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Did the PACE Delegate Present Distorted Facts About Violence Against
Journalists in the Republic of Armenia?
http://www.aravot.am/en/2012/12/14/140675/
DECEMBER 14, 2012 15:25
`In Armenia, the decriminalization of libel in 2010 was followed by
more than 30 civil defamation cases, many brought by senior officials
or politicians against the media. A number of Armenian cases resulted
in newspapers being ordered to pay very high fines and damages,' the
report of Mats Johansson (in the picture) for the PACE Committee on
Culture, Science, Education and Media presents the state of media
freedom in the Republic of Armenia in this manner.
The report also mentions the case of the Armenian Times, when the
newspaper had to pay 6 million AMD to each of the three
parliamentarians who won the cases against it. The report says that
the paper was able to pay the fines with the help of donations from
its readers.
As for the elections held in the Republic of Armenia, the PACE report
reads: `In the case of the Armenian parliamentary elections on 6 May
2012, a joint delegation of international election observers of the
OSCE, the Parliamentary Assembly and the European Parliament reported
a general lack of public confidence in the integrity of the election
process.'
The Swedish delegate states in the report made to the PACE that in the
Republic of Armenia, a set of television channels are engaged in the
practice of using material taken from paid political advertisements.
According to the delegate, it damages the credibility of reporting in
the Republic of Armenia.
The report reads: `Armenian journalists' groups reported that the
media's political independence and capacity to report freely on
important issues in the campaign, including allegations of corruption,
were seriously hampered by pressures for self-censorship.'
The report also mentions personal threats and violence against
journalists, saying that `they reached the exceptionally high number
of 33 between January and September 2011, and in
the first five months of 2012, 3 physical assaults on journalists were
recorded, including two during the parliamentary elections.'
As for the 2010 Television and Radio Act, which gave regulators new
powers, the delegate writes that it has intensified the pressure on
broadcasters to avoid or tone down criticism of those in authority.
www.aravot.am inquired of Ashot Melikyan, the chairman of the Freedom
of Speech Protection Committee, whether the Armenian reality was
presented objectively in the PACE delegate's report. He replied: `I
must say that there were three cases of violence during the
parliamentary election. The information regarding the year 2011 is not
accurate either. When they talk about 33 cases, they are talking about
different kinds of pressure on journalists, including lawsuits against
them. Our research shows that during the nine months of 2011, there
were only three cases of physical violence. Perhaps, the PACE delegate
didn't gather information thoroughly and used inaccurate information,
or he misunderstood something. According to our research, the number
of cases regarding physical violence against journalists in Armenia
has decreased; it is another matter that the year 2011 was
unprecedented in terms of lawsuits against journalists and the mass
media. The number of cases has decreased this year, but the situation
is still worrisome.'
Tatev HARUTYUNYAN
Journalists in the Republic of Armenia?
http://www.aravot.am/en/2012/12/14/140675/
DECEMBER 14, 2012 15:25
`In Armenia, the decriminalization of libel in 2010 was followed by
more than 30 civil defamation cases, many brought by senior officials
or politicians against the media. A number of Armenian cases resulted
in newspapers being ordered to pay very high fines and damages,' the
report of Mats Johansson (in the picture) for the PACE Committee on
Culture, Science, Education and Media presents the state of media
freedom in the Republic of Armenia in this manner.
The report also mentions the case of the Armenian Times, when the
newspaper had to pay 6 million AMD to each of the three
parliamentarians who won the cases against it. The report says that
the paper was able to pay the fines with the help of donations from
its readers.
As for the elections held in the Republic of Armenia, the PACE report
reads: `In the case of the Armenian parliamentary elections on 6 May
2012, a joint delegation of international election observers of the
OSCE, the Parliamentary Assembly and the European Parliament reported
a general lack of public confidence in the integrity of the election
process.'
The Swedish delegate states in the report made to the PACE that in the
Republic of Armenia, a set of television channels are engaged in the
practice of using material taken from paid political advertisements.
According to the delegate, it damages the credibility of reporting in
the Republic of Armenia.
The report reads: `Armenian journalists' groups reported that the
media's political independence and capacity to report freely on
important issues in the campaign, including allegations of corruption,
were seriously hampered by pressures for self-censorship.'
The report also mentions personal threats and violence against
journalists, saying that `they reached the exceptionally high number
of 33 between January and September 2011, and in
the first five months of 2012, 3 physical assaults on journalists were
recorded, including two during the parliamentary elections.'
As for the 2010 Television and Radio Act, which gave regulators new
powers, the delegate writes that it has intensified the pressure on
broadcasters to avoid or tone down criticism of those in authority.
www.aravot.am inquired of Ashot Melikyan, the chairman of the Freedom
of Speech Protection Committee, whether the Armenian reality was
presented objectively in the PACE delegate's report. He replied: `I
must say that there were three cases of violence during the
parliamentary election. The information regarding the year 2011 is not
accurate either. When they talk about 33 cases, they are talking about
different kinds of pressure on journalists, including lawsuits against
them. Our research shows that during the nine months of 2011, there
were only three cases of physical violence. Perhaps, the PACE delegate
didn't gather information thoroughly and used inaccurate information,
or he misunderstood something. According to our research, the number
of cases regarding physical violence against journalists in Armenia
has decreased; it is another matter that the year 2011 was
unprecedented in terms of lawsuits against journalists and the mass
media. The number of cases has decreased this year, but the situation
is still worrisome.'
Tatev HARUTYUNYAN