THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE MAY USE THE POLITICAL PRISONER CRITERION
Support A1+!“The Council of Europe made a late decision on the evident truth,” says PACE Armenian delegation member Raffi Hovhannisian referring to the Monitoring Commission’s decision today that calls on the urgent release of those arrested for political views and the clarification of the reasons for the murders of March 1. Raffi Hovhannisian underlines that they [“Heritage” party] have stated that several times. Let us recall that after the approval of the rather restrained resolution on Armenia in June, Raffi Hovhannisian has not participated in the PACE plenary sessions and monitoring until, as Hovhannisian said, “Europe puts its values, rights and guidelines into action.” In any case, how does Raffi Hovhannisian weigh in on the resolution on Armenia which was approved today?
“That statement reflects the disposition of the Commissioner for Human Rights, as well as the Council of Europe. Although many had high hopes, there was no progress in respect for human rights, release of political prisoners, etc. Everyone knows that things will get worse for Armenia if the authorities don’t take certain steps by January.”
Do you think that the RA authorities will immediately release the political prisoners as is stated in the resolution?
“People expect the authorities to do that. However, this is the only guarantee that we have a self-confident government that recognizes its past, the cynical elections and wants to take steps toward legitimacy. I hope that they will take these steps and thus pave the path towards guaranteeing rule of law.”
If the RA authorities don’t fulfill the requirements, is it possible that the CE officials avoiding the use of the political prisoner criterion now will use it in their future resolutions?
“I think that in that case they will use the propositions with the definition of political prisoner. It is very possible that those who avoid the use of that criterion today will use it later on.”
What are your expectations for the future independent expert group, which will investigate the events of March 1?
“Actions speak louder than words. If there haven’t been any proceedings on the death of the citizens seven months after the events of March 1, then that goes to show that we lack an objective approach and are not getting the work done. So, besides formation, this fact-gathering group must be authorized to complete the entire investigation, invite all witnesses, including all presidents of Armenia and all of those people, who have officially given the commands. I think that we should make it clear that the committee has the right to call witnesses, who must testify and after that the committee must present its conclusion not only to the president or the National Assembly, but also to the society and that is when we will see tangible activities.
Interview by Karine Asatryan--Strasburg
