Tuesday, December 7, 2021
Opposition Aides ‘Assaulted In Armenian Parliament’
• Artak Khulian
Armenia - Journalists try to interview paliament deputies and staffers involved
in a bitter argument, December 7, 2021.
Three aides to opposition lawmakers claimed to have been physically assaulted by
pro-government deputies and staffers after arguing with some of them in the
Armenian parliament building on Tuesday.
One of the deputies representing the ruling Civil Contract party, Hrachya
Hakobian, denied the attack and accused the men working for the main opposition
Hayastan alliance of disrespecting him and his colleagues.
The violence reportedly broke out after Hakobian and another Civil Contract
deputy traded barbs with two of the Hayastan aides in the parliament lobby.
One of those aides, Gerasim Vartanian, claimed that shortly afterwards he and
two other opposition staffers were lured to the offices of deputy speaker Ruben
Rubinian where they were attacked by a much larger number of men, including
Hakobian and other pro-government lawmakers.
Aram Vartevanian, a senior Hayastan parliamentarian, charged that the violence
was “preplanned” by the parliament majority.
“The most unfortunate thing is that the incident happened in the presence of
security officers,” said Vartevanian.
Hakobian, who is also Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s brother-in-law,
categorically denied that the oppositionists were ambushed and attacked. He also
insisted that neither he nor any other deputy from the ruling party took part in
the violent clash which he blamed on Vartanian.
Commenting on the cause of the violence, Hakobian said Vartanian and another
opposition aide acted disrespectfully towards him and Civil Contract’s Sisak
Gabrielian. In particular, he told journalists, they had “facial expressions
matching their hooligan posture.”
Armenia’s Office of the Prosecutor-General said it told the National Security
Service (NSS) to investigate the incident.
Another law-enforcement agency, the Special Investigative Service, did not
prosecute anyone after investigating an August brawl on the Armenian parliament
floor. It erupted when Hayastan’s Vahe Hakobian criticized the Armenian
government during a heated session of the National Assembly attended by
Pashinian.
Hakobian interrupted his speech as he was approached by three Civil Contract
lawmakers and kicked by one of them. He and five other Hayastan deputies,
including deputy speaker Ishkhan Saghatelian, were hit by a larger number of
Civil Contract lawmakers in an ensuing melee that was not swiftly stopped by
scores of security personnel present in the chamber.
UN Court Tells Armenia, Azerbaijan To Curb Feud
NETHERLANDS -- People walk toward the International Court of Justice in the
Hague, August 27, 2018
The United Nations’ top court ordered both Armenia and Azerbaijan on Tuesday to
work to prevent racial hatred and discrimination and ease their feud following
last year's war over Nagorno-Karabakh.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) also told Azerbaijan to protect
Armenian prisoners from the conflict and to stop the desecration of Armenian
cultural heritage.
The Hague-based court’s orders are pending a full case review of the dispute,
which could take years to resolve. However, the judges have no real means of
enforcing their orders.
Yerevan and Baku have both requested that the ICJ take emergency measures
against alleged breaches of a UN treaty banning racial discrimination.
The two former Soviet republics "shall refrain from any action which might
aggravate or extend the dispute before the court or make it more difficult to
resolve," ICJ chief Judge Joan Donoghue said.
The ICJ ordered Azerbaijan to "protect from violence and bodily harm" all
Armenian prisoners from the conflict and ensure they are treated lawfully, and
to “prevent and punish acts of vandalism and desecration affecting Armenian
cultural heritage.”
Both Azerbaijan and Armenia must "take all necessary measures to prevent the
incitement and promotion of racial hatred and discrimination" against the other,
it ruled. The order involved "officials and institutions" in Azerbaijan and
"organizations and private persons" in Armenia.
The ICJ threw out Azerbaijan’s request to make Armenia stop laying land mines
and to hand over maps of mines, saying that it is not covered by the
International Convention On All Forms Of Racial Discrimination (CERD).
During hearings in October, Armenia accused Azerbaijan of fueling a "cycle of
hate," while Baku accused Yerevan of "ethnic cleansing.”
Armenian Speaker Accused Of Defaming POWs
• Susan Badalian
Armenia - Parliament speaker Alen Simonian arrives for a session of the National
Assemnly, Yerevan, August 11, 2021.
Parliament speaker Alen Simonian sparked uproar and faced calls to resign on
Tuesday after a video emerged of him making disparaging comments about Armenian
soldiers captured by Azerbaijan.
Simonian was secretly filmed as he spoke with several members of France’s
Armenian community during a recent visit to Paris.
A short video of the conversation first appeared on social media in the morning.
Armenian media circulated a longer footage in the following hours.
Simonian can be seen and heard saying that many of the Armenian prisoners of war
(POWs) held in Azerbaijan “put down their weapons and ran away” during fighting
with Azerbaijani forces. He claimed that their relatives have not protested
lately because they realize that the soldiers are deserters.
“If I’m going to lose Syunik, Sisian because of those POWs … sorry, I may be
wrong, but I believe those POWs don’t exist anymore,” Simonian said.
“We certainly are going to bring those guys back,” he went on. “That’s not up
for discussion. But we can’t hold Armenia, Artsakh and all Armenians hostage [to
POWs] … I can’t say this loudly.”
Simonian, who is a key political ally of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian,
essentially stood by his remarks when he spoke with journalists later on Tuesday.
“Unfortunately, there are soldiers and officers who did not perform their duty
and were taken prisoner,” he said.
