AGO GROUP DEMANDS RELEASE
Support A1+!“It is unacceptable for a CoE member state to have political prisoners,” reiterated the head of the Ago monitoring group Per Sjogren during today’s press-conference with Armenia’s Foreign Minister Vartan Oskanian. He pointed out that the Ago delegation is more extended than ever in Armenia, because of the situation following the March 1 events. The delegation includes delegates of 9 members of the Council of Europe.
“The Council of Europe considers Armenia a partner and an important country in the region, that’s why we are concerned over the recent events in Armenia. We underscore the importance of political means to get back to a democracy path”, he said.
Aiming at the stabilization of the current situation, Mr. Sjogren presents the Armenian government six propositions elaborated by the CoE.
The crucial suggestions refer to those who were detained or arrested on political grounds. Mr. Sjogren has personally visited the “Kentron” penitentiary institution and met with the people detained during the post-election period in the result of the March 1 events and who are deprived from the right to meet their relatives. The Ministry of Justice assured Mr. Sjogren that the situation will soon be rectified.
“We endorse the calls of international organization to release all people arrested on political grounds,” Per Sjogren says. Being a CoE member Armenia cannot have prisoners for political dissent. The European diplomat says it violates the commitments assumed on CoE membership and the European conventions.
Per Sjogren says the Ministry of Justice is to regularly inform the Ago group about the release of prisoners and the procedures of trial of the arrested. Generally, with regard to the political prisoners the head of the Ago Group says it is a strong call and the problem should be addressed urgently.
Ago group also suggests a transparent “national investigation” of the March 1 events. “We do not interfere in the details of such an investigation. But it must not include solely bodies of state government, say, the Office of the Prosecutor General. It must involve all national forces and institutions which enjoy a widespread trust of the people of Armenia”, he noted.
The next propositions refer to the restrictions imposed on public demonstrations. Mr. Sjogren noted that the amendments to the respective law were adopted by the RA National Assembly without the expertise of the Venice group. The Head of Ago group says Venice group hastily investigated the matter and submitted some suggestions to the Ministry of Justice, which, he hopes, will be forwarded to the NA.
Finally, Ago Group suggests fostering a dialogue between the government and the opposition without preconditions.
Today reporters noted that earlier the CoE had advised the opposition to accept the decision of the Constitutional Court which recognized the outcome of the presidential vote. They asked Mr. Sjogren why there is no mention about it in their propositions. Has the approach of the CoE regarding the Constitutional Court changed, or is the absence misunderstanding? Per Sjogren says that dialogue is important in this connection. The head of the Ago Group said their propositions should be viewed as tended to future.
