Tweet
NEW YEREVAN POLICE CHIEF ACCUSED OF TORTURE
http://asbarez.com/109469/new-yerevan-police-chief-accused-of-torture/
Wednesday, April 17th, 2013 |
New Yerevan police chief Ashot Karapetian
YEREVAN (RFE/RL)-Armenian civil rights activists have expressed
serious concern over the appointment of a police official who has
for years faced allegations of brutal torture as the new chief of
Yerevan's police department.
The official, Ashot Karapetian, has replaced Nerses Nazarian, the
longtime chief of the Yerevan police sacked on Monday. Karapetian
previously headed the Directorate General of Criminal Investigations
at the national police service.
Karapetian's name figured in a ruling against the Armenian government
that was handed down by the European Court of Human Rights last
October. The case stems from an appeal lodged by Grisha Virabian, a
former opposition activist, in connection with his April 2004 arrest
by police in Artashat, a town 30 kilometers south of Yerevan.
Virabian was taken to the local police station after leading a
group of local residents to Yerevan during the Armenian opposition's
March-April 2004 campaign of demonstrations aimed at forcing then
President Robert Kocharian to resign. He was questioned for several
hours before undergoing urgent surgery in a local hospital the
following day. One of his testicles was removed as a result.
Karapetian was apparently among the officers that questioned the then
44-year-old activist. Virabian claims that Karapetian hit him in the
crotch with a metal bar.
The police denied at the time torturing him, saying that the
oppositionist himself assaulted his interrogators. Virabian risked
at least five years in prison on corresponding charges before the
criminal case against him was dropped in August 2009.
In its ruling, the Strasbourg-based court found Virabian's claims
substantiated, saying that the Armenian authorities violated two key
provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights. It ordered
the authorities to pay him 31,000 euros ($40,000) in damages.
The case came under the renewed media spotlight immediately after
Karapetian was appointed as Yerevan police chief. Human rights
campaigners and other civic activists have cited it in their criticism
of the appointment. Karapetian was quoted by Emedia.am on Tuesday as
insisting that he has never ill-treated criminal suspects.
Arman Danielian, head of the non-governmental Civil Society Institute,
brought up the case on Wednesday during parliamentary hearings on
ways of boosting public trust in the Armenian police. "That Grisha
Virabian was tortured in police custody is a fact," he said.
"That Ashot Karapetian worked at the police station where Virabian
was tortured is also a fact. That a criminal case [on the torture
allegations] has never been opened is also a fact. How can I now
trust the police?" asked Danielian.
Artur Osikian, a deputy chief of the national police attending the
hearings, claimed to be unaware of the European court ruling. "Maybe
this is just the plaintiff's opinion, rather than the court's
decision," he told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am).
"I respect Ashot Karapetian a lot, he is a real professional,"
added Osikian.
"Mr. Osikian is right, Ashot Karapetian is a professional torturer,"
countered Vahe Grigorian, a lawyer who helped Virabian appeal to the
Strasbourg court. "The right place for such persons is prison."
Local and international watchdogs have long described police torture
as one of the most frequent forms of human rights abuses in Armenia.
They say that the practice remains commonplace despite government
pledges to combat it.
Vladimir Gasparian, the national police chief who appointed Karapetian
to the new position, last year publicly warned police officers against
using force to extract confessions from detainees.
http://asbarez.com/109469/new-yerevan-police-chief-accused-of-torture/
Wednesday, April 17th, 2013 |
New Yerevan police chief Ashot Karapetian
YEREVAN (RFE/RL)-Armenian civil rights activists have expressed
serious concern over the appointment of a police official who has
for years faced allegations of brutal torture as the new chief of
Yerevan's police department.
The official, Ashot Karapetian, has replaced Nerses Nazarian, the
longtime chief of the Yerevan police sacked on Monday. Karapetian
previously headed the Directorate General of Criminal Investigations
at the national police service.
Karapetian's name figured in a ruling against the Armenian government
that was handed down by the European Court of Human Rights last
October. The case stems from an appeal lodged by Grisha Virabian, a
former opposition activist, in connection with his April 2004 arrest
by police in Artashat, a town 30 kilometers south of Yerevan.
Virabian was taken to the local police station after leading a
group of local residents to Yerevan during the Armenian opposition's
March-April 2004 campaign of demonstrations aimed at forcing then
President Robert Kocharian to resign. He was questioned for several
hours before undergoing urgent surgery in a local hospital the
following day. One of his testicles was removed as a result.
Karapetian was apparently among the officers that questioned the then
44-year-old activist. Virabian claims that Karapetian hit him in the
crotch with a metal bar.
The police denied at the time torturing him, saying that the
oppositionist himself assaulted his interrogators. Virabian risked
at least five years in prison on corresponding charges before the
criminal case against him was dropped in August 2009.
In its ruling, the Strasbourg-based court found Virabian's claims
substantiated, saying that the Armenian authorities violated two key
provisions of the European Convention on Human Rights. It ordered
the authorities to pay him 31,000 euros ($40,000) in damages.
The case came under the renewed media spotlight immediately after
Karapetian was appointed as Yerevan police chief. Human rights
campaigners and other civic activists have cited it in their criticism
of the appointment. Karapetian was quoted by Emedia.am on Tuesday as
insisting that he has never ill-treated criminal suspects.
Arman Danielian, head of the non-governmental Civil Society Institute,
brought up the case on Wednesday during parliamentary hearings on
ways of boosting public trust in the Armenian police. "That Grisha
Virabian was tortured in police custody is a fact," he said.
"That Ashot Karapetian worked at the police station where Virabian
was tortured is also a fact. That a criminal case [on the torture
allegations] has never been opened is also a fact. How can I now
trust the police?" asked Danielian.
Artur Osikian, a deputy chief of the national police attending the
hearings, claimed to be unaware of the European court ruling. "Maybe
this is just the plaintiff's opinion, rather than the court's
decision," he told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am).
"I respect Ashot Karapetian a lot, he is a real professional,"
added Osikian.
"Mr. Osikian is right, Ashot Karapetian is a professional torturer,"
countered Vahe Grigorian, a lawyer who helped Virabian appeal to the
Strasbourg court. "The right place for such persons is prison."
Local and international watchdogs have long described police torture
as one of the most frequent forms of human rights abuses in Armenia.
They say that the practice remains commonplace despite government
pledges to combat it.
Vladimir Gasparian, the national police chief who appointed Karapetian
to the new position, last year publicly warned police officers against
using force to extract confessions from detainees.