Tuesday, April 6, 2021
Kocharian Cleared Of Coup Charges
• Naira Bulghadarian
Armenia -- Former President Robert Kocharian smiles during a court hearing in
Yerevan, March 30, 2021.
A judge in Yerevan threw out on Tuesday coup charges against former President
Robert Kocharian which Armenia’s Constitutional Court has declared
unconstitutional.
Kocharian as well as two retired generals were charged in 2018 with overthrowing
the constitutional order” under Article 300.1 of the Armenian Criminal Code. The
accusation rejected by them as politically motivated stems from the 2008
post-election unrest that left ten people dead.
The current Criminal Code was enacted after the dramatic events of March 2008.
In a March 26 ruling, the Constitutional Court backed defense lawyers’ arguments
that it cannot be applied retroactively against Kocharian and the other
defendants.
Citing the court ruling, the lawyers demanded last week that the Anna
Danibekian, the judge presiding over their two-year trial, throw out the coup
charges. Danibekian accepted the demand.
The judge ruled that Kocharian and his former chief of staff, Armen Gevorgian,
will continue to stand trial only on bribery charges which they also strongly
deny. She fully acquitted the two other defendants, retired Generals Yuri
Khachaturov and Seyran Ohanian, who were prosecuted only in connection with the
post-election unrest.
Armenia - Judge Anna Danibekian presides over former President Robert
Kocharian's trial, Yerevan, March 30, 2021.
Prosecutor-General Artur Davtian last week appealed to the Constitutional Court
to also declare unconstitutional legal provisions that do not allow the
prosecutors to alter the coup accusations leveled against the defendants. The
trial prosecutors said the coup trial should therefore be suspended, rather than
discontinued altogether, pending a high court ruling on the appeal.
One of them, Petros Petrosian, said after Danibekian’s decision that the
prosecutors could again indict Kocharian over the 2008 crackdown on opposition
protesters in Yerevan if the Constitutional Court grants Davtian’s request.
One of Kocharian’s lawyers, Aram Orbelian, insisted, however, that the high
court exonerated the ex-president from all responsibility for the bloodshed.
“There are no grounds for bringing new [coup] charges,” Orbelian told reporters.
Meanwhile, a lawyer representing the families of nine victims of the unrest
deplored the development. Tigran Yegorian hit out at the Constitutional Court,
saying that its March 26 ruling was politically motivated and violated the
Armenian constitution.
Five of the court’s nine judges were installed after the “Velvet Revolution” of
April-May 2018 which brought Nikol Pashinian to power.
Armenia -- Former President Robert Kocharian speaks during his trial in Yerevan,
May 16, 2019.
Pashinian was one of the main speakers at daily opposition rallies held in
Yerevan in the wake of a disputed presidential election held in February 2008 at
the end of Kocharian’s second and final term in office. Riot police used force
to end the protests on March 1-2, 2008. Eight protesters and two police
servicemen were killed as a result.
Pashinian and dozens of other opposition figures were subsequently jailed for
organizing what the former Armenian authorities described as “mass disturbances”
aimed at overthrowing the government.
Law-enforcement authorities radically changed the official version of events
shortly after the 2018 regime change. They first arrested Kocharian in July
2018. He was twice freed and twice rearrested before Armenia’s Court of Appeals
released him on bail in June 2020.
The 66-year-old ex-president has said that his prosecution is part of a
“political vendetta” waged by Pashinian. The Armenian prime minister denies any
interference in the probe of the 2008 violence.
Election Results ‘Not Important’ For Armenia’s Ties With Russia
• Astghik Bedevian
Russia - Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Armenian Prime Minister
Nikol Pashinian in Moscow, December 27, 2018.
Armenia will maintain close ties with Russia regardless of the outcome of its
parliamentary elections planned for June, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said in
an interview published on Tuesday.
