles 300 and 225, have not yet
been brought before the courts as a result of the excessive length
of the investigation.

In addition, the committee is deeply concerned that the investigations
regarding the responsibility for the ten deaths on 1 and 2 March have
not yet been, or are not yet on the point of being, concluded. Serious
questions remain regarding the nature of the charges brought against
people arrested in relation to the events on 1 and 2 March, as well
as regarding the court proceedings of several cases, including with
regard to the principle of a fair trial. In addition, and contrary
to Assembly demands, 19 persons have been convicted on the basis of
police testimony only. The committee is therefore seriously concerned
that people may have been detained, and even convicted, based on
political beliefs and non-violent activities, which is unacceptable to
the Assembly. The committee regrets that the Armenian authorities did
not consider the possibility of amnesty, pardons, or any other legal
means available to them, to resolve the situation regarding persons
deprived of their liberty in relation to the events on 1 and 2 March
2008. It strongly urges the authorities to consider such options,
which would result in major progress towards meeting the requirements
of the Assembly. The committee noted the positive steps regarding
the establishment of an independent and credible inquiry as outlined
in the report by the Commissioner. The committee expresses its full
support for the proposals made by the Commissioner. It welcomes the
constructive dialogue between the Armenian authorities and Commissioner
on this issue and hopes that the remaining outstanding issues will
be resolved soon in order for the expert group to start and finalise
its work as soon as possible.

The committee is of the view that Armenia is on a threshold regarding
the implementation of Resolutions 1609 (2008) and 1620 (2008). Now
is the time for the Armenian authorities to show the political will
to resolve this problem. The committee places its full trust in, and
gives its full support for the work of the Human Rights Commissioner
in this respect. Therefore, it would invite the Commissioner to make
a follow-up visit to Yerevan and to report back to the committee at
its meeting on 17 December 2008 on the progress made regarding the
independent and credible inquiry and release of persons deprived of
their liberty in relation to the events on 1 and 2 March. In December,
on the basis of that report, the committee will make its decision on
the actions, and possible sanctions, it will recommend to the plenary
of the Assembly in January 2009.