The army's main mission has been distorted
Today, on Army Day, former prosecutor general Gagik Jhangiryan regrets to say that the main mission of the army has been distorted.
"The only calling and mission of the army must be to defend the people from foreign assaults. The army must never become involved in the solution to domestic and political issues. That is established in our Constitution and the RA Law on Defense. On March 1, 2008, the army became involved in maintaining the special regime and on February 23, by the decree of the Defense Minister, the army's subdivisions took part in the inter-political processes. Today, that has caused serious harm to our army's reputation, the trust in our soldiers and the on-duty commanders," Mr. Jhangiryan told "A1+" today.
The former military prosecutor also discussed the current issues facing the army, especially the crimes taking place and the motives behind them.
"The army cannot refrain from being a part of the flaws existing within the society. Eighteen-year old boys bring the defects of the street and their families to the army. The role of the army is to not only eliminate those flaws in a short amount of time, but also to educate the soldiers again."
Who are those people educating the soldiers? Numerous cases have shown that many of the officers don't have adequate education and training and apply force against soldiers. In response to that, Gagik Jhangiryan said: "The officers have changed in the past years. Just because I am not a military prosecutor now doesn't mean that I must only say bad things about the army. When I was appointed military prosecutor in 1997, there were nearly 280 such cases that led to death. In 2006, when I moved from the military prosecutor's office to the general prosecutor's office, there were 50 cases registered. This goes to show that the army has changed a lot. First, we must eliminate the flaws in society so that we can demand full-fledged soldiers, but our society today is vulnerable."
According to tradition, Gagik Jhangiryan celebrates Army Day with his close friends. "We remember Commander-in-Chief Vazgen Sargsyan, his unforgettable role in the development of our army." Could Vazgen Sargsyan ever imagine seeing the army come out against the people? In response, Jhangiryan said: "I don't even want to consider that. An army that fires at its own people can never fully protect the people from enemies. That is the greatest pain and loss that we suffered as a result of the events of March 1."
Mr. Jhangiryan says that he is sorry to see that the real freedom fighters who put in all their efforts in the Artsakh war are currently behind bars for their political views.