“Russian-Armenian strategic, allied relations are quite rich and extensive,” he
told the Interfax news agency. “They are based on the historical proximity of
our friendly peoples. The character of these relations does not depend on the
outcome of the forthcoming pre-term elections.”
Pashinian is scheduled to visit Moscow and meet with Russian President Vladimir
Putin on Wednesday. The Kremlin said on Monday that the two leaders will discuss
bilateral ties and the implementation of a Russian-brokered agreement that
stopped the war in Nagorno-Karabakh in November.
Pashinian has pledged to hold snap elections in late June in a bid to end a
serious political crisis in Armenia sparked by the six-week war.
A senior Russian official said late last week that Moscow hopes the planned vote
will be a “starting point for achieving long-term stability in Armenia.”
Pashinian also told Interfax that his government is “highly interested” in
continued military cooperation with Moscow and, in particular, fresh supplies of
Russian weapons. He said in that regard that Yerevan has not abandoned plans to
buy more Russian Sukhoi Su-30SM fighter jets for its armed forces. He gave no
time frames for their possible acquisition.
The Armenian military received four such multirole jets in December 2019. The
Defense Ministry in Yerevan has said that none of them was involved in the
six-week war with Azerbaijan because it has still not acquired sophisticated
rockets and bombs designed for Su-30SM.
Pashinian pledged to further deepen Russian-Armenian relations shortly after the
hostilities which left at least 3,500 Armenian soldiers dead and more than
10,000 others wounded. He said that his country needs “new security guarantees”
now.
Kocharian Sees Electoral Alliance With Opposition Parties
• Karlen Aslanian
• Naira Nalbandian
Russia - Former Armenian Robert Kocharian is interviewed by Russia's First
Channel.
Former President Robert Kocharian has said that he will team up with two or
three Armenian opposition parties to participate in snap parliamentary elections
expected in June.
In an interview with Russia’s leading state-run TV channel aired late on Monday,
Kocharian did not name any of those parties. He said only that he will lead the
electoral alliance.
Kocharian first announced his intention to contest the anticipated elections in
early February. “If the elections are held they will most probably be bipolar,”
he said, implying that the political force led by him will be Prime Minister
Nikol Pashinian’s main challenger.
Reports in the Armenian press have said that the Kocharian-led bloc will
comprise the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun), a major
opposition party.
A Dashnaktsutyun leader, Ishkhan Saghatelian, on Tuesday declined to confirm or
refute those reports. “Dashnaktsutyun has not yet made a final decision
[regarding the elections,]” he told reporters when asked to comment on
Kocharian’s remarks.
Saghatelian claimed at the same time that Pashinian may still abandon plans to
hold the elections in late June. “It’s best to kick out this government of evil
before the elections,” he said.
Dashnaktsutyun is a key member of the Homeland Salvation Movement, an opposition
alliance which has been holding street protests in a bid to force Pashinian to
resign over his handling of last year’s war with Azerbaijan.
Armenia - Dashnaktsutyun leader Ishkhan Saghatelian speaks to journalists, April
6, 2021.
Speaking to the Russian First Channel, Kocharian again blamed Pashinian for
Armenia’s defeat in the war. He claimed that the Armenian prime minister has
“methodically” weakened the armed forces and other state institutions since
coming to power in May 2018.
The ex-president, who had ruled Armenia from 1998-2008, also accused Pashinian’s
administration of being linked to Western-funded nongovernmental organizations
which he said have been trying to undermine Russian-Armenian relations.
Kocharian was arrested in July 2018 on coup charges rejected by him as
politically motivated. He was released on bail in June 2020 pending the outcome
of his ongoing trial.
