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On February 28, 2018 the RA Prosecutor’s Office disseminated its clarification in regard to HCA Vanadzor’s information paper on “Updated Information on the Fatalities in the RA Armed Forces and NK Defense Army in 2017”, which was published on February 26, 2018.

HCA Vanadzor published this information paper in addition to the information paper published on January 9, 2018 as it had received information on 5 more death cases. It should be noted that no information was publicized on 3 of those 5 cases.

Parallel to this, HCA Vanadzor presented the official information received from the RA Military Prosecutor’s Office according to which 56 death cases were recorded in connection with being recruited for military service in the RA Armed Forces and NK Defense Army in 2017.

Incidentally, after receiving addition information, the Organization did not include in the additional information paper 1 case which was the result of an injury inflicted during military service in 2013. Following the injury, the serviceman had been granted an early discharge. This given case had been included in the previous information paper.

Adding the information received, 64 death cases were mentioned to be recorded in the Armed Forces in 2017.

The RA General Prosecutor’s Office saw in this a tendency to instigate distrust towards the Military Prosecutor’s Office and decided to submit clarification consisting of four points.

1. In the first point the RA General Prosecutor’s Office touches upon the 5 cases included in the additional information paper and indicates 2 of them to be connected with military service; the RA General Prosecutor’s Office qualifies the other 3 as “not conditioned by military service” and goes on to accuse HCA Vanadzor of presenting those cases as connected with military service.

In this regard we should note that HCA Vanadzor does not make such a distinction in its publications on the death cases in the Armed Forces; the cases are presented as death cases that occurred during the period of military service, and there is no distinction drawn on the basis of being connected or not connected with military service. Therefore, the Prosecutor’s statement that HCA Vanadzor presents death cases not connected with military service as cases connected with military service is at least groundless.

In all the three cases that the Prosecutor’s Office considers to be not conditioned by military service, persons were considered to be doing military service. In regard to these cases, HCA Vanadzor certainly mentions the circumstances in which the death occurred and whether the serviceman was serving in the military or not.

In the given case it refers to:

1) military contract Murad Avanesyan, whose death, according to the clarification by the Prosecutor’s Office, was caused by health deterioration as a result of which the serviceman died suddenly.

In HCA Vanadzor’s information paper the cause of M. Avanesyan’s death is mentioned as “health-related.”

2) Vahe Margaryan, who, according to the clarification of the Prosecutor’s Office, was run over by a car in their garden.

In HCA Vanadzor’s information paper the cause of V. Margaryan’s death is indicated as “a casualty/ accident.”

3) Mayor Spartak Mkrtchyan, who, according to the clarification of the Prosecutor’s Office, was diagnosed with acute respiratory problems, acute cardiac insufficiency and bilateral pneumonia and then transferred to the Stepanakert Republican Hospital.

In HCA Vanadzor’s information paper the cause of M. Mkrtchyan’s death is indicated as “health-related.”

2. In the second point of the clarification the Prosecutor’s Office indicates that nothing is mentioned in HCA Vanadzor’s information paper with regard to two cases connected with military service, and in fact discloses two more painful cases. The Organization is thus informed of these two cases for the first time with the help of the “clarification” of the Prosecutor’s Office.   

• Grisha Vanesyan – contractor, private soldier. On 12.12.2017 his state of health deteriorated in the combat position under the protection of N military unit of the MoD and, despite the staff of the base providing first aid, he died suddenly. With the materials prepared by the Sixth Garrison Investigative Division of the General Military Investigation Department of the RA Investigative Committee, on 13.01.2018 a decision was made to refuse to initiate a criminal case on the basis of Article 35 Part 1 Point 1 of the RA Criminal Procedure Code.
• Armen Sakanyan (contractor, junior sergeant) died of a disease. On 27.01.2017, while in the combat position of the protection area of N military unit, due to the deterioration of his state of health, biological death was recorded on the way when transferring him to the Ijevan Medical Center. Diagnosis: acute myocardial infarction. With the materials prepared by the Sixth Garrison Investigative Division of the General Military Investigation Department of the RA Investigative Committee, on 02.02.2017 a decision was made to refuse to initiate a criminal case on the basis of Article 35 Part 1 Point 1 of the RA Criminal Procedure Code.

Naturally, the Organization could not have publicized information on these cases as it had neither official nor non-official information.

In this regard we find the clarification of the RA Prosecutor’s Office to be important as with the help of it the number of the death cases in the Armed Forces in 2017 was further corrected.

The Prosecutor’s Office presents the aforementioned 2 cases as “connected with military service,” yet considers 2 similar cases presented by HCA Vanadzor (Spartak Mkrtchyan, Narek Mkhitaryan) to be “not connected with military service,” which is incomprehensible. However, it may be assumed from what was said that in the cases presented by the Prosecutor’s Office the servicemen were in military positions, unlike in the cases presented by the Organization. In this regard we can only refer to the data presented by the Prosecutor’s Office.

3. In the third point of the clarification provided by the Prosecutor’s Office, it indicates that “Several death cases presented in the Organization’s information papers, despite not being connected with military service, were in fact viewed in the context of the fatalities connected with military service.”

