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Criminal case regarding "civilitas" foundation scares potential donors
from Diaspora
arminfo
Friday, June 15, 17:29
I don't know who is the orderer of the criminal case against the
"Civilitas" foundation, but there is no doubt that many people do not
like our independent activity, director of the foundation, Salbi
Kazaryan, told journalists today.
"The gifted young people with creative mentality have been working in
the foundation. They raise social, political and economic problems of
the country which are still relevant today. It is very much possible
that such courage and independence of the foundation does not please
some persons. And if this criminal case is a way to hinder our
activity, it is the worst and the most senseless way", - Kazaryan
said.
She thinks it is strange that before calling them to the National
Security Service, representatives of the foundation did not receive
any request from the State Revenues Committee, if we take into account
that in the statement of the NSS they said about tax abuses. "It is
strange that NSS has started investigating this case. This makes us
think that the process was fabricated", - she said when replying to
ArmInfo correspondent's question.
The criminal case against the Civilitas Foundation concerns the $2mln
transaction for the sale of Huntsman Building Products, an
Armenia-based company owned by US-based Polymer Materials and Huntsman
International, says the National Security Service of Armenia.
"As a result of some inaccuracies in the contract, the transaction was
not submitted to the tax authorities and therefore left untaxed. Of
the charity funds left in Armenia according to the wish of the
American side, as much as $1,135,000 was not spent for charity but was
transferred to accounts opened by the founder and president of the
Civilitas Foundation Vartan Oskanian and the Foundation's trustee
Tigran Karapetyan, with part of the money used for personal needs. In
its turn, contrary to its own charter, the Civilitas Foundation failed
to report on the taxation of the $2mln provided to Polymer Materials
and Huntsman International for charity," says the NSS, adding that the
case stipulates tax inspections, trade analyses, interrogations.
In response to the NSS's report, Vartan Oskanian has repeated that the
case is clearly politically motivated. "I want to say the following:
money laundering, Oskanian, Huntsman are words that cannot be placed
together in one sentence. In order for there to be money laundering,
there must first be dirty money. In this case, the source of the funds
are known, the buyer is known, the transfer of the funds to me and to
Civilitas according to the donor's wishes have been transparent and
electronic. The attorneys have said that no tax obligation was created
as a result of the transaction. And the donor's funds "shall be
considered as a donation and the Recipient has the right to use in its
discretion and for the implementation of its statutory objectives.
Only those with political motivations will attempt to reduce a good
man's good work to political currency," says Oskanian.
from Diaspora
arminfo
Friday, June 15, 17:29
I don't know who is the orderer of the criminal case against the
"Civilitas" foundation, but there is no doubt that many people do not
like our independent activity, director of the foundation, Salbi
Kazaryan, told journalists today.
"The gifted young people with creative mentality have been working in
the foundation. They raise social, political and economic problems of
the country which are still relevant today. It is very much possible
that such courage and independence of the foundation does not please
some persons. And if this criminal case is a way to hinder our
activity, it is the worst and the most senseless way", - Kazaryan
said.
She thinks it is strange that before calling them to the National
Security Service, representatives of the foundation did not receive
any request from the State Revenues Committee, if we take into account
that in the statement of the NSS they said about tax abuses. "It is
strange that NSS has started investigating this case. This makes us
think that the process was fabricated", - she said when replying to
ArmInfo correspondent's question.
The criminal case against the Civilitas Foundation concerns the $2mln
transaction for the sale of Huntsman Building Products, an
Armenia-based company owned by US-based Polymer Materials and Huntsman
International, says the National Security Service of Armenia.
"As a result of some inaccuracies in the contract, the transaction was
not submitted to the tax authorities and therefore left untaxed. Of
the charity funds left in Armenia according to the wish of the
American side, as much as $1,135,000 was not spent for charity but was
transferred to accounts opened by the founder and president of the
Civilitas Foundation Vartan Oskanian and the Foundation's trustee
Tigran Karapetyan, with part of the money used for personal needs. In
its turn, contrary to its own charter, the Civilitas Foundation failed
to report on the taxation of the $2mln provided to Polymer Materials
and Huntsman International for charity," says the NSS, adding that the
case stipulates tax inspections, trade analyses, interrogations.
In response to the NSS's report, Vartan Oskanian has repeated that the
case is clearly politically motivated. "I want to say the following:
money laundering, Oskanian, Huntsman are words that cannot be placed
together in one sentence. In order for there to be money laundering,
there must first be dirty money. In this case, the source of the funds
are known, the buyer is known, the transfer of the funds to me and to
Civilitas according to the donor's wishes have been transparent and
electronic. The attorneys have said that no tax obligation was created
as a result of the transaction. And the donor's funds "shall be
considered as a donation and the Recipient has the right to use in its
discretion and for the implementation of its statutory objectives.
Only those with political motivations will attempt to reduce a good
man's good work to political currency," says Oskanian.