News Archive

Accused Grigor Voskerchyan Lawyer Stepan Voskanyan On 27 April, 2009 the trial of Grigor Voskerchyan started at the Court of First Instance of Kentron and Nork-Marash Districts of Yerevan (Article 225, part 1 of the Criminal Code of Armenia- organization of mass disorders). Judge to the case is Gagik Poghosyan, Prosecutors to the case are Ashot Nadoyan and Harutyun Harutyunyan, the defense side represents Stepan Voskanyan. The Court rejected the two motions filed by the defense side. Stepan Voskanyan stated that witnesses to the given criminal case were called to the police department the oth…

The trials of Myasnik Malkhasyan and Hakob Hakobyan were postponed respectively on April 28, 2009 and April 27, 2009 as the defense side was engaged in other court hearings of “March 1” and they were not able to participate at trials set on the same day and at the same hours. Myasnik Malkhasyan and Hakob Hakobyan were members of Parliament of Armenia till the events of March 1, 2008 and they were deprived of their liabilities as a result of votes of majority of MPs

The first trail of Alexander Arzumanyan, ex-minister of foreign affairs of Armenia and Suren Sirunyan began on April 08, 2009 at the Court of First Instance of Shengavit District, Yerevan. The defendants are accused of Article 225, part 1 of Criminal Code of RA (Organization of Mass Disorders). Many testimonies given during the court hearing differed from those given in the investigation period. It is rather interesting that preliminary testimonies were signed on April 29, 2008, while the witnesses gave their testimonies on March 2008. The trial of April 22, 2009 was postponed till April 27…

   During the presentation, the report was presented in 2 volumes. The report focused primarily on freedom of speech and mass media, peaceful assembly, human rights defenders, as well as torture and ill-treatment, freedom of religion and of conscientious objection. The chairman of Helsinki Association, Mikael Danielyan, spoke about the case of Vahan Khalafyan and the results of monitoring activities undertaken by the Helsinki Association at trials, prisons and mental hospitals in Armenia were also presented. Local organisations, the representative of the US Embassy in Armenia and re…

T Armenian members of the Network Artak Zeynalyan from “Jurists against torture”, Melissa Brown of “Shakhatun” NGO and Mikael Danielyan, Chairman of the “Helsinki Assocation of Human Rights”, the coordinating organisation of the Network in Armenia, participated in the action.

                  April 26th 2011 marked the first screening of a new documentary film ‘Armenia’s Lost Spring’, which was shot by director Ara Shirimyan and written by Tigran Paskevichyan. The film has two parts and is dedicated to the events of 1st March 2008. Part One covers the period of September 2007-March 2008 and depicts the pre-election, election and post-election developments and incidents which took place. Part Two addresses the events of 1st March 2008 and analyses why the true version of events has never been made public. The film has…

During the trial Varduhie Elbakyan, lawyer of Suren Sirunyan filed a petition of resignation to the presiding judge claiming that during the trial of 19.12.2008 the judge made a statement to the defense side which says that they are going to work on 23.12.2008, 24.12.2008 and 25.12.2008, in case when the petition submitted by Hovik Arsenyan has not been discussed yet, and the court has not made any decision. In addition to this the judge applied an extremely severe sanction against the defendants, rejected any petition filed by the defense side, restricted the proper work of representatives…

About defendant Myasnik Malkhasyan To separate the criminal case stemming from Article 225, part 1 and Articles 38-316, part 2 of the Armenian Criminal Code and to transfer the case to the Court of First Instance of Yerevan’s Kentron and Nork-Marash districts. To leave the preventive punishment on detention unchanged. To separate materials about him from the criminal case. About defendant Sasun Mikaelyan To separate the criminal case stemming from Article 225, part 1 and Article 235, parts 1-2 of the Armenian Criminal Code and transfer the case to the Court of First Instance of Kotayk’s regi…

And finally are these people called intelligentsia, people of conscience and ideas. The nation is unhappy if its intelligentsia is the enemy of free speech and high ideals. If the function of the prosecutors is to accuse people, for which they get payment, so you assumed a role of free prosecutors. I apply to those young men for who value the idea of freedom. I apply to those who struggle for a citizen’s freedom to conduct an action of protest against the materialist intelligentsia. I call out to collect all books of those writers and to throw them the garbage cans of Yerevan. It will be an a…