Russia has criticized the criminal proceedings launched against Kocharian.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly made a point of congratulating
him on his birthday anniversaries and praising his legacy.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed on Tuesday reports that Putin spoke
with Kocharian by phone when the latter visited Moscow last week. “As you know,
they have long maintained a warm rapport and talk to each other quite often,”
Peskov said, according to the RIA Novosti news agency.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2021 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
Author: Andranik Taslakhchian
Azerbaijani press: No traces of Armenian history in Jabrayil district says, Azerbaijani scientist
BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 29
By Ilhama Isabalayeva – Trend:
The Armenians, who profaned the Islamic and Christian cultural heritage of Azerbaijan during the period of occupation of Azerbaijani lands, hypocritically claim that the Azerbaijanis destroyed the Armenian “church” in the Jabrayil district during the Second Karabakh War, Deputy Director of the Institute of Archeology and Ethnography of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences (ANAS), Najaf Musabayli, said, Trend reports.
“However, Armenians have never lived in Jabrayil and, accordingly, there are no traces of Armenian history there,” Musabayli said.
“We are actually talking about a new building, which was commissioned in 2017 for the performance of religious rites by the Armenian military occupiers,” the ANAS representative stressed.
“The Armenians believe that they can destroy hundreds of our villages and cities, build a “church” for themselves and declare it a historical monument, and, according to their logic, this is normal,” the scientist added.
“In violation of international law, the Armenians, by involving scientists from other countries, carried out archaeological excavations in the ancient Azerbaijani Azykh Cave, which is one of the world’s oldest sites of primitive man,” said Musabayli.
“Azykh Cave is one of the monuments of exceptional importance in world archeology. In his recent speech, the head of the Azerbaijani state once again reminded that this cave was discovered by the Azerbaijani scientist Mammadali Huseynov in 1960, and since then research has been carried out in it. The president of Azerbaijan noted that during the occupation, Armenia illegally conducted excavations there, and stressed that from now on, Azerbaijani scientists, together with invited foreign scientists, will continue scientific research in the cave. The Azykh Cave camp, which is more than a million years old, is the only monument reflecting the sequence of the most ancient stages in the history of mankind,” the scientist said.
According to Musabayli, April 2022 marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Professor Mammadali Huseynov (1922-1994), who discovered the Azykh Cave and conducted intensive research there for more than 20 years.
“One of the first steps in continuing legal research in the cave could be the organization of an international scientific conference timed to coincide with the anniversary of this scientist,” he added.
Armenia Foreign Ministry statement on 5th anniversary of April War
13:00, 2 April, 2021
YEREVAN, APRIL 2, ARMENPRESS. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia issued a statement on the 5th anniversary of the Azerbaijani aggression against Artsakh unleashed in April, 2016.
“Five years ago, on the night of 1 to 2 April, 2016, the Azerbaijani authorities, in flagrant violation of the commitment on ceasefire, launched a large-scale military offensive against Artsakh, attempting to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict through the use of force.
During the offensive, the armed forces of Azerbaijan deliberately targeted the civilian population and infrastructure. The four-day war against Artsakh was accompanied by cruel murders and torture of the servicemen and civilians of Artsakh, as well as mutilation of the bodies of the victims. Those who committed these crimes on the grounds of national hatred were later awarded by the Azerbaijani authorities at the highest level.
In the aftermath of the April war, inspired by the impunity of the committed war crimes and violations of human rights, the Azerbaijani authorities intensified their bellicose rhetoric and propaganda of hatred against Armenians.
This policy resulted in unleashing new military aggression by Azerbaijan against Artsakh in 2020 with the direct involvement of Turkey and the latter’s affiliated foreign terrorist fighters causing numerous irreversible human and material losses. Considerable part of Artsakh’s territory fell under the Azerbaijani military occupation, tens of thousands of citizens became refugees.
The large-scale wars unleashed against Artsakh in April, 2016 and September, 2020, as well as the war crimes committed by Azerbaijan during those hostilities, demonstrated that Artsakh cannot be under the jurisdiction of Azerbaijan with any status.
Only addressing the consequences of the Azerbaijani aggression against Artsakh and the determination of the status of Artsakh will serve as a basis for lasting peace and stability in the region. Armenia and the Armenian people will make every effort to fully restore all the rights of our compatriots in Artsakh for a free and dignified life in their historical homeland,” the foreign ministry said in the statement.
