A1 Plus | 15:02:38 | 08-04-2004 | Politics |
VIKTOR DALLAQYAN ARRESTED
This morning the Armenian law-enforcement bodies have invited MP and
“Justice” Bloc Secretary Viktor Dallaqyan to the department under the
pretext of having a talk.
He went to the department as a sufferer in connection with the recent attack
in the street. Under inaccurate information, Dallaqyan was arrested. We will
inform about the details during the day.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
PRESS RELEASE
Catholicosate of Cilicia
Communication and Information Department
Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
Fax: (04) 419724
E- mail: [email protected]
Web:
PO Box 70 317
Antelias-Lebanon
THE ARMENIAN CATHOLICOSATE OF CILICIA
COMMUNIQUE
At its most recent meeting, on 5 April 2004, the Central Committee of the
Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia was profoundly disturbed to hear the
Statement made by the Supreme Spiritual Council on 2 April 2004. The
Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia has always preferred not to discuss issues
related to the Church and Nation publicly, but, rather, within the context
of the meetings and correspondence between the two Catholicoi and the two
executive bodies of the two Catholicosates. Our Catholicosate adopted this
approach in order not to expose our people to the confusion and
misunderstanding that may result from one-sided and biased statements made
in the Press. Therefore, we will not react directly to the Statement of 2
April. We would like simply to make a few corrections and to underscore a
few points:
1) Knowing that it could be a sensitive issue and attempting to prevent a
one-sided interpretation, the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia has, on more
than one occasion, duly informed the Catholicosate of All Armenians in
Etchmiadzin, Armenia, that the reorganization due to take place in the
Canadian part of our “Prelacy of the Eastern United States and Canada”, was
aimed at changing the status of the Vice-prelate to Prelate. This was an act
of internal organizational rearrangement within an already existing
jurisdiction, not the creation of a new jurisdiction. In fact, making
internal organizational rearrangement within an already existing
jurisdiction is something, and creating a new jurisdiction is something
else. These are two completely different ecclesiological, jurisdictional and
administrative acts. This internal rearrangement was made by the decision of
the Prelacy’s Executive Councils of the USA and Canada, and was done for
practical reasons. To interpret this initiative differently is wrong. The
Statement made by our Prelacy in Montreal, Canada provides full information
concerning this matter.
2) The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia has consistently expressed its
strong desire and commitment to seriously and comprehensively discuss with
the Catholicosate of All Armenians in Etchmiadzin, issues and concerns
pertaining to the Armenian Church in general and to the relations between
the two Catholicosates in particular. The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia
believes that we must not approach these issues, which come from the past
and touch the whole life of the Armenian Church, theoretically, but rather
practically, and that we must take into consideration the specific contexts,
local conditions and new realities of our communities in diaspora,
preserving always the inseparable unity of our Church and Nation. Our
approach remains unchanged.
3) The Catholicoi of our Holy See have considered the reformation and
renewal of the Armenian Church a top priority among other administrative and
jurisdictional concerns. We should continue to do this, no matter how
difficult it may be or how long it takes. We firmly believe that the
reformation of the Armenian Church and the renewal and revitalization of its
spiritual, moral and people-oriented mission is an urgent concern. We must
look beyond existing sensitivities and misunderstandings, and not allow them
to hinder the renewal of the Armenian Church. This process should include
the active participation of the four Hierarchical Sees of our Church.
The Central Committee of the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia rejects the
approach and the spirit displayed in the Statement of the Supreme Spiritual
Council of Etchmiadzin. Antelias remains firmly committed to its mission of
faith and people-oriented service. It is with this spirit and with brotherly
love, that the Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia appeals to the
Catholicosate of All Armenians to start together a process of reflection,
consultation and planing by which we will be able together to renew and
strengthen the Armenian Church, deepen the collaboration between Armenia and
Armenian Diaspora, and support our homeland.
SECRETARIAT
THE ARMENIAN CATHOLICOSATE OF CILICIA
5 April, 2004
Antelias, Lebanon.
##
The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the history and
the mission of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
the Catholicosate, The Cilician Catholicosate, the
administrative center of the church is located in Antelias, Lebanon.
YEREVAN PRESS CLUB WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
APRIL 2-8, 2004
HIGHLIGHTS:
EGG-THROWERS AND/OR CAMERA-BREAKERS
YPC LATEST PUBLICATION
“CIVIL SOCIETY IN CONTEXT OF DEMOCRATIC REFORM” WORKSHOP HELD
RALLY IN “A1+” SUPPORT WAS EXCESS-FREE
EGG-THROWERS AND/OR CAMERA-BREAKERS
On April 5, during the meeting of “National Unity” opposition party leaders
with the voters, organized in one of Yerevan downtown streets, young people
of strong build and boxer cut started to throw eggs at the orator and those
assembled. In some spots, objects of petard type exploded at people’s feet.
The journalists covering the meeting tried to record the incident, however,
they were attacked immediately: the “strong guys”, divided in groups,
started to use violence against media representatives and to shatter their
equipment.
As a result, physical, material and moral damage was caused to the media and
journalists. Cameras of “Kentron”, “Hay TV” private channels and Public
Television of Armenia newscasts were broken, similarly to the one by
cameraman of “National Unity” party. A cameraman of another private TV
company, “Shant”, had the incident video record snatched away.
Photocorrespondent of “Hetq” online of Association of Investigative
Journalists of Armenia, UK citizen Onik Grigorian, “Aravot” daily
correspondent Anna Israelian and “Haikakan Zhamanak” daily correspondent
Hayk Gevorgian were exposed to attacks and blows. All the three had their
photo cameras crashed. The 17-year-old resident of Aghartsin village, Armen
Tamrazyan, attempting to protect the journalists, was seriously injured.
Earlier on April 5, “Haikakan Zhamanak” correspondent was hampered in his
professional activity. Hayk Gevorgian was detained in the town of Ashtarak
during the photo shooting on the highway leading to Yerevan and blocked by
the police. According to the journalist, an hour-long “instructive
conversation” on legal issues was conducted with him at local police
department.
The rally in the capital was heavily guarded by the police. According to the
eyewitnesses, their administration, in particular Deputy Head of RA Police
Hovhannes Varian were also present. However, none of the guards interfered
in the incident with the journalists.
On April 6, Head of Yerevan Police Department Nerses Nazarian declared at
the briefing devoted to April 5 events that the police forces were ordered
to step in only in case of emergency. Given Colonel Nazarian’s refusal to
answer the questions, it was impossible to find out whether the acts of
violence towards journalists might be viewed as “emergency”? Meanwhile,
Yerevan Police Head asserted that materials on the incident were in
preparation stage.