The following cases are then indicated:

1) Mayor Armen Tsaturyan, who, according to the data of the Prosecutor’s Office, died of a heart attack in his car.

In the information paper of HCA Vanadzor the cause of A. Tsaturyan’s death is indicated as “health-related.”

2) military contractor Narek Mkhitaryan, who, according to the data of the Prosecutor’s Office, died of acute cardiovascular-respiratory insufficiency after a surgery.

In HCA Vanadzor’s information paper the cause of N. Mkhitaryan’s death is indicated as “health-related.”

3) military contractor Vardan Grigoryan, who, according to the data of the Prosecutor’s Office, was killed by another military contractor in the same military unit A. L., who used his fists to murder him and then rolled his car down into the gorge and burned it.

In HCA Vanadzor’s information paper the cause of V. Grigoryan’s death is indicated as “murder.”

It should be noted that neither in the clarification of the Prosecutor’s Office nor in any other source is there information on the circumstances in which the serviceman ended up in this situation, on whether he had the right to abandon the military unit and whether there was appropriate control or not.

4) soldier Gevorg Khanamiryan, who, according to the data of the Prosecutor’s Office, died “in an accident, while on vacation.”

In HCA Vanadzor’s information paper the cause of G. Khanamiryan’s death is indicated as “a casualty/accident”.

5) military contractor Norayr Hovhannisyan, who, according to the data of the Prosecutor’s Office, died “due to an accident, in the conditions of not fulfilling his military duties.”

In HCA Vanadzor’s information paper the cause of N. Hovhannisyan’s death is indicated as “a casualty/accident.”

6) military contractor Tatul Tadevosyan, who, according to the data of the Prosecutor’s Office, died in a car accident, in the conditions of not fulfilling his military duties.

In HCA Vanadzor’s information paper the cause of T. Tadevosyan’s death is indicated as “a casualty/accident.”

7) Senior Lieutenant Samvel Kartshikyan, who, according to the data of the Prosecutor’s Office, died in a car accident, in the conditions of not fulfilling his military duties.

In HCA Vanadzor’s information paper the cause of S. Kartshikyan’s death is indicated as “a casualty/accident.”

It should be noted once again that HCA Vanadzor does not make a distinction between death cases according to whether they are connected or not connected with military service.

4. In the fourth point of the clarification submitted by the Prosecutor’s Office, it indicates, “Apart from the aforementioned inaccuracies, it was also mentioned in the Office’s previous information paper that in 2017 39 soldiers of mandatory military service died. However, there were 37 such soldiers mentioned in the very table presented by them. Incidentally, this datum was not reviewed in the “updated” information published two days ago.”

In the information paper published by the Organization on January 9, 2018, the number of soldiers of mandatory military service who died in 2017 was 39 as it included 1 case mentioned before, i.e. the case of Mayis Geghamyan’s death, information on which was received after the publication of the information paper. Another case, i.e. the case of Officer Gegham Zakaryan, who died as a result of a mine explosion, was included in the number of deceased soldiers of mandatory military service due to a technical mistake. The additional information paper did not touch upon the number of death cases of soldiers at all.

Here are the names of the 37 soldiers and the sources through which the information was obtained:

1. Garik Vardanyan https://news.am/arm/news/367787.html
2. Andranik Musikyan http://investigative.am/news/view/andranik-musikyan.html
3. Shavarsh Galstyan http://investigative.am/news/view/shavarsh-galstyan.html
4. Sargis Apinyan http://www.mil.am/hy/news/4604
5. Gor Gareginyan http://investigative.am/news/view/gor-gareginyan.html
6. Garegin Argamanyan http://investigative.am/news/view/zinvori-mah-shmol-gaz.html
7. Lernik Osyan http://nkrmil.am/news/view/1740
8. Gurgen Sargsyan http://galatv.am/hy/news/182211/
9. Artak Rafayelyan http://galatv.am/hy/news/185092/
10. Narek Harutyunyan http://galatv.am/hy/news/188058/
11. Karen Avetisyan http://galatv.am/hy/news/188166/
12. Mher Arzumanyan http://forrights.am/?ln=1&id_=10&page_id=597
13. Rafayel Bisharyan https://news.am/arm/news/388890.html
14. Ruben Barseghayn https://news.am/arm/news/388890.html
15. Ruben Mnatsakanyan http://yerkirmedia.am/emergency/jraheghddz-zincarayogh-ruben-mnacakanyan/
16. Gagik Mesropyan http://investigative.am/news/view/gagik-mesropyan.html
17. Arshak Arshakyan http://galatv.am/hy/news/190004/
18. Karen Danielyan http://investigative.am/news/view/karen-danielyan.html
19. Arayik Matinyan http://investigative.am/news/view/4-zincarayoxi-spanutyun-hakarakord.html
20. Vigen Petrosyan http://investigative.am/news/view/4-zincarayoxi-spanutyun-hakarakord.html
21. Vardan Sargsyan http://investigative.am/news/view/4-zincarayoxi-spanutyun-hakarakord.html
22. Narek Gasparyan http://investigative.am/news/view/4-zincarayoxi-spanutyun-hakarakord.html
23. Vazgen Poghosyan http://investigative.am/news/view/zincarayox-vazgen-poxosyan.html
24. Vardan Melkonyan http://www.mil.am/hy/news/4873
25. Arman Movsisyan http://investigative.am/news/view/arman-movsisyan.html
26. Abas Sloyan http://investigative.am/news/view/abas-sloyan.html
27. Hayk Khachatryan http://nkrmil.am/news/view/1975
28. Seyran Sargsyan http://investigative.am/news/view/seyran-sargsyan.html
29. Chaplin Margaryan http://investigative.am/news/view/chaplin-margaryan.html
30. Tigran Khachatryan http://investigative.am/news/view/tigran-xachatryan-zincarayox.html
31. Aram Khachatryan http://investigative.am/news/view/spanutyun-zincarayox.html
32. Hrach Avetisyan http://investigative.am/news/view/hrach-avetisyan.html
33. Gevorg Khanamiryan http://investigative.am/news/view/gevorg-xanamiryan-vtar.html
34. Hrant Mangasaryan https://168.am/2017/11/06/865582.html
35. Sargis Melikyan http://forrights.am/?ln=1&id_=10&page_id=668
36. Sargis Abrahamyan http://forrights.am/?ln=1&id_=10&page_id=668
37. Narek Adibekyan http://investigative.am/news/view/narek-adibekyan.html

