HOW LONG WILL THE OPPOSITION AND THE CoE LET IT GO ON?
Support A1+!The PACE delegates were rather calm when giving their evaluations of the situation in Armenia because they were misled, says Armenian National Congress representative Levon Zurabyan, who is currently in Strasbourg.
“I firmly believe that Co-rapporteurs Prescott and Colombier had provided false information to the Council of Europe. All delegates underscored the fact that many people have been pardoned by the president. The problem is that the people who have been pardoned are not political prisoners at all,” explained Zurabyan.
According to Zurabyan, Sargsyan purposefully issued decrees of pardon at the end of last week.
“He did this before the PACE session because nobody had the time to investigate the released prisoners.”
Armenian National Congress representatives had informed President of PACE Luis Maria Piug and the CE Human Rights Commissioner regarding their doubts. Another representative in Strasbourg Arman Grigoryan informed that during their meetings they expressed the concern that the discussions are held based on false information. In addition, they underlined that the Co-rapporteurs avoided meeting with the opposition during their January visit to Armenia.
The deadline for Armenia was extended to the April 2009 session. Levon Zurabyan believes that the administration is going to continue to take advantage of any opportunity to keep the prisoners in jail and that the opposition will add the pressure by working more closely with the CE. Generally speaking, Zurabyan believes that the Armenian administration will prolong it as long as the opposition and the CE allows.
How long will the opposition let it go on? In response, Zurabyan told “A1+”:
“I don’t think that we have any more time to give. We have had enough and must come up with a series of events in order to see the release of all political prisoners.”
The Armenian authorities have promised the Co-rapporteurs to revise the articles of the Criminal Code by which the oppositionists are charged. Zurabyan considers this an attempt of the authorities to change its image and create the impression that there are some issues concerning the legislation.”
"They’re throwing the blame of their crimes on the opposition and hiding it by claiming that there are issues concerning the legislation,” says Zurabyan adding that the Armenian authorities are still able to convince the international community that way.
Karine Asatryan
Strasbourg