We earnestly hope that this time at least law and order bodies will be able
to finally track and punish the perpetrators. For the exception of the
disclosed murder of the Chairman of the Council of Public TV and Radio
Company, Tigran Naghdalian, all the rest numerous acts of violence towards
the journalists still “hang in the air”. Only a single circumstance, too
obvious by itself, gives a week chance for hoping that those guilty of April
5 incident will nevertheless be punished. The evening broadcasts of
“Kentron” TV repeatedly showed the scene of the “strong guys” dealing with
one of the cameramen. Several photos of the attackers were also published by
a number of newspapers. According to various opinions,
egg-throwers/camera-breakers are bodyguards of high rank officials and
oligarchs.
The statement of “Hetq” photocorrespondent Onik Grigorian, a victim of the
incident, in particular expresses indignation at the coverage of the events
by Public Television of Armenia placing “all blame on the opposition” and
the police that kept out. After a blow in his face, the journalist “turned
to the police for help but they did not care to interfere”.
Armenian political forces, NGOs, including human rights and journalistic
ones, as well as international organizations publicly condemned the
incident.
On April 6 upon the initiative of Yerevan Press Club, the participants of
“Civil Society in the Context of Democratic Reform in Armenia” workshop,
organized by “Partnership for Open Society” initiative (currently uniting 40
NGOs) adopted a joint statement.
The statement of the NGOs and journalists runs:
“On April 5, 2004 prior to the Yerevan meeting of “National Unity” party
leaders with the voters, the police impeded journalists’ activity on the
highways connecting the regions with the capital. During the rally,
authorities obviously connived at the violence applied: the journalists were
exposed to beating, photo and video cameras were broken, films and tapes
were confiscated and destroyed. Both hampering journalists’ work and
violence towards them fall under criminal offence.
Overt bias of certain media, even those who fell victim to the incident, in
covering the events is also to be blamed.
We, participants of the workshop, organized by “Partnership for Open
Society” initiative, strongly condemn one more instance of regular
violation of the rights for receiving and disseminating information, as well
as freedom of expression. We call upon law and order bodies to punish the
instigators and perpetrators.
We declare that if in this case as well the culprits, several of them being
known, are not punished and the damage to the media is not compensated, we
will have to state that Armenian authorities are not interested in
consolidating the basic democratic values in the country: the rights for
freedom of expression, press, travel, conducting meetings and rallies,
exchanging opinions and the right of the society for getting objective
information.
We call on all the media, irrespective of their political preferences, to
demonstrate professional unity and to rise against the cases of violation of
freedom of expression through joint efforts.”
YPC LATEST PUBLICATION
On April 8, presentation of “The Right to Tell. Role of Mass Media in
Economic Development” new book of Yerevan Press Club was held at Journalists
Union of Armenia. The book came out as part of “Journalist’s Library”
series. The publication is an English-Armenian translation of the homonymous
collection of articles by world economists and journalists. Financial
support for the translation and publication of the YPC book was provided by
World Bank and Open Society Institute.
During his speech at the presentation, Roger Robinson, World Bank Country
Manager in Armenia, particularly noted, “World Bank is interested in
economic development of the countries and attaches special importance to the
role of media in this process. ‘The Right to Tell’ is designed as assistance
to the journalists in covering economic problems”.
“CIVIL SOCIETY IN CONTEXT OF DEMOCRATIC REFORM” WORKSHOP HELD
On April 6, “Civil Society in the Context of Democratic Reform in Armenia:
Agenda, Accomplishments, Failures” was held. It was organized by
“Partnership for Open Society” initiative uniting over 40 NGOs. RA National
Assembly deputies, scientists, representatives of NGOs and media of Armenia,
international organizations participated in the meeting.
The participants discussed a wide spectrum of issues related to
implementation of democratic reforms in the country: “Civil Society and the
State” (presentation by Tigran Torosyan, RA National Assembly
Vice-Chairman), “The Role of the Donors and International Agencies in
Formulating the Agenda of Civil Society in Armenia” (presentation by Dr.
Lucig Danielian, School of Political Science and International Affairs
Associate Dean of American University of Armenia), “Institutes of Civil
Society” (presentation by Dr. Gevorg Poghosyan, Director of Philosophy and
Law Institute).
In the second part of the workshop, the discussion continued in five
sections: “Media/Information”, “Human Rights”, “Rule of Law/Good Governance”
(RA Minister of Justice David Harutyunyan participated in this section),
“Social Cooperation”, “Education/Culture”.
RALLY IN “A1+” SUPPORT WAS EXCESS-FREE
On April 2, a procession and rally in support of freedom of expression were
held in Yerevan. They were timed to the two-year period of “A1+” without
air.
Certain obstacles, created by the authorities to impede the initiators of
this protest action, resulted in a change of the procession route and the
venue for the rally (see YPC Weekly Newsletter, March 26 – April 1, 2004).
The event itself, with 400 people participating, was excess-free. At the
meeting close to the museum of ancient manuscripts – Matenadaran – the
organizers publicized their claims to the Armenian authorities: to conduct a
competition for vacant frequencies and to involve NGO representatives in the
process of rating assessments of the bidders’ competition packages.
When reprinting or using the information above, reference to the Yerevan
Press Club is required.
You are welcome to send any comment and feedback about the Newsletter to:
[email protected]
Subscription for the Newsletter is free. To subscribe or unsubscribe from
this mailing list, please send a message to: [email protected]
Editor of YPC Newsletter – Elina POGHOSBEKIAN
____________________________________________
Yerevan Press Club
9B, Ghazar Parpetsi str.
375007, Yerevan, Armenia
Tel.: (+ 374 1) 53 00 67; 53 35 41; 53 76 62
Fax: (+374 1) 53 56 61
E-mail: [email protected]
Web Site:
ZAMAN Online
04.08.2004 Thursday
French Left Seeks Armenian Condition
The French Socialist Party favors Turkey’s membership in the European
Union (EU) in general, but suggested on Wednesday that Turkey should
solve the Armenian issue in order to persuade the French public.
Socialist Party Foreign Affairs Secretary-General, Pierre Moscovici,
spoke about Turkey in a Paris meeting where he said that their Turkish
policy has not changed and that they want negotiations to start if
Turkey fulfills the Copenhagen criteria. However Moscovici, underlining
that the French public should be persuaded, defined three main problems
facing Turkey: securing secularism, the army’s role in politics and the
so-called Armenian genocide issue.
The French politician said that they are entertaining an idea by Turkish
Ambassador to Paris, Uluc Ozulker, to establish an independent
investigation committee into the Armenian genocide allegations.