Sports: Late show delights fans as Armenia stun Romania to win third World Cup qualifier in a row
EuroSport
BY
REUTERS
PUBLISHED 31/03/2021 AT 19:49 GMT
Armenia scored two late goals to beat Romania 3-2 and win their third straight match in European World Cup qualifying Group J.
The game was a throwback to pre-Covid 19 days with a loud crowd of more than 4,000 allowed into the Republican Stadium and they celebrated wildly at the final whistle of a dramatic win for Armenia, who have never qualified for a major tournament.
Armenia, ranked 99th in the world, had beaten Liechtenstein and Iceland before taking on a Romania side viewed as strong candidates to make the play-offs behind group favourites Germany.
Eduard Spertsyan put Armenia ahead in the 56th minute but Romania levelled through Alexandru Cicaldau six minutes later.
Cicaldau then made it 2-1 with a powerful header in the 72nd minute, which looked to have given the Romanians the three points before a dramatic finale to the game.
Romania’s George Puscas was sent off in the 78th for a dangerous challenge, his raised foot crashing into his opponent’s chest.
- Armenia, with the home support roaring them on, looked to use their extra-man advantage to get back into the game and they did so, in the 87th minute, levelling through Varazdat Haroyan who volleyed in a Tigran Barseghyan cross.
Television replays suggested the goal was offside but, with no VAR in use, the Romanian appeals were to no avail and their night was to get worse.
In the 89th minute, Alexandru Cretu was ruled to have impeded Spertsyan and amid the noise and excitement Barseghyan calmly converted the winner from the spot.
Armenia opposition MP asks PM why government failed to pay half of natural gas fees for borderline residents
News.am, Armenia
19:41, 30.03.2021
Deputy of the opposition Bright Armenia faction of the National Assembly of Armenia Sargis Aleksanyan posted the following on his Facebook page:
“By law, the government pays half of the fees for natural gas used by residents of borderline communities based on the prescribed quantity. The government failed to fulfill its obligation for the month of January, and the residents paid the fees (in the full amount for the given month). I have addressed the head of government with this issue and recommended that the government make the payments for the next months in order to mitigate a small part of the already heavy burdens on residents of borderline communities.”
EU welcomes Armenia’s ratification of protocol to International Covenant aimed at abolition of death penalty
16:51,
YEREVAN, MARCH 24, ARMENPRESS. The European Union welcomed the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights aimed at the abolishment of death penalty by Armenia.
Thus, Armenia became the 89th State party of it.
“While the Armenian Constitution already protects the right to life and prohibits the death penalty, Armenia makes this abolition irreversible with its accession to this protocol.
The EU welcomes this important decision, which is in line with the world trend to abandon the most inhuman and cruel punishment”, the EU Spokesperson said in a statement.
Reviving Armenia party does not exclude annulling election day or having elections without Pashinyan
Aysor, Armenia
If Nikol Pashinyan announces resignation and remains acting PM and the forces refuse to participate in the elections, 80,000 people will go to polls, of which 60,000 will vote for them and they will announce to the whole world that he is a legitimate PM with 80% of votes.
This was stated by leader of Reviving Armenia party Vahe Hakobyan said at a press conference today.
He said as far as the situation changes every hour, they do not exclude that the day of elections will be annulled or the elections take place without Nikol Pashinyan.
“Today our policy is the following – we are heading with only one vector, our electorate, the basis is Syunik. We are convinced in passing the threshold calmly. We are ready to cooperate with all the forces the agenda of which includes Pashinyan’s removal,” he said, not excluding bloc with other forces.
