ACCORDING TO RESULTS OF MONITORING, OVER-WHELMING MAJORITY OF PERSONS
EXPOSED TO ADMINISTRATIVE PUNISHMENT DOESN’T KNOW THEIR RIGHTS
YEREVAN, July 26 (Noyan Tapan). The over-whelming majority of persons
exposed to administrative punishment doesn’t know about their right to
communication with the outside world. The results of the monitoring
conducted by the Helsinki Committee and the public organizations of
the Euro-Asia Center of Conflictology and Strategic Researches are the
evidence of it. The monitoring was conducted through the application
of international and intra-state legal acts on human rights protection
and the study of questionnaires filled in by 54 persons exposed to
administrative punishment, their relatives and lawyers. It was
mentioned during the July 22 discussion devoted to the results of the
monitoring that 92% of persons exposed to administrative punishment
doesn’t know that they have the right to receive newspapers, use
radio, paper, pen, pencil, envelopes, post cards, postage stamps,
87.5% of them doesn’t know about their right to meet with their lawyer
and close relatives, appeal the decision on administrative punishment,
right to medical care. 83% of them doesn’t know that have the right to
receive the copy of the decision on administrative punishment, receive
parcels, 79% isn’t informed about their right to submit applications,
complaints and make suggestions. Summing up the questionnaires, in
particular, it was brought to light that relatives of only 75% of the
arrested people were informed about the whereabouts of the
latter. According to members of the task force, the ground for
conducting the monitoring is the imperfection of the Code on
Administrative Offences, the absence of the special legislation
regulating order and conditions. In the resume the task force
introduces amendments into the Code, as well as “into the Internal
Rules of Detention Facilities of Arrested Persons of the RA Police
System.”