A.A.’s false report creates a stir
Meanwhile, French Foreign Minister, Michel Barnier, said that there is
no change in France’s policy on Turkey’s E.U. membership and said they
will wait for the European Council’s decision. Barnier, answering
questions at the parliament, said that the doors were opened to Turkey
in 1963 but said Turkey has not yet fulfilled all the requirements. The
French Minister’s words were misunderstood by Anadolu News Agency
(A.A.), and falsely reported to be, “we will refuse Turkey’s
membership,” causing quite a stir that reached many web site headlines.
04.08.2004
A. Ihsan Aydin
Paris
A1 Plus | 20:39:14 | 08-04-2004 | Social |
PROMPT RESPONSE GROUP ON HUMAN RIGHTS PROTECTION
A prompt response group for human rights protection was formed in Armenia.
Free Tribune for Civil Initiatives, Civil Society Institute, Helsinki
Committee of Armenia, Caucasus Center for Peacemaking Initiatives, Helsinki
Citizens` Assembly Vanadzor Office, Speech Freedom Support Fund, Journalists
‘ Club “Asparez” Gyumri, have decided to establish such a group.
The organizations have made the above decision since they assess the
situation in the country as a state terror and intention to create fearful
atmosphere in the republic.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
PRESS RELEASE
Eastern Prelacy of the Armenian Apostolic Church of America
138 East 39th Street
New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-689-7810
Fax: 212-689-7168
e-mail: [email protected]
Website:
Contact: Iris Papazian
CROSSROADS E- NEWSLETTER: APRIL 8, 2004
THE GREAT WEEK CULMINATES WITH EASTER
We are now coming to the end of the Great Week and approaching Easter
(Zatig)-the Feast of the Resurrection of Christ-the grandest and oldest
feast in the Christian calendar. The Great Week not only commemorates the
death and resurrection of the Lord, but it renews the efficacy of the
redemptive work of Christ. The resurrection is the victory of Christ over
death, and the hope of life eternal.
Maundy Thursday: The word Maundy comes from the Latin, mandatum, meaning
mandate or command, signifying the command by Christ that His disciples
should love one another (John 13:34). One great feature of Maundy Thursday
is the washing of the feet in memory of the deed by Christ (John 13:1-11).
Tenebrae, which comes from the Latin meaning darkness, or the Armenian
Khavaroom is the vigil, which begins Thursday evening. It is the night of
Gethsemane, marking the prayers of Jesus, the kiss of Judas, the arrest of
Jesus, the trial, and the denial by Peter. Traditionally it is an all-night
vigil in the Church and one of the most moving and heartrending services of
the Church.
Great Friday, or Good Friday, commemorates the passion and crucifixion
of Christ. It is the most solemn and sacred day in the Christian year,
commemorating the death and burial of Jesus. Traditionally it is one of the
longest in terms of church services throughout the day. Here in the United
States we have lost that tradition and services are generally limited to
evening services marking the crucifixion and burial.
Holy Saturday in the Armenian tradition is called Jragalouytz. In the
evening passages from the Bible are read and the Holy Mass is performed.
Great Lent (Metz Pahk) comes to an end.
As in past years, His Eminence Archbishop Oshagan, will mark the holy
days with various parishes. Today he will be celebrating Washing of the Feet
and Maundy Thursday with the parish of St. Gregory the Illuminator of
Philadelphia. Good Friday he will officiate at Sts. Vartanantz Church in
Ridgefield, New Jersey. Holy Saturday he will be with the St. Sarkis parish
of Douglaston, New York, and Easter Sunday he will officiate at St.
Illuminators Cathedral in New York City.
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR PARTICIPATES IN
INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
Vazken Ghougassian, Executive Director of the Eastern Prelacy,
participated last week in the International Conference at the University of
Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. The overall theme of the conference was
Where the Only-Begotten Descended: The Church of Armenia through the Ages.
Dr. Ghougassian presented a paper on the Diocese of New Julfa and its
Relationship with Etchmiadzin in the 17th and early 18th Centuries. The
proceedings, comprising 45 papers covering the entire history of the
Armenian Church, will be published in a volume dedicated to noted scholar
and Armenologist, Professor Robert Thomson on the occasion of his 70th
birthday. The International Conference, which brought together top scholars
in the field, was sponsored by Mike and Shirley Kojaian and the Alex and
Marie Manoogian Foundation.
ARMENIAN SISTERS ACADEMY WINS TOURNAMEN
The Armenian Sisters Academy, Radnor, Pennsylvania, was the winning team
of the Mid-Atlantic region Jeopardy Tournament that took place at Sts.
Vartanantz Church, Ridgefield, New Jersey. The tournaments are sponsored by
the Armenian National Education Committee (ANEC), which is jointly sponsored
by the Eastern Prelacy and the Armenian Relief Society.
Participants formed teams from the Hamasdegh School, Washington, D.C.;
Nareg School, Ridgefield, New Jersey; Siamanto Academy, New York, New York;
Armenian Sisters Academy, Radnor, Pennsylvania; Holy Martyrs Day School,
Bayside, New York; and Holy Martyrs community, New York.
The next Armenian Jeopardy Tournaments will take place on Saturday, May
8 in Watertown, Massachusetts, for the New England area, and on Sunday, May
15 in Chicago, Illinois, for the Midwest area. The championship game is
scheduled for May 22 in Philadelphia.
PRELACY LADIES GUILD MOTHERS DAY LUNCHEON
The annual Mothers Day luncheon and Fashion Show sponsored by the
Prelacy Ladies Guild will take place Monday, May 3, at The St. Regis, 2 East
55th Street, New York City. This year the PLG is celebrating its 30th
anniversary. Neiman Marcus of Paramus, New Jersey will present the Spring
2004 Collections. Reception starts at 11:30 a.m. with luncheon at 12:30 p.m.
Seating is limited so make your plans now to attend. For reservations
contact the Prelacy office, 212-689-7810.
CILICIAN CATHOLICATE PARTICIPATES IN
ECUMENICAL SEMINAR
Rev. Fr. Magar Ashkarian, the assistant to the Dean of the Cilician
Theological Seminary, participated in a seminar on the nature and the
purpose of the church in the Orthodox and Evangelical tradition. This
seminar is a follow-up of two earlier seminars, which brought together
Orthodox and Evangelicals in Bossey, Switzerland, to strengthen the World
Council of Churches initiatives to build meaningful relationships between
the two traditions.
The seminar included an enlarged number of participants and focused on
the nature and the mission of the church. The theme of the seminar was
treated in relation to the understanding of salvation and of the role and
place of the Bible in the two traditions. The participants sought ways of
reconciliation, better common understanding of one another and mutual
support that leads towards a common witness to the Gospel in response to the
challenges of modern times. The findings of the seminar will contribute
towards the 2005 Conference on the World Mission and Evangelism.
