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POLITICAL CHAMOMILE: WILL THEY SUSPEND ARMENIA’S RIGHT OR NOT?
[07:19 pm] 16 January, 2009
Co-rapporteurs of the PACE Monitoring Committee John Prescott and Georges Colombier left Armenia today morning without telling a press conference.
The parliamentary opposition, the Heritage Party, maintains that Armenia has not implemented PACE Resolutions.
`It is not accidental that the Monitoring Committee has passed such a draft resolution. Generally, draft resolutions are confirmed and ratified in sessions but for exceptional cases. We all know that we cannot work miracles,’ Heritage MP Zaruhy Postanjyan said to A1+.
Mrs. Postanjyan says today people are kept in isolation wards without a legal reasoning. A thorough inquiry into the death of ten victims has failed. It is already a year since the tragic events of March 1 but no one has been brought to justice yet. The trial of seven opposition figures is real farce as innocent people are incited for an alleged crime.
Both Zaruhy Postanjyan and Armen Khachatryan, Coordinator of the Center for the legal support of political prisoners, think the adjournment of the trial by January 30 has political grounds: Armenian authorities are waiting for the upcoming PACE session.
`With regard to the implementation of the disputed resolutions I must say that Armenia has made a backward step since the country hasn’t met the PACE demands. Moreover, it has increased violations of judicial rules. `They roughly breach legal norms. They want to illegally extort pardon from the detainees which is inadmissible. A person serving a probation period shouldn’t be treated in such a way,’ said Mr. Khachatryan.
`The Co-rapporteurs visited Armenia to make sure whether the PACE recommendations had been implemented or not. That’s all. I think they are well informed of the political scene in Armenia,’ added Mr. Khachatryan. He thinks this time the authorities didn’t tell a lie and straightforwardly confessed their idleness.
Unlike the opposition, Republican MP Edward Sharmazanov is sure that the Monitoring Committee will not suspend Armenia’s right to vote. `Armenia still has much to do in view of human rights and democracy. Yet, a lot has been done to surmount the political crisis in the country and to meet the PACE requirements. I find the prospect of suspending Armenia’s right unpromising as there are not grounds for it.’ Regardless of the PACE January session, Sharmazanov thinks Armenia should continue democratic reforms.