In the fourth point of the clarification it is also mentioned that “the death cases of 4 of the soldiers of mandatory military service occurred within the period of 3 months after being drafted; 1 occurred due to ceasefire violations, and 1 – due to a health problem. 2 cases were qualified as suicides. In 2017 no soldier of mandatory military service died as a result of ceasefire violations within the period of 3 months after being drafted. In the three-month period mentioned, 1 serviceman (Sargis Apinyan) died of a disease. In 2017 2 cases of suicide were recorded (Abas Sloyan, Hrach Avetisyan).”

With regard to the statement of the RA General Prosecutor’s Office according to which “in 2017 no soldier of mandatory military service died as a result of ceasefire violations,” it should be mentioned that the Organization learnt about serviceman Gor Gareginyan’s death within the three-month period through the article titled “The deceased serviceman was from Shirak Province; his family lived in the RF” that was published on the website news.am on 06.02.2017. The article mentions that “the serviceman was drafted in the fall of last year”, i.e. after November 2016 given the fact that the call-up is generally held in January. Incidentally, information on this was also disseminated by the Press Service of the Defense Army.

It should be recalled that the Organization’s studies are based on the official information provided by official institutions, the information obtained from the families of deceased servicemen and the information presented by the mass media. Apart from this, in the absence of any official information, the Organization tries to obtain official information as well, presenting it parallel to the non-official information with relevant references.

This means that we can state that, taking into consideration the two other death cases identified through the clarification of the RA General Prosecutor’s Office, the total number of death cases that occurred during military service in the RA Armed Forces and NK Defense Army in 2017 constituted 66 (37 of which occurred during mandatory military service).

The causes of the death cases of 66 servicemen are ceasefire violations (23), health problems (8), casualties (16), suicides (10), murders (8) and negligent attitude towards service (1).

16 of the servicemen who died due to ceasefire violations were soldiers of mandatory military service.

In addition to the aforementioned, we should note that HCA Vanadzor has been addressing the death cases in the Armed Forces for many years in order to assess the situation of the fulfillment of the RA authorities’ (in this case on behalf of the Ministry of Defense, the Military Prosecutor’s Office and investigative bodies) duties towards human rights before the RA citizens and in order to inform the public.

The RA authorities have a direct responsibility for servicemen’s right to life first and foremost to ensure a secure and decent service and also to conduct an effective, comprehensive and objective investigation in regard to every death case as well as to provide decent and adequate compensation to the families of the deceased.

HCA Vanadzor operates completely in line with the principle of democratic and civil oversight over the armed forces as established by the RA Constitution and the international commitments undertaken by the RA in the area of human rights.

We value the cooperation of the civil society with the RA authorities, in this given case that of the RA Prosecutor’s Office as well as with the RA Defense Ministry, with the aim of developing effective mechanisms of human rights protection and improving the situation of human rights protection.

We urge the state and government bodies, instead of qualifying the activity of non-governmental organizations and the issues raised by them as something that does not correspond to the truth, to act based on the logic of fulfilling their duties in a due manner and to provide the public with accurate information on the situation of human rights in the Armed Forces, including the information on the death cases, their causes, the identification of the circumstances, the implementation of effective investigations, the identification of the perpetrators and bringing them to justice.

Only through ensuring everyone’s equal responsibility before law and the principle of the rule of law will it be possible to fulfill the commitments undertaken by the RA authorities in international interstate bodies in the field of human rights protection.

Only in the case of the adequate implementation of the commitments undertaken by the RA authorities in international instances through human rights conventions and covenants will the representatives of the authorities be able to present their reports in a proper manner.