CHRISTOS HARYAV EE MERELOTZ
OHRTNYAL EH HAROUTIUNEN CHRISTOSI
CHRIST IS RISEN. BLESSED IS THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST.
visit our website at
PRESS RELEASE
Rose and Alex Pilibos Armenian School
Noah’s Ark Library
1615 N. Alexandria Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90027
Contact: Sarig Armenian
Tel: 323-668-1877
E-Mail: [email protected]
Website:
Noah’s Ark: Open For Reading and Studying
Los Angeles, CA — This week, the highly anticipated opening of the
Rose and Alex Pilibos Noah’s Ark Library will take place, when the
facility opens its doors to students, faculty and staff. On Tuesday,
April 14, 2004, each home-room class will visit the school library for a
short introduction to the learning services, stunning physical
structure, and world of information available at the school library.
During the introductory session, each student will be asked to read
aloud and sign a pledge to abide by the rules of the library and to use
the library books and equipment with care. By the end of the week, when
all classes have attended the introductory session, the library will be
open throughout the day for classroom visits, during lunch and recess,
as well as before and after school for students to borrow books, read
periodicals, and research on the Internet.
“This library is an exciting new development for both our students and
the school community,” stated Viken Yacoubian, principal of the Rose and
Alex Pilibos Armenian School. “After more than a year of planning and
construction, the students and faculty will have access to a
state-of-the-art library that will enhance the curriculum and expand the
educational resources at our school. Numerous studies have shown that
student performance and achievement are directly linked to a strong
school library; this is why providing a bilingual technologically
advanced library has been a priority for our students.”
Today, school libraries provide information and ideas that are
fundamental to functioning successfully in today’s information and
knowledge-based society. The Noah’s Ark School library will help develop
imagination and life-long learning skills in order to guide students
towards becoming responsible and active members of the Armenian-American
community.
With an enrollment of over 750 students from kindergarten through 12th
grade, the Rose and Alex Pilibos Armenian School is the first school in
the Armenian Diaspora to have a library with an electronic catalogue of
Armenian and English books as well as a dynamic architectural space for
students to read, write, think, and learn.
###
Countries at the Crossroads: A Survey of Democratic Governance
ARMENIA
Capital:Yerevan
Population: 3,326,448
GDP: $12.13 billion
GNI per capita: $790
Scores:
Civil Liberties: 3.96
Rule of Law: 3.26
Anticorruption and Transparency: 2.75
Accountability and Public Voice: 2.98
(scores are based on a scale of 0 to 7, with 0 representing weakest and 7
representing strongest performance)
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Armenia is entering its 13th year of independence without a democratic
political system, the adequate rule of law, and an independent judiciary
capable of challenging government decisions that infringe on human rights.
Successive governments of this South Caucasus nation have failed to hold
elections recognized as free and fair by the international community,
resorting to vote-rigging and other forms of electoral fraud in order to
cling to power.
The current Armenian administration, led by President Robert Kocharian,
highlighted this reality in 2003 when it faced a barrage of domestic and
international criticism for its handling of presidential and parliamentary
elections that were marred by widespread irregularities. The two ballots,
which resulted in a second term in office and a loyal legislature for
Kocharian, followed what has been a familiar pattern in post-Soviet Armenia,
with the opposition refusing to accept the official results and staging
street protests. The resulting political standoff puts a large question mark
over the country’s long-term political stability and democratic future. It
also highlights the grim fact that regime change through elections is
practically impossible in Armenia, where electoral fraud seems to have
become a political culture.
The lack of democracy has had negative repercussions for other areas of
life, making nonsense of the Armenian authorities’ stated commitment to the
rule of law. Its lack is particularly visible in economic life, where
government connections and influence are vital. Some of the most lucrative
forms of economic activity are monopolized by Kocharian’s inner circle. The
country’s overall investment climate thus leaves much to be desired, with
many businesspeople complaining about harassment by tax authorities and
unfair competition.
All of this is a breeding ground for endemic government corruption. Faced
with mounting Western pressure to tackle the problem, the Kocharian
administration was due to unveil a long-awaited anti-corruption plan by the
end of 2003. However, few people expected it to lead to concrete action.
The Armenian authorities’ human rights record is hardly better. The regime
has often violated constitutional provisions guaranteeing a broad range of
individual liberties and rights. The arrest and imprisonment on trumped-up
charges of scores of opposition supporters during the 2003 presidential race
was a vivid example of such violations. It offered further proof that
Armenian courts rarely make decisions contradicting the executive’s wishes.
Mistreatment of detainees by law-enforcement officials is the most
widespread form of human rights abuse in Armenia, according to such
international watchdogs as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. The
government has made no visible efforts to tackle police torture. The
practice continued unabated even after Armenia’s hard-won accession to the
Council of Europe in 2001. In a serious blow to freedom of expression,
membership in that organization also did not prevent the authorities from
shutting down Armenia’s main independent TV station in 2002.
The events of 2003 demonstrated that only a government elected through a
free and fair process can be accountable to Armenia’s citizens, leading to
the creation of a state based on democratic principles.
CIVIL LIBERTIES – 3.96
Armenia’s post-Soviet constitution reads, “A person may be detained only by
court order and in accordance with legally prescribed procedures.” It also
stipulates that “No one may be subjected to torture and to treatment and
punishment that are cruel or degrading to the individual’s dignity.” This
provision rings hollow given the continuing widespread mistreatment of
criminal suspects in custody. Armenian police and other law-enforcement
agencies routinely extract confessions and other testimony through torture
and intimidation – a problem regularly highlighted by local and
international human rights organizations. “Reports indicated that
ill-treatment by law-enforcement agencies remained commonplace,” Amnesty
International said in an annual report on Armenia issued in May 2003.
Police brutality, which dates back to Soviet times, remains widespread
despite parliament’s ratification in 2002 of the European Convention for the
Prevention of Torture and the European Convention on Human Rights in line
with Armenia’s commitments to the Council of Europe. The ratifications paved
the way for the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture to inspect
Armenian detention facilities and for Armenian citizens to file complaints
with the European Court of Human Rights. Still, the situation is unlikely to
improve markedly as long as law-enforcement officers involved in human
rights abuses remain unpunished. None of them had reportedly been held
accountable as of September 2003. Besides, as Human Rights Watch noted in a
November 2002 report, many victims of police torture do not file complaints
for fear of retribution.
The constitutional safeguards against arbitrary arrest became irrelevant
during and in the aftermath of the disputed presidential election held in
two rounds on February 19 and March 5, 2003. Between 200 and 400 supporters
of Kocharian’s main opposition challenger, Stepan Demirchian, were arrested
by the police for attending unsanctioned demonstrations against the alleged
falsification of the vote results in the incumbent’s favor.1 More than 100
of them were sentenced to between 3 and 15 days in jail for allegedly
disrupting public order during the peaceful protests. Opposition
demonstrators were denied access to lawyers and faced closed trials in
breach of the Armenian constitution.
