VAHAGN KHACHATRIAN: THERE ARE GROUNDS TO DEPRIVE ARMENIAN DELEGATION IN PACE OF VOTE
Noyan Tapan
Jan 22, 2009
YEREVAN, JANUARY 22, NOYAN TAPAN. European structures also have
their share of guilt for the March 1 tragic events, who classed
all state rigged elections of the past ten years as "corresponding
to international standards." Vahagn Khachatrian, a member of the
Alternative public-political initiative and the Armenian National
Congress (ANC), expressed such an opinion at the January 22 press
conference. According to him, only ten months later Council of Europe
admitted that those imprisoned on the March 1 case are political
prisoners.
According to V. Khachatrian’s observation, since joining Council
of Europe Armenia has not been properly fulfilling its commitments
towards that structure, and there are grounds to deprive the Armenian
delegation of the vote in PACE. "I consider that Armenia should be
punished, RA should be deprived of the vote, as the term given for
the authorities to improve the situation has expired," he said.
On the other hand, as V. Khachatrian added, if the above mentioned
sanction is used it is possible that Armenia’s authorities strengthen
violence to the opposition, prohibit holding of any gatherings, arrest
a greater number of activists. Depriving of the vote, according to
V. Khachatrian, will also weaken Armenia’s positions in the Nagorno
Karabakh negotiations process.
Answering the question of whether Council of Europe uses double
standards to Armenia and does not make the same demands to Azerbaijan,
the Alternative’s representative said: "The Aliyev-Saakashvili-Serzh
Sargsyan regimes indeed are like each other, but we have surpassed
the limit: there were ten victims on March 1."