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GASPARYAN: POLICE HAVE "LOST OUR SELF-ESTEEM"
By Hovannes Shoghikyan
www.azatutyun.am
13.01.12
Vladimir Gasparyan, the chief of the Armenian police, on Thursday
defended sweeping personnel changes initiated by him, saying that
they are necessary for restoring popular trust in the law-enforcement
agency.
In unusually blunt terms, Gasparyan complained that the police have
grown discredited in eyes of the public over the two decades of
Armenia's independence. "We, myself and my colleagues, have lost our
self-esteem," he told journalists.
"I have told my colleagues, my comrades with whom I have worked for
years, 'Guys, we have lost our moral authority, we have turned the
police into an apparatus of tourists, real properties, moneylenders
and village crooks.' We have steadily lost that for the last 20 years.
It's time to sober up."
A former deputy defense minister, Gasparyan has sacked and replaced
dozens of senior police officers since being appointed as police chief
by President Serzh Sargsyan more than two months ago. He pledged to
reform a police service that has long been accused of corruption and
human rights abuses.
Speaking after a weekly cabinet meeting in Yerevan, Gasparyan insisted
that the purges are intended to improve the police performance by
cutting "bloated staffs" and eliminating "redundant work" done by
police officers.
"The police are now becoming more mobile and effective," he said.
"There are departing cadres who I think have exhausted themselves
and they agree with me. There are even people who had the status of
tourists and zero effectiveness. There have also been real properties
[among officers.]"
Gasparyan headed the Armenian military police for more than a decade
before being appointed deputy defense minister in late 2010. A native
of Soviet Estonia, he served in the police in the early and mid-1990s.
He has been known to the public for his occasionally flamboyant
behavior and statements.
Despite his reform pledges, the 53-year-old has so far said little
about ill-treatment of criminal suspects and other police abuses that
have long been the norm in Armenia. Nor has he commented on how to
combat widespread corruption within the police ranks.
Many senior police officers are believed to be wealthy individuals with
business interests. One of them, Colonel Margar Ohanyan, the former
head of the national traffic police, was arrested last September and
is now standing trial on corruption charges.
Gasparyan on Thursday dismissed his predecessor Alik Sargsyan's calls
for Ohanyan's immediate release pending a verdict in the case. "I
can't make statements containing emotional wishes and don't think I
am the one who should express emotions just because I love or respect
someone," he said.
Sargsyan told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) on Tuesday
that Ohanyan should not be treated like an "ordinary criminal" because
"he has served this country for 30 years."
By Hovannes Shoghikyan
www.azatutyun.am
13.01.12
Vladimir Gasparyan, the chief of the Armenian police, on Thursday
defended sweeping personnel changes initiated by him, saying that
they are necessary for restoring popular trust in the law-enforcement
agency.
In unusually blunt terms, Gasparyan complained that the police have
grown discredited in eyes of the public over the two decades of
Armenia's independence. "We, myself and my colleagues, have lost our
self-esteem," he told journalists.
"I have told my colleagues, my comrades with whom I have worked for
years, 'Guys, we have lost our moral authority, we have turned the
police into an apparatus of tourists, real properties, moneylenders
and village crooks.' We have steadily lost that for the last 20 years.
It's time to sober up."
A former deputy defense minister, Gasparyan has sacked and replaced
dozens of senior police officers since being appointed as police chief
by President Serzh Sargsyan more than two months ago. He pledged to
reform a police service that has long been accused of corruption and
human rights abuses.
Speaking after a weekly cabinet meeting in Yerevan, Gasparyan insisted
that the purges are intended to improve the police performance by
cutting "bloated staffs" and eliminating "redundant work" done by
police officers.
"The police are now becoming more mobile and effective," he said.
"There are departing cadres who I think have exhausted themselves
and they agree with me. There are even people who had the status of
tourists and zero effectiveness. There have also been real properties
[among officers.]"
Gasparyan headed the Armenian military police for more than a decade
before being appointed deputy defense minister in late 2010. A native
of Soviet Estonia, he served in the police in the early and mid-1990s.
He has been known to the public for his occasionally flamboyant
behavior and statements.
Despite his reform pledges, the 53-year-old has so far said little
about ill-treatment of criminal suspects and other police abuses that
have long been the norm in Armenia. Nor has he commented on how to
combat widespread corruption within the police ranks.
Many senior police officers are believed to be wealthy individuals with
business interests. One of them, Colonel Margar Ohanyan, the former
head of the national traffic police, was arrested last September and
is now standing trial on corruption charges.
Gasparyan on Thursday dismissed his predecessor Alik Sargsyan's calls
for Ohanyan's immediate release pending a verdict in the case. "I
can't make statements containing emotional wishes and don't think I
am the one who should express emotions just because I love or respect
someone," he said.
Sargsyan told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am) on Tuesday
that Ohanyan should not be treated like an "ordinary criminal" because
"he has served this country for 30 years."