The crackdown was denounced by human rights groups and international
organizations such as the Council of Europe and the Organization for
Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Even Armenia’s Constitutional
Court added its voice to the criticism, instructing the justice council, a
Kocharian-controlled body overseeing the judiciary, to sanction those judges
who handed down the controversial rulings. However, the council refused to
comply with the order, dismissing it as unconstitutional.2
The election crackdown was carried out under Armenia’s Soviet-era Code of
Administrative Offenses, which failed to guarantee detainees access to
counsel and was exploited by the authorities even before the troubled
elections. In a September 2002 resolution, the Council of Europe’s
Parliamentary Assembly demanded that Yerevan abolish the code. Human Rights
Watch likewise noted that Armenia’s “administrative court system appears to
be little more than a ‘pocket court’ for police.”3
Punishment for more serious offenses is set by the post-Soviet criminal
code, which was passed by the Armenian parliament in April 2003. The new
code abolished the death penalty in Armenia. Separate legislation sets the
maximum period of pre-trial detention at one year. Despite its fairly low
crime rate, Armenia has seen a number of politically motivated killings
since independence. The most high-profile of them occurred in October 1999
when five gunmen burst into parliament, killing its speaker, Karen
Demirchian, Prime Minister Vazgen Sarkisian, and six other officials.
Although the gunmen were arrested and put on trial, many circumstances of
the massacre remain unknown. Some relatives of the assassinated officials
continued to accuse Kocharian of a cover-up throughout 2003.
The Armenian constitution guarantees the equality of genders, and there are
no laws discriminating against women. Nevertheless, Armenia is a
conservative male-dominated society where few women hold senior government
posts. While women are better represented in lower-level positions in both
the public and private sectors, in general, they were impacted even more
than men by the post-Soviet de-industrialization. Domestic violence is a
major problem, according to some local women’s groups, but its precise scale
has yet to be determined. What is clear is that women are the main victims
of human trafficking from or through Armenia. In 2002 the U.S. State
Department listed Armenia among those nations of the world that were doing
little to counter the practice. This embarrassing criticism led the Armenian
authorities to make what the State Department subsequently described as
“significant efforts” to stop the forced transfer of human beings.
Washington removed Armenia from the blacklist in June 2003.
The constitution also gives equal rights and protection to ethnic
minorities, which make up a tiny percentage of the country’s population.
While the minorities, such as Russians, Yezidi Kurds, and Assyrians, rarely
report instances of overt discrimination, they often complain about
difficulties with receiving education in their native languages. This
problem was highlighted in May 2002 by a Council of Europe advisory
committee monitoring protection of national minorities in member countries.
In a report, the body noted that legal provisions protecting minorities are
insufficient in Armenia.4 Armenia had a sizable ethnic Azerbaijani minority
until the outbreak of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict in 1988. Virtually all
Azerbaijanis were forced to leave the country by 1990, just as hundreds of
thousands of ethnic Armenians .ed Azerbaijan at about the same time. The
unresolved conflict has so far made peaceful co-existence of the two ethnic
groups impossible.
The situation is similar with regard to freedom of religion, which is
upheld by the law but is not always protected by the state. There are 50
officially registered religious groups. The largest of them – the Armenian
Apostolic Church, to which over 90 percent of the population belongs –
enjoys a privileged, semi-official status and advocates restrictions on
activities of other, non-traditional faiths viewed with suspicion by the
government. One of them, Jehovah’s Witnesses, continued to be denied
registration as of September 2003 because of its strong opposition to
compulsory military service. As of late 2002, 23 male members of Jehovah’s
Witnesses remained in prison for draft evasion.5 The authorities were
expected to legalize the sect by the end of 2003 after passing a law on
alternative service. State interference in religious activities is otherwise
minimal.
The state also largely respects citizens’ constitutional right to freedom of
association, as evidenced by the existence of more than 100 political
parties and around 3,000 other nongovernmental organizations (NGOs).
However, only a small percentage of these are actually active or viable.
Some of them occasionally engage in policy advocacy. Their main obstacle is
government indifference, which precludes their serious impact on public
policy. Several trade unions unite public sector workers. The much larger
private sector workforce is not unionized at all due to very high
unemployment and poor government protection of workers’ rights. Citizens are
not forced to belong to any organization. Many state bureaucrats, however,
have been compelled to campaign for incumbent presidents and ruling parties
during elections. Members of opposition parties have been brie.y arrested
and ill-treated on occasion.
Recommendations
Armenia’s political leadership must take real steps to eliminate the
widespread ill-treatment in custody of criminal suspects and stop using
torture for fabricating criminal cases against political opponents.
Law-enforcement agencies have always resorted to the practice and will not
stop doing so without an explicit political order from above. Thus,
government commitment alone could make a significant difference. It is also
essential that the security offi.cials guilty of human rights abuses face
punishment. Jail terms for such crimes must be lengthier. Armenian courts,
for their part, must start addressing defendants’ claims of physical abuse.
Reform of Armenia’s long-outdated code of administrative offenses, which
has proved to be a powerful tool for political repression, is urgently
needed. As the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly pointed out in
September 2002, the authorities should draw up a new code from scratch and
avoid enforcing controversial provisions of the existing one in the interim.
RULE OF LAW – 3.26
Armenia’s judicial system is riddled with corruption and mistrusted by the
population. It has undergone substantial structural changes since the Soviet
collapse but still remains susceptible to government influence. The current
Armenian constitution, enacted in 1995, introduced a three-tier structure of
courts of general jurisdiction topped by the Court of Appeals. It also
created a separate nine-member Constitutional Court empowered to overturn
government decisions, impeach the president, and invalidate elections. On
paper, these judicial bodies are protected against state interference, with
Article 97 of the constitution stipulating that the Armenian judges “shall
be independent and may only be subject to the law.” However, this provision
is at odds with another constitutional clause that states bluntly that it is
the president of the republic who is “the guarantor of the independence of
the judicial bodies.”
The president has the exclusive authority to appoint and dismiss all judges
except five members of the Constitutional Court installed by parliament.
