POLITICAL PRISONERS ARE PUT UP FOR SALE

evon-zurabyan
09/12/09

"With their utter improvidence Armenian authorities are leading the
country to a downfall," Levon Zurabyan, a senior representative of
the Armenian National Congress (HAK), said following the recent Obama-
Erdogan meeting in the USA and Erdogan’s statements.

"Earlier Armenian authorities said Erdogan wouldn’t depart for America
unless the Turkish parliament ratified the Armenian-Turkish Protocols.

Moreover, Armenian authorities thought America could exert pressure
on Turkey and ensure desirable results. Meanwhile, the Congress said
Turkey would link the Armenian-Turkish rapprochement with the Karabakh
conflict settlement and the US wouldn’t be able to press Turkey till
the end. We were right in our predictions. Armenian authorities have
proved that they are light-headed and deceitful political figures
guided by wrong calculations," said Levon Zurabyan.

"Our authorities gained nothing from the renouncement of the Armenian
Genocide in Zurich," added Zurabyan.

On the eve of Human Rights Day Levon Zurabyan reminded that last year
Armenia marked December 10 with 100 political prisoners and a ban on
opposition marches.

"Today Armenia has 15 political prisoners. Besides, the City Hall has
sanctioned the opposition’s march due on December 10. The authorities
seem to have sobered up and realized that the ban on marches mars
their image," said the HAK representative.

Levon Zurabyan couldn’t say on which criteria the authorities released
political prisoners.

"The authorities treat political prisoners as their hostages and have
put them on sale. Releasing them one after another they try to extort
concessions from public, opposition and international structures.

That’s why we do not take the authorities seriously and don’t start
a dialogue with them. They are vandals. We shall not enter a dialogue
with them unless the last political prisoner is freed.

Let me bring the example of chief editor of Haykakan Zhamanak daily
Nikol Pashinyan who is still kept in detention. The Central Election
Commission has registered Pashinyan as a parliamentary candidate but
Pashinyan’s right to inviolability is breached. Pashinyan can be kept
in custody only by a CEC decision which doesn’t exist as such. If,
in reality, the authorities are ready to compete with Pashinyan on
an equal footing they must immediately release him otherwise they
will confirm their cowardice and meanness.

Eventually, Pashinyan was registered as a candidate under the pressure
of international structures and Armenian National Congress," concludde
Levon Zurabyan.