CHAKHALYAN’S FATE IS THE PROBLEM OF THE REGION’S ENTIRE ARMENIAN POPULATION

/PanARMENIAN.Net/
03.06.2009 18:36 GMT+04:00

/PanARMENIAN.Net/ The fate of Vahagn Chakhalyan, leader of "United
Javahk Democratic Alliance" movement, is the problem of the entire
Armenian population of Samtskhe-Javakheti, French lawyer and member of
Paris Bar Patrik Arapyan said. "The problem of the region’s Armenian
population has very deep causes. Since the time of President Zviad
Gamsakhurdia’s rule, the country was governed by the slogan ‘Georgia
for Georgians’. As a result of such policy, the region’s Armenian
population decreased from 0.5 million to 280 thousand. Armenian
activist Chakhalyan’s case should be viewed in the light of such
developments," the lawyer stressed.

On May 29, Tbilisi administrative court held the second hearing to
consider Georgian Justice Ministry’s refusal to register Patrick
Arapyan as Chakhalyan’s defender. After the respondent, i.e. Georgian
Justice Ministry, submitted documents on the court case, the judge
postponed the hearing till June 15, accounting for such decision by
the necessity to review the documents. On February 16, 2009 Georgian
Justice Ministry refused to register lawyer Arapyan as Chakhalyan’s
defender, without giving any justification for such decision. In a
letter addressed to Justice Minister Adeishvili, Georgian Ombudsman
Sozar Subari proposed that Chakhalyan’s right be reinstated by allowing
the French lawyer to act as his defender, but the Georgian authorities
ignored the recommendation.

During the protest held in Paris on April 14 and 28, Georgia’s
Ambassador in France Mamuka Kudava promised that Georgian authorities
would approve the request for Patrick Arapyan’s registration.

On April 6, the court sentenced Vahagn Chakhalyan to 10 years’
in prison, and imposed a fine in the amount of 18.000 laris
($10.650). Chakhalyan’s intend to appeal to higher courts and reach
the European Court of Human Rights.