Peace built on destruction of Artsakh’s peaceful settlements can’t be stable and lasting – Armenia FM
Peace built on destruction of Artsakh’s peaceful settlements can’t be stable and lasting – Armenia FM
11:53,
YEREVAN, MARCH 16, ARMENPRESS. Peace built based on the destruction of peaceful settlements of Artsakh, including Hadrut region, the elimination of the Armenian population and the creation of Azerbaijani settlements in their place cannot be steady and lasting, Foreign Minister of Armenia Ara Aivazian said at a joint press conference with OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde in Yerevan.
The FM said Armenia has always acted in support of exclusively peaceful settlement of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict at all its stages.
“Armenia and the Armenian people have always and sincerely addressed a message for peace. As a nation who survived the first Genocide of the 20th century, we know the value of peace and security. In all stages of the Karabakh conflict Armenia has acted exclusively in support of the peaceful settlement. Today as well we completely understand the opportunities which peace and real reconciliation could bring to our region, however, peace is not just a nice word.
The peace which has been built based on the destruction of the peaceful settlements of Artsakh, including the destruction of Hadrut region, the elimination of the Armenian population and the creation of Azerbaijani settlements in their place cannot be stable and lasting. We will continue our fight for fair and dignified peace, in close cooperation with our international partners”, the Armenian FM said in his remarks.
OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Swedish Foreign Minister Ann Linde has arrived in Armenia as part of her regional visit.
Editing and Translating by Aneta Harutyunyan
Release and return of POWs is an internationally mandated requirement – Armenia Ombudsman
10:06,
YEREVAN, MARCH 16, ARMENPRESS. Human Rights Defender of Armenia Arman Tatoyan commented on the statements made by Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov on March 15 at the meeting with the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office.
Armenpress presents the Ombudsman’s comment:
“At a press conference pertaining to the meeting with the OSCE Chairman-in-Office, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan stated: “Azerbaijan has returned all the captives to Armenia in accordance with its obligations.” The statement said that “on November 26, armed men from the Shirak province of Armenia (…) are not prisoners of war.” These statements of the Azerbaijani authorities are made regularly.
Considering that the issue concerns the protection of the rights of Armenian servicemen and civilians held captive in Azerbaijan and the fact that distorted presentation of facts to international organizations should not be allowed, Armenia’s Human Rights Defender considers it necessary to address the referenced statements in detail.
- Both before and after the November 9 announcement, there is an ongoing armed conflict on the ground.
This conclusion follows directly from international humanitarian law, in as much as all servicemen and civilians of the Armenian side detained in Azerbaijan are prisoners of war are subject to be protected by international law, and they must be immediately released and returned safely.
- The release and return of prisoners of war is a mandatory international requirement, not an act of “goodwill” or “kindness” of the Azerbaijani authorities.
This requirement applies in international law, regardless of whether it is enshrined in specific conflict resolution documents, and must be met without preconditions.
- The behavior and statements of the Azerbaijani authorities, at a minimum, attest to the following:
1) they artificially delay the release and return of the Armenian captives;
2) abuse legal procedures, falsify the requirements of international law, prosecute prisoners, and use deprivation of liberty as punishment;
The special report of the RA Human Rights Defender proves with concrete examples that this practice grossly violates international human rights requirements (https://ombuds.am/…/1138b156720bec6ae0fd88dc709eb62c.pdf);
3) they use the issue for political purposes. This refers, for example, to reports in the independent media that the Azerbaijani authorities are using the issue of the return of prisoners for the exchange of territories in Artsakh, bargaining and other political purposes.
4) they abuse Clause 8 of the tripartite declaration of November 9, 2020 as it relates to the return of captives, and they link it to other points in the declaration, clearly taking advantage of the fact that it does not specify the date of fulfillment of that obligation.
5) they deliberately cause continuous mental suffering to the families of captives and missing persons, and hey blatantly toy with the feelings of the Armenia and Artsakh societies;
6) they create public tension in Armenia and Artsakh with their behavior;
7) they do not publish the true number of captives of the Armenian side held in Azerbaijan, and do so without any legal grounds and in gross violation of human rights requirements.