This seems to be the main reason why Armenian courts rarely make decisions
contrary to the wishes of the head of state as well as government and
law-enforcement bodies. As Human Rights Watch noted in its 2002 report on
Armenia, “In general, judges continued to display subservience to executive
authorities, and did not, as a rule, challenge the procuracy or police.”In a
study conducted in 2002, the American Bar Association’s Central and East
European Law Initiative (ABA/CEELI) rated Armenia negatively on 18 out of
the 30 indicators making up its judicial reform index, a tool to assess the
rule of law in emerging democracies.6 Among the factors found to be negative
were the selection, appointment, and dismissal of judges and the courts’
susceptibility to improper influence. The ABA/CEELI study, based on
interviews with Armenian judicial officials and legal experts, concluded
that “fear of the executive branch’s powers to discipline and terminate
judges has impacted the development of the judiciary’s independence as noted
by respondents.”7
The extent of government influence on the judiciary is demonstratedby the
low percentage of court rulings overturned by higher courts and the very
small number of acquittals in criminal cases. In 2000, for example, only 563
of 2,266 such appeals were successful.8 More than 90 percent of verdicts
handed down by lower courts were not appealed at all. The public seems to
demonstrate greater trust in the fairness of verdicts on civil and business
disputes, as evidenced by a substantial increase in such cases considered by
the courts in recent years.
Another serious problem is bribery of judges at various levels, which is
believed to be widespread. It appears to have continued unabated despite
recent years’ dramatic increase in judges’ salaries set by a law. Along with
the president of the republic, judges are now the highest-paid state
officials in Armenia, receiving the equivalent of between $400 and $700 a
month. But state funding for the courts (most of them lacking proper
accommodation and other facilities) is otherwise insufficient. The
administration of justice is further hampered by what is widely seen as a
lack of professionalism among many judges. Armenian law only requires them
to have higher legal education and at least three years of professional
experience as a lawyer. They are not required to have practiced before a
tribunal before taking the bench. Also, the legally defined procedure for
the selection of would-be judges, administered by the ministry of justice,
is open to discretionary decisions.
Corruption is even more rampant in the police and the procuracy. The
law-enforcement agencies, also highly dependent on the executive, often
continue to be guided by the Soviet-era presumption of guilt, despite the
constitutional provision that a criminal suspect “shall be presumed innocent
until proven guilty.” Innocent citizens are practically unprotected against
mistreatment in custody, while those who commit crimes may have cases
against them dropped in exchange for a kickback. Not surprisingly,
prosecution of serving senior government officials for abuse of power and
other wrongdoing is extremely rare in Armenia.
Ruling regimes have always used the police, prosecutors, and the military
for carrying out and covering up vote falsifications. Nobody, for example,
was jailed in connection with the widespread fraud reported during the
presidential and parliamentary elections of 2003, although the authorities –
in response to international criticism – claimed to have opened a number of
relevant criminal cases. The entire security apparatus is tightly controlled
by President Kocharian, who appoints the heads of the police service and the
national security service (former KGB), the defense minister, and the top
brass of the Armenian armed forces. Parliament and even the cabinet of
ministers have little control over their activities. Top security officials,
notably Defense Minister Serge Sarkisian, are known to maintain close ties
with wealthy businesspeople who often owe their fortunes to privileged
treatment by the state. The so-called oligarchs enjoy a de facto monopoly on
some lucrative sectors of the Armenian economy.
All Armenian citizens are theoretically equal under the law, regardless of
their ethnicity, religion, race, gender, or political orientation. The
constitution guarantees their right to private property, which can be taken
away by the state “only under exceptional circumstances, with due process of
law, and prior equivalent compensations.” This provision is largely
respected in practice. The law also obligates the state to provide criminal
suspects with legal counsel free of charge if they cannot afford to hire
one. Government-appointed attorneys are often accused of collaborating with
the prosecution to the detriment of their clients, however. Court trials in
Armenia, though open to the public and media, are still not perceived to be
fair, especially when government interests are involved. The persisting
problems with the rule of law show that Armenia still has a long way to go
before putting in place an independent and competent judiciary.
Recommendations
Armenia’s parliament should be given the authority to confirm or block
judicial appointments made by the president; the selection of judges should
not depend on the will of a single person. This will require corresponding
changes to the constitution. The president should be stripped of his
constitutional right to sack virtually all judges. Armenia should enhance
judicial oversight of criminal investigations conducted by police and
prosecutors, and the courts must stop rubber-stamping practically all
pretrial detentions requested by the prosecutors. Legal amendments are
needed to bring the system of criminal justice, still based on Soviet-era
practices, closer to Western standards. The government must work harder to
combat the rampant corruption in the judiciary and law-enforcement agencies.
ANTICORRUPTION AND TRANSPARENCY – 2.75
Government corruption, a leftover from the Soviet era, is one of the
fundamental problems facing Armenia. It has engulfed virtually all spheres
of life, ranging from business to education, and is a serious obstacle to
the country’s development. Despite repeated assurances to the domestic
public and Western donors, successive Armenian governments failed to reduce
the magnitude of the problem between 1993 and 2003. Many senior government
officials are themselves mired in bribery, nepotism, and other corrupt
practices and are therefore uninterested in the rule of law.
This might explain why the authorities did not unveil, as of September 2003,
their promised comprehensive plan to combat graft. The World Bank provided a
$345,000 grant for that purpose in 2001, and a team of government experts
has since been working on the document. Officials from the World Bank and
the International Monetary Fund (IMF) insisted on its publication before the
end of 2003.
Armenian officials, meanwhile, claim to have already taken some important
anti-corruption measures, such as the simplification of registration and
licensing of businesses, the setting up of a state procurements agency, and
the passage of new laws on civil service and financial disclosure. However,
the new legislation has not yet made much difference. For one thing, the law
on financial disclosure, effective from 2002, proved largely meaningless as
many ministers and other high-level officials grossly underreported their
and their close relatives’ conspicuous wealth. The law does not empower tax
authorities to check the accuracy of the officials’ income declarations.
The Armenian government has eased cumbersome bureaucratic regulations for
businesses in recent years but has yet to address their number-one
grievance: harassment from corrupt tax and customs officials. For example,
the Armenian Union of Traders, a pressure group representing hundreds of
small and medium-size businesses, complained at a conference in January 2003
that its members continue to be forced to pay profit and other taxes in
advance of their operating revenues.9 Tax officials frequently resort to
this illegal practice to meet their quarterly revenue targets.
State interference in the economy also takes the form of privileged
government treatment for certain businesses, some of which enjoy an
effective monopoly on the highly lucrative imports of fuel, grain, sugar,
and alcohol to Armenia. Such treatment is facilitated by the absence of
legislation regulating conflicts of interest. Many government officials own,
both indirectly and openly, private firms or sponsor companies controlled by
their cronies.
More important, government officials are rarely sacked or prosecuted on
corruption charges, even though prosecutors claim to open several dozen such
cases each year. Most high-profile corruption cases have targeted members of
former President Levon Ter-Petrosian’s administration who are at odds with
the current regime. The July 2003 arrest on bribery charges of the deputy
commander of Armenia’s border troops, Colonel Vahan Mkhitarian, and the
ensuing dismissal of his boss, General Levon Stepanian, were an exception to
the rule; media speculation linked the case to an internal rivalry in the
national security service. No other high-ranking official reportedly faced
such accusations in 2002-2003. Whistle-blowing is virtually nonexistent
among civil servants, who continue to fear losing their jobs. Also
contributing to the problem is a lack of in-depth investigative reports in
the local media exposing government corruption.
