Artur Sakunts: “Lyova Yeranosyan and Ashot Karapetyan should have been brought to criminal responsibility in due time
15:30, August 4, 2016 | News, Other news
Within its fact-finding mission, Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor collects information on the illegal actions of the police on July 17-31, 2016 and in the subsequent period as well as the stories of the victims and witnesses of those actions.
In his interview to Hraparak.am, human rights activist Artur Sakunts, Chairman of Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor, said that at the moment 3 persons have consulted the Organization. “We need a general picture of the acts of violence and illegal actions. Definitely, we have to prepare a report since by our estimates over 635 RA citizens were apprehended in that period. By official data, 357 people were apprehended, whereas according to our information, this number exceeds 635. In the report, we’ll include data on the police actions, which we’ll submit to international organizations. The goal is to present the activities of the law enforcement system”, our interlocutor said.
As for the reaction of international organizations to the Yerevan incidents of July 17-31, Artur Sakunts recalls that the European Union urged the police to act by law. “This means that it was recorded that the police committed illegal actions”, Artur Sakunts said. He recalls that the UN Office also urged the police to comply by the law and principle of rights protection. As for the response of the OSCE Office in Yerevan, according to our interlocutor, it was weak. He recalls that the incidents above got several responses by the US Embassy in RA and the Department of State and the reaction of the Human Rights Watch. Artur Sakunts found it regrettable that the Council of Europe Office in Armenia did not react to the incidents above.
In our interview with Artur Sakunts, we noticed that starting from the post-election events of 2008, the criminal proceedings against the RA citizens involved in oppositional activities are mostly initiated under Article 316 (Committing violence against a representative of the authorities) and Article 225 (Causing mass riots) of the RA Criminal Code.
The human rights activist stated that the criminal proceedings against RA citizens on the incidents of July 17-31 are initiated under Article 316(2) and Article 225 and those against ‘Sasna Tsrer’ group members are initiated under Article 219 (Seizing buildings, constructions, transportation and means of communication) and Article 235 (Illegal procurement, sale, keeping, transportation or carrying of weapons, ammunition, explosives or explosive devices) of the RA Criminal Code. “Those 2 articles, namely Articles 316 and 225 of the RA Criminal Code serve as a basis for political persecution”, our interlocutor said.
Artur Sakunts recalls that large-scale investments were made for reforms in the police system, but all that did not work. Instead, the period of July 17-31 showed that the conduct of the police was far from the conduct of reformed police. “The high-rank police officials who should have held liable, should not have stayed within the system for a single day; not only is their presence an obstacle to real reforms, but rather it brings them to naught. Now based on those data, we must claim that we can no longer go on this way. The persons responsible, particularly Lyova Yeranosyan and Ashot Karapetyan, who showed a similar criminal conduct against citizens back during the ‘Electrical Yerevan’ movement, should have been brought to criminal responsibility and dismissed from the system in due time. As this is not done, it makes no use talking about reforms”, our interlocutor said.