SYLVIE GUILLAUME, MEP, HAS QUESTIONED THE EUROPEAN AUTHORITIES ABOUT VAHAGN CHAKHALYAN

armradio.am
17.09.2009 15:31

Member of the European Parliament Sylvie Guillaume has sent a letter to
Benita Ferrero-Waldner, European Commissioner for External Relations,
on Vahagn Chakhalyan’s case, who’s the leader of the United Javakhk
Democratic Alliance and is sentenced to 10 years in prison in
Georgia. The letter reads:

"I would like to alert you on the situation of the ethnic and religious
minorities living in Georgia who are victims of discrimination.

Most particularly, the Armenian minority suffers language, social
and religious discrimination. The region, where the Armenian minority
constitutes a majority, is heavily deficient of transit roads, energy,
health and social services.

One of the ethnic Armenian leaders of Georgia, Vahagn Chakhalyan,
was arrested in July 2008 and sentenced to 10 years in prison for
largely questionable charges.

The peaceful demands of his movement are neither independentist
nor autonomist and seek recognition of the civil rights of the
Armenian minority in Georgia, when that country conducts a policy
of assimilation since the dismantling of the Russian military bases
in 2005.

Vahagn Chakhalyan was transferred from his prison in Tbilisi in a
prison in another town, 30 km away, where he fears for his safety,
while his appeal is still pending.

His appeal is scheduled to resume on Friday but the procedures of
arrest, investigation and trial at the court of 1st instance were
interspersed with major violations by the judiciary (Justice of Georgia
has even denied him the right to have a French lawyer). We cannot leave
the Georgian authorities act in contravention of the international
conventions on the right to a fair trial, all the more so as Georgia,
under EU funding and by the European Neighborhood Policy, has received
15 Million Euro paid for "justice reforms."

Could you engage the EU representation in Tbilisi for the observation
of the trial? Is there no need to account to the Georgian authorities
on the use of the funds intended to improve the functioning of the
judiciary system and to consider the legislation to encourage Georgia
to meet its commitments?"