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Starting from July, 2013 various actions of protest undertaken by civil initiatives and civil activists against the illegal decisions reached by different authorities were accompanied by acts of violence, beatings, illegal apprehensions, criminal prosecutions exerted by law-enforcers against citizens.

The RA Police has failed to manifest law-abiding attitude in relation to any of the actions over exercising their right to freedom of assemblies and expression of opinion by civil activists and civil initiatives, which would be targeted at secure and uninterrupted realization of protest actions. The authorities have abused the Police in order to suppress the actions of citizens protesting against their unlawful actions and decisions reached by them, which constitutes a fact of using the Police forces against the civil opponents as a tool of pressures, violence and prosecution.

Moreover, the so-called “Intimidating groups for the protection of fathers” were used against civil activists and civil initiatives, which were disguised under gangs implementing acts of intimidation against activists. The RA Police failed to apply effective measures regarding the revelation of the latter, prevention of actions by them and subjecting the perpetrators to liability.

Through such a working style of conscious inaction, the RA authorities, in the face of the RA Police, are obviously patronizing the gangs carrying out acts of intimidation against the RA citizens and hold direct political responsibility for those acts of violence.

Such a working style leaves the RA authorities, in the face of the RA Police, out of the law frame and deprives them of not only moral but also factual right to appear in the name of the law and pose lawful demands to the citizens. By condemning such a working style of the RA authorities against the RA citizens and labeling it as intimidating by nature used against its own citizens, we demand that:

1. The RA Police should:

• Immediately stop the illegal prosecution and criminal cases initiated by the law-enforcement bodies against civil activists.
• To publicize a report regarding the alleged preventive measures exerted by the Police and justifications proving their effectiveness aimed to reveal the gangs that have carried out acts of intimidation against the citizens.

1. The RA Prosecutor General should:

• Immediately carry out investigation over the effectiveness of the measures applied and efforts exerted by the RA Police as well as their official powers provided by the law, which were directed at the prevention of violence against civil activists elucidated by mass media outlets, revelation of violence implementers and subjecting them to liability.
• Lodge criminal cases on the grounds of official inactivity by the RA Police officials in all those cases when the actions of intimidating groups have entailed grave consequences.
• File criminal cases based on the cases of unlawful actions and violence against civil activists initiated by the Police.

1. The RA National Assembly should:

• Immediately and urgently carry out investigation over the issue of the effectiveness of efforts exerted by the RA Law-enforcers regarding the violence acts exerted by the representatives of the law-enforcement bodies and intimidating groups against the RA citizens and their prevention.