S. Mikaelyan: “There are many people with distorted fates in prison”
Former member of the Armenian parliament Sasun Mikaelyan, convicted in the March 1, 2008 case, was released on Friday, May 17.
Mikaelyan's friends and adherents, who
had been waiting for him outside the prison since early morning, welcomed him with warm applause and cheerful vociferation.
"Prison was a school for me. There are many people with distorted fates in the other side of these walls, and I earnestly request our courts to reconsider their cases and prison terms. Should it benefit our nation, I am even ready to enter into a pact with Satan," Mikaelyan told journalists in the prison yard.
Asked about his future steps, Mikaelyan said he will side with the position of the Armenian National Congress (HAK) and will do what HAK considers to be right.
"Serzh Sargsyan was my friend on the battlefield but today we hold different political viewpoints. When Serzh Sargsyan was the country's prime minister, I warned him that I would not second him if he ran for presidency with his teammates," he said.
Mikaelyan thanked everyone for their support and drove to his native village of Vanatur with his sons.
"We celebrate a real victory today but we are not going to cease the struggle," said Karabakh war participant Arshaluis Bozinyan.
Sasun Mikaelyan was convicted in connection with the March 1, 2008 political turmoil and sentenced to 8 years of imprisonment for illegal weapons possession. He was released under a general amnesty adopted by the National Assembly on Thursday on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of Armenia's independence.
