Agence France Presse
March 13, 2009 Friday 3:28 PM GMT

Armenia rights defender condemns beating of photojournalist

YEREVAN, March 13 2009

Armenia’s top human-rights official condemned the beating of a
photojournalist Friday as evidence of a culture of "intolerance"
towards the media in the former Soviet republic.

Newspaper photographer Gagik Shamshian was beaten by security guards
at a local university after attempting to take pictures of students,
police said in a statement. He was being treated in hospital for groin
injuries and internal bleeding. One suspect was later arrested, police
said.

Armenia’s ombudsman, Armen Harutunian, called for a thorough
investigation and denounced the attack.

"This latest action against a journalist shows once more that
intolerance has taken root in our society," he said in a statement.

Harutunian has accused authorities of not doing enough to prevent
attacks on journalists or to find those responsible.

Numerous Armenian journalists have been attacked in recent years,
including the head of the country’s association of investigative
reporters, who was severely beaten last November.