Armenia’s Human Rights Defender (Ombudsman) Arman Tatoyan has strongly condemned the move of Yerevan City Council member Henrik Hartenyan against Armenian top court head Hrayr Tovmasyan's daughter.
ArmDaily reported that Henrik Hartenyan, who represents the ruling My Step faction in the City Council, posted a photo of Sara Tovmasyan user in a Facebook story, adding that the account belongs to the daughter of Constitutional Court Chairman Hrayr Tovmasyan.
“Period, folks!” he added to the story.
“In general, I strongly urge anyone holding public office to clearly understand his/her official status and act exclusively within that status, displaying a proper conduct. You are restricted to your official status,” the ombudsman said in a statement.
“No one has the right to target [an official’s] family life and especially children whether or not the case refers to the official's family.
“I urge our compatriots using social media to show respect for each other, respect each other's opinion, dignity, personal and family life,” Tatoyan said.
In a statement on Sunday, the My Step faction said it “strongly condemns any manifestation of hate speech.”
“Please accept our apologies for the incident. Tomorrow, the My Step faction of the Yerevan City Council will convene an emergency meeting, after which it will issue a statement,” the statement read.