“All those people who broke the law and surrendered themselves instead of
protecting Armenia’s borders will be held accountable,” added Simonian.
ARMENIA -- An Armenian captive, wearing a face mask to curb the spread of
COVID-19, is escorted off a Russian military plane upon arrival at a military
airport outside Yerevan, December 14, 2020
The speaker appeared to have primarily referred to about three dozen Armenian
soldiers taken prisoner during heavy fighting that broke out on the
Armenian-Azerbaijani border on November 16. Azerbaijan freed ten of them at the
weekend in exchange for more information about Armenian minefields around
Karabakh.
Baku already held dozens of other Armenian POWs before the border clash that
left 13 soldiers from both sides dead. The Armenian government regularly
demanded their release and raised the matter with foreign powers and
international organizations.
Siranush Sahakian, a lawyer representing POWs in the European Court of Human
Rights, criticized Simonian. She argued that Armenian military investigators
have questioned all POWs repatriated since the November 2020 ceasefire in
Karabakh and have not indicted any of them.
Simonian was strongly condemned by the Armenian opposition and civil society
members. Levon Barseghian, a veteran civic activist based in Gyumri, accused him
of violating the presumption of innocence and disrespecting the soldiers.
“Alen Simonian must resign,” Barseghian told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.
Anna Grigorian, a lawmaker representing the main opposition Hayastan alliance,
told reporters that it will try to have the Armenian parliament impeach and
replace its speaker.
Grigorian said the parliament’s pro-government majority must also condemn
Simonian. She said failure to do so would amount to an endorsement of his
controversial remarks.
Pashinian said on November 18 that Armenian law-enforcement authorities must
investigate “every case of captivity” and decide whether it warrants criminal
charges against military personnel.
U.S. Praises Armenian Local Elections
The U.S. Embassy in Yerevan.
The United States on Tuesday praised the Armenian authorities for their handling
of local elections held in recent weeks while urging them to investigate
“reports of pressure against opposition candidates.”
“We were pleased to see the elections were generally calm, peaceful, and
well-administered,” the U.S. Embassy in Yerevan said in a statement. “The
diversity in results underscored the competitive nature of the elections, the
vibrancy of Armenia’s democracy, and the significant progress Armenia has
achieved over the years.”
“We also note reports of pressure against opposition candidates and encourage
authorities to investigate credible allegations of abuse,” it said.
“As we work to perfect our own democracy, we welcome Armenia’s commitment to its
democratic reform agenda and look forward to strengthening our bilateral ties
based on shared democratic values,” added the statement.
The elections took place in the vast majority of local communities outside
Yerevan on October 17, November 14, and December 5. Prime Minister Nikol
Pashinian’s Civil Contract was defeated in some of those communities, including
Armenia’s second and third largest cities, but won mayoral races in others.
Pashinian on Monday described the latest polls as free and fair and said this is
more important than their results.
While there have been few allegations of systematic electoral fraud, Armenian
opposition forces have for weeks accused Pashinian’s political team of abusing
its government levers and bullying challengers to try to gain control of more
local governments. The authorities deny the accusations.
The U.S. also praised the conduct of Armenia’s snap general elections held in
June. The State Department echoed European observers’ conclusion that they were
“competitive and generally very well-managed.”
Aliyev Again Threatens Armenia Over ‘Corridor’
• Karlen Aslanian
Russia - Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev arrives in Sochi, November 26, 2021
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev has again threatened to forcibly open a land
“corridor” that would connect Azerbaijan to its Nakhichevan exclave via
Armenia’s southeastern Syunik province.
Aliyev recalled last year’s war over Nagorno-Karabakh when he commented on the
transport link sought by Baku during a visit to a region in northern Azerbaijan
on Monday.
“Armenia and the whole world saw [during the war] that nobody could stop us … I
was demanding that they present us with a date for the liberation of our lands
before we stop [hostilities.] I am saying the same thing now: tells us when the
Zangezur corridor will be opened and there will be no problems,” he said in
remarks publicized on Tuesday morning.
The Armenian Foreign Ministry condemned the remarks as a threat to Armenia’s
territorial integrity. It said they also run counter to understandings that were
reached by Aliyev and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian during their talks hosted
by Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi on November 26.
Speaking right after those talks, the three leaders reported major progress
towards the opening of transport links between Armenia and Azerbaijan envisaged
by the Russian-brokered ceasefire that stopped the six-week war in November 2020.
Putin said a Russian-Armenian-Azerbaijani working group dealing with the matter
will announce in the coming days “decisions which we agreed today.”
The group co-headed by deputy prime ministers of the three states announced no
agreements after holding a meeting in Moscow on December 1. A senior Armenian
official confirmed that it failed to hammer out final details of the deal. He
said the Azerbaijani side is “not displaying the kind of political will that’s
necessary for furthering the agreements reached in Sochi.”
Aliyev said on Monday that Yerevan should end its “insincere” position in the
talks before it is “too late” to do that.
The truce accord commits Armenia to opening rail and road links between
Nakhichevan and the rest of Azerbaijan. Armenia should be able, for its part, to
use Azerbaijani territory as a transit route for cargo shipments to Russia and
Iran.
Aliyev has repeatedly said that the deal calls for a special “corridor,” a claim
denied by the Armenian government. Deputy Prime Minister Grigorian insisted last
week that the three leaders discussed in Sochi conventional transport links,
rather than “exterritorial roads” implied by Aliyev.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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