The lack of results in the authorities’ stated anti-corruption drive was
acknowledged by the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), one of the
three pro-Kocharian parties making up the coalition government formed as a
result of the May 2003 parliamentary elections. Its leaders tried
unsuccessfully in June to get Kocharian to form a powerful government body
tasked with combating graft. Only in September 2003 did Kocharian appoint a
special anti-corruption adviser affiliated with the ARF.
The latest annual global survey conducted by Transparency International (TI)
does suggest a certain drop in government corruption in Armenia, rating it
among the least corrupt former Soviet republics. Armenia was ranked 78th out
of 133 countries in TI’s 2003 rankings. Armenia scored 3.0 out of a highest
score of 10.0 in TI’s Corruption Perception Index, up from 2.5 points in
2000.
Nevertheless, the existing mechanisms for government transparency are far
from effective. The collection of budgetary revenues by the tax and customs
authorities, for instance, is not audited by other government agencies. The
finance ministry, however, has a special unit monitoring government spending
as specified by the state budget. The annual budget undergoes detailed
discussion in the cabinet of ministers and especially parliament, which also
scrutinizes its subsequent implementation by the executive. The budget’s key
indicators are usually agreed upon with the World Bank, the IMF, and other
donors. Still, despite the existence of a law on state procurementthat
mandates open bidding, the awarding of government contracts in Armenia is
not transparent. As for foreign assistance to Armenia, much comes from the
United States and the European Union, which administer its distribution
themselves.
Armenia’s most important oversight body is the audit chamber of parliament.
Although the chamber has repeatedly criticized the government’s use of
public finances and external loans, it lacks the legal and administrative
muscle to affect government policies. Its parliament-appointed head, Gagik
Voskanian, publicly complained about this in June 2003. His complaints were
echoed by parliament speaker Artur Baghdasarian, who argued that an
effective fight against corruption requires a greater role for the
chamber.10
As of September 2003 there was no freedom of information legislation in
Armenia, and the government withheld many important facts from the public.
Still, all government decisions and parliament acts were published in
official bulletins and were accessible to citizens.
Recommendations
The authorities must fight corruption in earnest by investigating and
punishing corrupt government officials regardless of their position and
political connections. All necessary laws are in place, but they need to be
enforced. Any anticorruption drive must encompass the law-enforcement
agencies, where graft is rampant and particularly damaging to public
confidence. Relevant Armenian laws should be amended to limit their
corruption-driven interference in business. Parliament should pass stronger
legislation to combat illegal practices, including a law on conflict of
interest. Also, the existing law on financial disclosure must be amended so
as to allow for the verification of officials’ financial statements. The
audit chamber should be given more powers to inspect any government agency.
Its critical findings should automatically entail parliamentary and/or
criminal inquiries. Government bodies should become more open to the media.
A freedom of information law should be passed.
ACCOUNTABILITY AND PUBLIC VOICE – 2.98
No presidential or parliamentary elections held in Armenia since
independence have been judged free and fair by the international community
due to chronic vote irregularities perpetrated by ruling regimes. The
country’s only rotation of power, which occurred in 1998, was the result of
government infighting, not the expression of popular will. The outcome of
the sole relatively clean vote, the legislative elections of May 1999, was
effectively nullified by the October 1999 parliament killings. The
assassinated, charismatic leaders, Karen Demirchian and Vazgen Sarkisian,
co-headed the Unity bloc, which swept to a landslide victory in the polls.
Their deaths eventually led to the break-up of the alliance and radically
changed the balance of forces in parliament in Kocharian’s favor.
Armenia has thus a long way to go before becoming a democracy, and 2003 saw
a poignant confirmation of this fact. The year began with the dramatic
presidential ballot, the official results of which gave victory to the
incumbent Kocharian. But his main opposition challenger, Stepan Demirchian
(son of Karen Demirchian), refused to concede defeat, accusing Kocharian of
rigging the vote. Those charges were given weight by a monitoring mission
from the OSCE and the Council of Europe, which cited “serious irregularities
in many polling stations” and concluded that the two-round elections “fell
short of international standards for democratic elections.”11 The
international observers singled out ballot-box stuffing by Kocharian
supporters as the most frequent form of electoral fraud. The United States
expressed its “deep disappointment” with the Kocharian administration’s
handling of the vote. “Armenia’s leadership missed an important opportunity
to advance democratization by holding a credible election,” concluded a
State Department release.12 This election was hardly better than the
previous, fraudulent presidential ballots held in 1998 and 1996, and in some
respects (for example ballot-stuffing and opposition arrests) it was even
worse.
It was a similar story in the parliamentary elections held on May 25, with
official results favoring pro-Kocharian candidates and the opposition
disputing them. In a report issued on May 26, observers from the OSCE and
the Council of Europe found that while the polls “marked improvement” over
the presidential race, they were nonetheless undemocratic “in several key
areas.” The observers singled out “serious fraud” in the counting of
ballots.13
The official winners of the elections were the three largest parties
supporting Kocharian: the ARF and the Republican and Country of Law parties.
Together with a large group of government-connected nonpartisan deputies,
they hold the bulk of the 131 seats in Armenia’s national assembly. Only 16
lawmakers represent the main opposition group, Demirchian’s Justice
alliance, which claims to have been robbed of electoral victory. Nine
deputies are affiliated with another opposition group, the National Unity
party.
“In the Republic of Armenia power lies with the people,” reads the
constitution. But in reality, Armenian citizens have been denied their
constitutional right to elect and change their government. Despite the
abundance of political parties (more than 100 were officially registered as
of December 2002), no democratic rotation of power has taken place among
them. Only a handful of parties, allied with incumbent presidents, have been
represented in the executive.
Armenia’s electoral code guarantees equal opportunities for all parties, and
in general they have been free to hold campaign rallies and other gatherings
around the country. Even though the code entitles them to free airtime on
state television and radio, pro-establishment parties enjoy much easier
access to electronic media. The code’s greatest shortcoming is that it
places all electoral commissions under the control of the president and his
loyal parties. Opposition groups are thus unable to thwart fraud during the
voting and counting processes. The Armenian authorities, responding to
international criticism, pledged to reform the election legislation in the
summer of 2003, although as of September this had not occurred. It is highly
doubtful that they will agree to give up control over the crucial election
bodies.
