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DEFINING POLITICAL PRISONER: GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS SAY NO ONE IN ARMENIA IN JAIL FOR VIEWS, OPPOSITION DISAGREES
HUMAN RIGHTS | 11.12.14 | 10:56
http://armenianow.com/society/human_rights/59250/armenia_political_prisoner_government_opposition_p ace
Photo: www.parliament.am
By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
The National Assembly's Standing Committee on Human Rights Defense and
Public Affairs held Parliamentary hearings regarding the implementation
by Armenia of the PACE's Resolution 1900 'Defining Political Prisoner',
during which the opposition criticized the government.
Opposition lawmaker, Committee member Alexander Arzumanyan claimed that
under the rule of all three presidents in Armenia - since 1994 - there
have always been political prisoners in the country. Addressing the
resolution's definitions and subsections, the problems of human rights
violations, trial procedures and sentences in Armenia, Arzumanyan
said it was unacceptable to have people being persecuted for their
political views in the 21st century.
"Currently there are political prisoners in Armenia. There are
people who give different evaluations, but there are no criteria to
be measured as a rule, and if they do match them, we could say that
the person is a political prisoner," he said.
Opposition members consider Volodya Avetisyan, a retired colonel and
Karabakh war veteran, who was convicted for fraud and sentenced to six
years in prison earlier this year, to be a political prisoner. In 2013
Avetisyan initiated a protest raising social problems of war veterans.
Opposition activist Shant Harutyunyan and his friends, who took to
the streets with political demands on November 5, 2013, were also
sentenced to imprisonment in October.
On December 8 during a live Facebook conference on Azatutyun TV
Minister of Justice Hovhannes Manukyan answered questions about
Volodya Harutyunyan, Shant Harutyunyan and his friends, stating that
there are no political prisoners in Armenia.
"I must say I do not agree with the author of the question. There
are no political prisoners in Armenia now," the minister said, adding
that he studied that question and in his evaluations he is guided by
'objective criteria'.
"I do not mean to say that it is the final truth, but still I want
to say that no case that would speak about the presence of political
prisoners can be found in such reports and estimations," the minister
said.
Nevertheless, while inside the Parliament building the hearings went
on, outside a group of citizens and human rights defense organizations
held a protest with posters of photos of 17 citizens who, according
to them, hold the status of political prisoners.
Rights and Support Fund President Gagik Sarukhanyan said that those
people are in prison for their political views. According to him,
during the trials their guilt was not proved.
"We want those in prison for their political views now to be recognized
as political prisoners and to be freed immediately. Holding a person in
a prison for a long time the government kills two birds with one stone
- silencing politically active people on a long-term and depriving them
of the opportunity of extenuating circumstances," Sarukhanyan said.
HUMAN RIGHTS | 11.12.14 | 10:56
http://armenianow.com/society/human_rights/59250/armenia_political_prisoner_government_opposition_p ace
Photo: www.parliament.am
By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
The National Assembly's Standing Committee on Human Rights Defense and
Public Affairs held Parliamentary hearings regarding the implementation
by Armenia of the PACE's Resolution 1900 'Defining Political Prisoner',
during which the opposition criticized the government.
Opposition lawmaker, Committee member Alexander Arzumanyan claimed that
under the rule of all three presidents in Armenia - since 1994 - there
have always been political prisoners in the country. Addressing the
resolution's definitions and subsections, the problems of human rights
violations, trial procedures and sentences in Armenia, Arzumanyan
said it was unacceptable to have people being persecuted for their
political views in the 21st century.
"Currently there are political prisoners in Armenia. There are
people who give different evaluations, but there are no criteria to
be measured as a rule, and if they do match them, we could say that
the person is a political prisoner," he said.
Opposition members consider Volodya Avetisyan, a retired colonel and
Karabakh war veteran, who was convicted for fraud and sentenced to six
years in prison earlier this year, to be a political prisoner. In 2013
Avetisyan initiated a protest raising social problems of war veterans.
Opposition activist Shant Harutyunyan and his friends, who took to
the streets with political demands on November 5, 2013, were also
sentenced to imprisonment in October.
On December 8 during a live Facebook conference on Azatutyun TV
Minister of Justice Hovhannes Manukyan answered questions about
Volodya Harutyunyan, Shant Harutyunyan and his friends, stating that
there are no political prisoners in Armenia.
"I must say I do not agree with the author of the question. There
are no political prisoners in Armenia now," the minister said, adding
that he studied that question and in his evaluations he is guided by
'objective criteria'.
"I do not mean to say that it is the final truth, but still I want
to say that no case that would speak about the presence of political
prisoners can be found in such reports and estimations," the minister
said.
Nevertheless, while inside the Parliament building the hearings went
on, outside a group of citizens and human rights defense organizations
held a protest with posters of photos of 17 citizens who, according
to them, hold the status of political prisoners.
Rights and Support Fund President Gagik Sarukhanyan said that those
people are in prison for their political views. According to him,
during the trials their guilt was not proved.
"We want those in prison for their political views now to be recognized
as political prisoners and to be freed immediately. Holding a person in
a prison for a long time the government kills two birds with one stone
- silencing politically active people on a long-term and depriving them
of the opportunity of extenuating circumstances," Sarukhanyan said.