- Consequently, calling any of the Armenian servicemen and civilians captured by the Azerbaijani armed forces “terrorists” is a gross violation of international humanitarian law and international human rights law in general.
This assertion is particularly relevant given the requirements of the Third Geneva Convention of 1949.
- The statements of the President of Azerbaijan and the Minister of Foreign Affairs about the captives directly contradict the intentions of the signatory parties to the tripartite statement of November 9, 2020 and the practical application of that announcement.
In particular, based on the requirement of clause 8 of that statement, the Republic of Armenia has already transferred to Azerbaijan perpetrators of crimes in Artsakh, including two convicted Azerbaijani murderers of Armenian civilians. Azerbaijan handed over Armenians formally convicted in that country on the same principle.
Moreover, there took place a return of captives after the November 9 trilateral announcement.
- Therefore, the said statement should be applied to all situations arising from before as well as after November 9, and so long as there is an objective need for the protection of human rights and the humanitarian process due to the aftermath of hostilities.
In principle, it is improper to condition the issue of prisoners based only on the date of the trilateral declaration.
We emphasize once again that, regardless of the date of captivity, all servicemen of the Armenian side held in Azerbaijan, including civilians, are prisoners of war by their current status.
Such a mechanical approach is unacceptable.
- In addition to the foregoing, the credible evidence collected by the Human Rights Defender’s Office of the Republic of Armenia confirms that the number of detainees is higher than confirmed by the Azerbaijani authorities. This assertion takes into account the return of 44 prisoners of war in a single group, including those captured during the hostilities prior to the November 9 tripartite declaration.
The Human Rights Defender has registered numerous cases when, despite the evidence confirmed by videos and other evidence, the Azerbaijani authorities deny the fact that those people are within their custody and control, or delay the approval and processing of their release.
- The absolute urgency of the issue of the release of prisoners should be considered in the context of the Azerbaijani state supported policy of hatred towards Armenians which has been repeatedly confirmed and based on objective evidence contained in the reports of Armenia’s Human Rights Defender.
This fact is confirmed by a number of judgments of the European Court of Human Rights.
- Therefore, the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia once again draws the attention of the international community and especially the international organizations with a mandate to protect human rights to the statement of the Azerbaijani authorities, and in this instance, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan.
It is necessary to ensure the absolute implementation of international humanitarian and human rights requirements and, immediate release and return of the captives of Armenian side without preconditions”.
Armen Sarkissian says Hayastan All-Armenian Fund is in need of major changes
News.am, Armenia
15:17, 16.03.2021
President of Armenia, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Hayastan All-Armenian Fund Armen Sarkissian participated in the 39th extraordinary session of the Board of Trustees.
Issues related to the management and activities of the Fund were discussed during the session held remotely.
At the outset of the session, upon the proposal of President Sarkissian, the participants respected the memory of those who fell in the war unleashed by Azerbaijan against Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) on September 27, 2020 with a moment of silence.
Afterwards, President Sarkissian delivered his opening speech in which he talked about the conditions in which the session is being held, the war that Azerbaijan unleashed against Artsakh (Nagorno-Karabakh) and the consequences and proposed to restore trust in the Fund since the transfer of donations to Armenia’s state budget had sparked concerns among compatriots and friends of the Fund.
Sarkissian said the Fund is in need of major changes and added that not only the charter, but also the strategy and tactics of the Fund need to be changed. He reiterated the idea that Hayastan All-Armenian Fund needs to be an institution that nobody suspects or speculates and has to target the Armenians of Armenia, Artsakh and the Diaspora. Sarkissian said he still believes that there is a need for a new vision and action plan that will be in line with the present and future because people in Armenia, Artsakh and the rest of the world are living in a new and changing world.
The chairman of the Board of Trustees also called on everyone to set aside all political, personal and other interests and issues and set the goal to make balanced decisions that will help restore trust in the Fund and really turn the Fund into the locomotive that will lead other Armenian benevolent organizations.