Also, the opposition cannot rival pro-establishment parties and individual
candidates in terms of election campaign spending. Armenian law imposes a
$100,000 ceiling on campaign expenditures for a single party or electoral
bloc, and obligates them to disclose their sources of revenue. But few
comply with the requirement. According to the Armenian affiliate of TI the
three pro-Kocharian parties breached the spending limits during the
parliamentary election campaign. Another grave problem is vote buying, which
was widespread in the May 2003 elections. Vote bribes paid by wealthy
government-connected candidates seem to have decided election outcomes in
many of the country’s 56 individual constituencies.
Opposition candidates also often complain that many Armenian civil servants
are forced to illegally campaign for incumbent presidents and governing
parties. This was particularly obvious during the presidential race, several
months after the entry into force in October 2002 of a law on civil service,
which protects state bureaucrats against arbitrary dismissal and mandates
their selection on a competitive basis. Officials said that some 845 people
were chosen to work for various government agencies as of September 1,
2002.14 But critics argue that the body administering job competitions is
appointed by the president and can therefore not make objective decisions.
The lack of democratization manifests itself in the independent civic sector
as well. Thousands of NGOs are registered with the justice ministry, but few
of them operate in reality, let alone have any impact on government policy.
The most successful in that regard have been several associations uniting
owners of small and medium-size businesses. They have succeeded in the past
in lobbying parliament to block some of the government initiatives
toughening taxation rules. In April 2003, local media associations likewise
managed to persuade parliament to reject a government bill on mass media
that many local journalists regard as a threat to press freedom.
Freedom of expression suffered a serious blow in April 2002 when the
authorities shut down the A1+ independent television company. The move was
the result of a tender for broadcasting frequencies administered by a
Kocharian-appointed commission. It was condemned by Armenian media
watchdogs, international organizations, and the United States. The closure
of A1+ was the main reason why in 2003 Freedom House downgraded the status
of the Armenian media from “partly free” to “not free.” Faced with the
strong outcry, the authorities reportedly promised the Council of Europe
that A1+ would be allowed back on air in time for the 2003 elections,
something that did not happen. Furthermore, in July 2003 the state
commission on broadcasting rejected A1+’s bid for a new frequency, provoking
a fresh storm of domestic and international protests.
A1+ was the only major Armenian broadcaster often critical of Kocharian. The
dozens of other private TV channels, mainly owned by pro-government
businesspeople, rarely air any criticism of the president and are often
biased against his opponents. Armenia’s print media are far more free and
diverse, with several pro-opposition dailies regularly subjecting the regime
to harsh attacks. However, it is not uncommon for their journalists to
exercise self-censorship when covering security agencies or powerful
business oligarchs.
There were few reported cases of libel suits filed by state officials
against journalists during the period covered by this report. Defamation of
character is a criminal offense in Armenia punishable by up to three years
in prison. The corresponding clauses in the new criminal code “seriously
threaten freedom of expression” and run counter to European standards,
according to the OSCE and senior Western diplomats in Yerevan.15 In a joint
June 2003 letter to parliament speaker Baghdasarian, they urged Armenia to
decriminalize libel. Baghdasarian pledged to reform libel legislation but
stopped short of promising its decriminalization.
Recommendations
Armenia’s government must be committed to free and fair elections. In
general, Armenia has positive electoral laws in place, but they need to be
followed. Rulers must stop falsifying elections both directly and through
their cronies. They must finally accept the possibility of losing power as a
result of elections, something taken for granted in any established
democracy. The ruling regime must stop using civil servants and government
resources for its election campaigns. The authorities must give up their de
facto control over electronic media by amending the broadcasting legislation
and lifting the ban on A1+. Libel should be regulated by civil, not criminal
law.
Emil Danielyan is a Yerevan-based journalist and political analyst.
Notes
1 Emil Danielyan, “Armenia’s Top Court Deplores Arrests of Opposition
Supporters,” RFE/RL Armenia Report (Prague and Washington, D.C.: Radio Free
Europe/Radio Liberty), , 17 April 2003.
2 Karine Kalantarian, “Judicial Body Refuses to Probe Mass Arrests of
Opposition Supporters,” RFE/RL Armenia Report, 25 April 2003.
3 World Report 2003 (New York: Human Rights Watch),
4 “Opinion on Armenia” (Strasbourg: Council of Europe’s Secretariat of the
Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, 2002),
human_rights/minorities.
5 Armenia, International Religious Freedom Report 2002 (Washington, D.C.:
U.S. Department
of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, October 2002),
6 “Judicial Reform Index for Armenia” (Chicago and Washington, D.C.:
American Bar Association, Central and East European Law Initiative, April
2002),
7 Ibid., 36.
8 Shakeh Avoyan, “Armenian Courts of Appeal Uphold Most Rulings,” RFE/RL
Armenia Report, 30 July 2001.
9 Shakeh Avoyan, “Small Businesses Denounce Government Harassment,” RFE/RL
Armenia
Report, 13 January 2003.
10 Hrach Melkumian, “New Speaker Calls for Tighter Parliamentary Oversight
of Government,”
RFE/RL Armenia Report, 23 June 2003.
11 Emil Danielyan and Shakeh Avoyan, “International Observers Slam Armenian
Run-Off,” RFE/RL Armenia Report, 6 March 2003.
12 Emil Danielyan, “U.S. ‘Deeply Disappointed’ with Armenian Vote,” RFE/RL
Armenia Report, 7 March 2003.
13 Emil Danielyan, “Western Observers Criticize Armenian Polls,” RFE/RL
Armenia Report, 26 May 2003.
14 Karine Kalantarian, “Top Armenian Bureaucrats ‘Less Competent than Their
Subordinates’,”
RFE/RL Armenia Report, 3 September 2003.
15 Emil Danielyan, “Western Diplomats Tell Yerevan to Decriminalize Libel,”
RFE/RL Armenia Report, 20 June 2003.
Armenian speaker’s bid to reduce tension failed – opposition
Mediamax news agency
8 Apr 04
YEREVAN
The dialogue between the Armenian opposition and the authorities will
become possible only in case if the latter consents to a referendum on
confidence in the authorities, Armenian National Party and Justice
block leader Stepan Demirchyan said in Yerevan today.
National Unity Party leader Artashes Gegamyan said that the political
consultations held between the opposition representatives and the
Armenian National Assembly speaker Artur Bagdasaryan had produced no
results as the opposition’s proposals were rejected, Mediamax reports.
Armenian National Assembly speaker Bagdasaryan announced on 7 April
that he was going to held political consultations to reduce political
tension in the country.
Armenian rural heads condemn attempts to “artificially add fuel” to tension
Noyan Tapan news agency
7 Apr 04
YEREVAN
Armenian President Robert Kocharyan met the heads of more than 20
Armenian rural communities on 7 April. The meeting condemned attempts
to artificially add fuel to the internal political tension.
Noyan Tapan learnt from the presidential press service that the heads
of the rural communities had assured Kocharyan that they would
continue to implement his stable development programmes.