Gagik Harutyunyan stayed loyal to himself
The Constitutional Court today ruled that Article 1087.1 of the RA Civil Code, which makes newspapers declare bankruptcy, is compatible with the Constitution. According to the court ruling, presses aren't liberated of financial liability, but there will be conditions.
"When determining the legitimacy of compensation, the defendant's limited resources must be viewed as a factor and the amount of incomes must be taken into account," CC President Gagik Harutyunyan said as he read the verdict.
The Constitutional Court registers that there can be no financial compensation for views expressed in the media because that can set limits on freedom of speech.
The plaintiff, Human Rights Defender Karen Andreasyan is satisfied with the Constitutional Court's ruling, but can't say whether it will refer to the already announced verdicts or cases that are still being examined in court.
As far as new cases are concerned, the Ombudsman is certain that the courts will take into account the Constitutional Court's interpretations based on the law.
"Unlike the evaluations of all other bodies, the evaluations of the Constitutional Court can't just be evaluations. They must have legal force," he said.
On April 16, 2003, examining Armenian presidential candidate Stepan Demirchyan's appeal to recognize the election as invalid, the Constitutional Court ruled that the decision of the Central Electoral Commission would remain unchanged. At the same time, the Court suggested that the RA National Assembly and the RA President organize a vote of confidence "as an efficient means of fighting the social resistance that had become radical during the presidential elections".
There has not been a vote of confidence to this day.
