What Has Haykaz Baghmanyan Done So Far?
09:15, June 15, 2013 | News | Rights of Soldiers/Recruits | Armed Forces
Interview with Arthur Sakunts, Chairman of Helsinki Citizens Assembly Vanadzor Office, on the recent reshuffle in the Armed Forces
The reshuffles in the Armed Forces have been recently carried out by the decree of Serzh Sargsyan, specifically; Henrik Muradyan was appointed as the RA military commissioner. By another decree, the term of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces, Lieutenant-general Haykaz Baghmanyan was extended for five years and etc. Is it presumed we deal with formal changes?
These changes have no grounds, no purpose and no logic, which assumes there will be no situation change, they simply are engaged in their work. Let’s take Haykaz Baghmanyan, for example. What has he done so far to value his term for another five years or the state’s military commissariat? In general, we think that military commissariats should be eliminated from the Defense Department and be part of a state civil agency to fulfill the orders of the army in terms of ensuring the needed numbers.
As to the civil oversight, it should be ensured through the integration of military ombudsman’s institute. Otherwise, all these changes of agents won’t solve any issue: we will keep having conscription-related complaints, as we still have complaints now, I don’t see any sense in these reshuffles, moreover, if they don’t keep the public posted with the grounds for changes.
This year’s military conscription has launched. What drawbacks of spring conscription have you detected?
During this spring draft the order of the Defense Minister is changed. The first round of conscription is organized by one order while the second one with another decree. The category “fit for non-combat military service” has been replaced with “fit for military service with restrictions”. But it is not clear what restrictions are meant. The list of diseases has changed without providing justifications. In other words, rules are being changed during the game. 175 draft decree, whereby the order of activities of military medical commissions are defined, provides that the list of diseases must be defined by law because it directly deals with human rights issues, but during the next conscription there can be another order with a view to meeting the needs of the system rather than protecting the human rights of conscripts. The system hasn’t changed, is not changing and the system not express through its actions that it’s willing to change.
The Ministry of Defense also dwelt on middlemen who accept money to arrange so that young men are declared unfit for military service. Two MoD representatives have already been held responsible. Do you think radical changes are possible aimed at struggling against this vicious phenomenon?
We have received complaints from various parts, currently we have complaints from Goris regarding a subjective approach applied during granting of a deferment. There are complaints that healthy young men are declared “unfit for military service”. In our country, the law is not applied equally for everyone. The law is not applied to “their” relatives and friends and they are not punished. Such selective approach does not dispel our doubts.
Is a generation change necessary in the Armed Forces?
Overall, the system of Armed Forces needs radical changes. The Armed Forces are based on authoritarian principles. I have said many times that the Armed Forces should be professional. The state should have a program. This program should have been elaborated covering 2000 – 2006 period because in 2006 young men born after 1988 were to be recruited. Five years would have been enough for setting up a professional army but a program based on soldier’s dignity was needed. The army should be controllable. Professional army implies a high level of control and transparency.
The content of the system is determined by thinking and approaches of those who form the system. So, here we have the issue of mentality of those engaged in defense policies, which is directly related to the essence of the political system. The political forces conduct a policy which is not based on human values but on consumption, which entails migration. The armed forces are also affected by these policies resulting in non-combat deaths, violence etc. which eventually drives people to migration.