YEREVAN PRESS CLUB WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
MARCH 13-19, 2009
HIGHLIGHTS:
"PRESS CLUB" CYCLE: DEMOCRATIC REFORMS AND ECONOMIC CRISIS
INCIDENT AT BRUSOV LINGUISTIC UNIVERSITY
"PRESS CLUB" CYCLE: DEMOCRATIC REFORMS AND ECONOMIC CRISIS
On March 14, another "Press Club" show went on the air of "Yerkir Media" TV
company. The cycle is produced under Yerevan Press Club project, supported
by the Open Society Institute Human Rights and Governance Grants Program.
The guests of the host, YPC President Boris Navasardian were the President
of Transparency International Anticorruption Center Amalia Kostanian, the
Country Director of Eurasia-Partnership Foundation Gevorg Ter-Gabrielian and
journalist Ara Galoyan. The discussion centered on the possibility of
realizing democratic reforms during the economic crisis.
The next "Press Club" show will be aired on "Yerkir Media" on Saturday,
March 21, at 17.40.
INCIDENT AT BRUSOV LINGUISTIC UNIVERSITY
On March 13 at Yerevan Brusov State Linguistic University an incident
occurred with the free-lance journalist Gagik Shamshian. In the morning of
March 13 the students of the Linguistic University were holding a protest
action nearby the office of the "Miasin" youth NGO. The action was covered
by the media. After the action the students went back to the University, and
the journalists tried to enter the building with them. University guards
stopped the journalists in the entrance hall. As a result a conflict
occurred between Gagik Shamshian and one of the guards which turned into a
brawl. The journalists and the University employees, present at the place of
the incident, pulled apart the fighters. The Rector of the Linguistic
University, Suren Zolyan, who came down to the entrance hall, asked the
journalists to leave the building and answered their questions about the
students’ action in front of the University. After that interview Gagik
Shamshian, who ailed, went to the nearby office of Armenian Service of Radio
Free Europe/Radio Liberty. At the office Shamshyan’s health deteriorated, he
started bleeding, and the journalist was taken to "Nairi" Medical Center by
the ambulance (which, by the way, arrived only a 40 minutes after the call).
The journalist was hospitalized with a diagnosis of injury of urogenital
tract and internal hemorrhage. Gagik Shamshian was brought to the
reanimatology department, after which he was put under in-patient treatment.
On March 19 Gagik Shamshian left the hospital.
On the day of the incident, on March 13, the Committee to Protect Freedom of
Expression, Yerevan Press Club, Media Diversity Institute-Armenia, Internews
Media Support NGO and Transparency International Anticorruption Center
released a statement, which noted, in particular: "Despite the circumstances
in which occurred the conflict between the journalist and the
representatives of the University internal security, the brutality
manifested by them cannot be excused."
RA Human Rights Defender Armen Harutiunian as well as a number of political
and public organizations also condemned the incident.
On March 14, at the administration session of the Yerevan Brusov State
Linguistic University a statement was issued, in which the conduct of Gagik
Shamshian was considered as "cynical and improper to a journalist".
According to the statement, Gagik Shamshian "penetrated to the University,
disturbing the educational process", and "the incident occurred when he was
performing illegal actions", as a result the journalist got physical
injuries.
"We are sorry about the incident, but we also consider necessary to note
that it was not a consequence of impeding Gagik Shamshian’s professional
activities, but his hooligan conduct. Defining the guard’s actions as
unacceptable, we state that he should not have yielded to any provocation
triggered by G.Shamshian", stresses the statement of the University
administration.
The administration informed that they had the video recording of the
incident, which could be provided to interested parties if necessary.
Besides, the Linguistic University, the statement says, has addressed a
written claim to the law-enforcement bodies in order to bring the offenders
to responsibility.
According to the communication of March 16, 2009 of the RA Police, at Police
of Kentron community of Yerevan a criminal proceeding is instituted on
Articles 164 ("Impeding the Legitimate Professional Activities of
Journalist") and 118 ("Beating") of the RA Criminal Code. In particular, it
is noted that the head of the Yerevan Brusov State Linguistic University
security and two guards were detained and subsequently were released under
an obligation not to leave the place of permanent residence.
When reprinting or using the information above, reference to the Yerevan
Press Club is required.
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Editor of YPC Newsletter – Elina POGHOSBEKIAN
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