Author: Baghdasarian Karlen

ALVINA GYULUMYAN. “THE NUMBER OF UNFOUNDED APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED BY ARMENIA TO THE EUROPEAN COURT IS REDUCED.”

February 25 2014

“It was just a figment that the European Court decisions are part
of RA legislation”, – so responded human rights defender Avetik
Ishkhanyan to the question of Aravot.am of whether the application
of the European case law is exercised in Armenia at a proper level.

Referring to the fact that the decisions of the European Court of
Human Rights (ECHR) are a component part of the RA legislation as
precedent law, and in any case, the ECHR precedent can be cited, Mr.

Ishkhanyan expressed the following concern, “The courts, as a rule,
are rejecting the petitions commenting that the factual circumstances
do not match. De jure, the precedential decisions are part of the RA
legislation, however, de facto, they do not have any absolute value,
as the judicial acts are determined not by law, but by discretion.” As
an example, Mr. Ishkhanyan brought the verdict by the case of “A1+”,
when the decision was made, in addition to compensation, the violation
should also be removed, which was not done. Basically, also due to the
fact that the cases against Armenia in ECHR constitute a big number.

This year, number of applications at the European Court against
Armenia is more than a thousand. In the conversation with Aravot.am,
the judge Alvina Gyulumyan, representing Armenia at ECHR, commented
on the fact as follows, “Most of them are submitted by Azeris, who
are deprived from the occupied territories and the issue of their
property is raised.” We asked Ms. Gyulumyan whether the fact that there
are numerous applications against Armenia does not indicate at the
ECHR that there are numerous problems associated with the European
case law in Armenia. He responded as follows, “These problems are
available in any country. It’s another question of what actions are
implemented in a country to prevent it.” Ms. Gyulumyan also informed
that out of 46 verdicts of the European Court against Armenia 20
refer to violation personal immunity right, from which, in 16 cases,
the right to fair trial was violated. She expressed the hope that upon
serious consideration of these verdicts, the RA judicial system has
made appropriate conclusion. The fact that the number of applications
to the ECHR against Armenia is reduced, Ms. Gyulumyan is commenting as
follows, “Often our citizens are not informed to the best about such
possibility. Unfortunately, I am far from thinking that everything
is well in our country, therefore, the number of applications to the
ECHR against Armenia is reduced. On the other hand, we can say that
our attorneys work well. According to statistics, the European Court
considers 80 percent of the applications submitted by Armenia subject
for discussion, which shows that the number of unfounded applications
submitted by Armenia to the European Court seems to be reduces, whereas
a few years ago the situation was different.” Ms. Gyulumyan referred
to two sonorous cases at the ECHR: “Khachatryan and others against
Armenia” and “Melikyan against Armenia”. The first one was about the
criminal prosecution against a person who avoided the alternative
military service, in the case when criminal responsibility was not
designed at the time. The second one refers to the fact that no
legislature was found by domestic legislation towards the citizen
who wanted to appeal the government decision, where he could defend
his civil right in any way. Tatev HARUTYUNYAN

Read more at:

From: Baghdasarian

NEXT DANGEROUS DEAL FOR ARMENIA

Hakob Badalyan, Political Commentator
Comments – Tuesday, 25 February 2014, 16:22

After his meeting with his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev in
Sochi on February 24 Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan announced that
they discussed Rosneft’s likely investments in Armenia and listened
to the presentation of the head of that company Sechin.

“We listened to the presentation by the president of Rosneft Company
Igor Sechin on their achievements and plans. Around 500 million dollars
are envisaged to invest in Armenia. Over the next week we will have a
substantive decision on the baseline conditions to ensure that they are
fulfilled in the possible minimum period,” Tigran Sargsyan announced.

Following the Armenian-Russian gas deals, the so-called
Armenian-Russian chemical deals are expected to be signed with
Rosneft. At least, when investing 500 million dollars and creating
the necessary conditions is concerned, one has to draw parallels with
the gas deal. And the reason is Tigran Sargsyan’s comments during
his end-of-year press conference in 2013.

Coming back to the gas deals, the prime minister announced that
a company that makes big investments expects long-term guarantees
without which no investments will be made. Tigran Sargsyan announced
that it goes without saying, so the probability is high with Rosneft.

In other words, Rosneft, like Gasprom, will also expect long-term
guarantees from Armenia.

In addition, this prospect is especially interesting in the context
of Gazprom-Rosneft relations. The two companies are competitors. Most
probably, Rosneft will try to keep up with Gazprom and get similar
guarantees from Armenia.

Hence, in fact, a situation may occur when Gazprom and Rosneft will
share Armenia. At first sight, when two giant companies compete
for investment conditions in Armenia, it will be beneficial for
the economic development of Armenia. Theoretically, it is true but
one important condition is required – state sovereignty that would
regulate the competition of two giants. Meanwhile, Gazprom’s example
is a precedent when preconditions are imposed on Armenia that limit
some powers of government institutions. For example, Armenia committed
to refrain from adopting laws or resolutions that will not be in line
with Gazprom’s interest.

Is there any guarantee that Rosneft will not require similar legal
safeguards? In that case, it is ingenuous to consider the effect
of competition. Moreover, there is no competition but a mechanism
of dividing Armenia that Moscow promotes through its two economic
giants, Rosneft and Gazprom. In other words, a change of government
is underway in Armenia, not RPA is replaced by PAP or Serzh Sargsyan
by Robert Kocharyan or Levon Ter-Petrosyan but official Yerevan is
replaced by Gazprom and Rosneft.

On the one hand, it is excellent that 500 million dollars are
going to be invested in Armenia (if they are going to be invested
at all). On the other hand, this investment is relative or rather
Armenia is relative because a deal is made on investment in return for
sovereignty. Not Armenia is going to manage and regulate the policy
of investors but the investors are going to regulate the policy of
Armenia. The gas agreement is evidence to this.

To imagine the threat to national security it is enough to remember
that both Gazprom and Rosneft have strategic interest in Turkey
and Azerbaijan. In addition, their interest in these directions is
not limited to the precondition of surrender of sovereignty, unlike
Armenia. There might be dangerous implications for Armenia in case the
two companies pursuing strategic interests in Turkey and Azerbaijan
are tempted to use their influence on Armenia to serve their interests.

– See more at:

From: Baghdasarian

FREEDOM-FIGHTERS DETERMINED TO ‘RETURN POWER TO THE PEOPLE’

15:00 * 25.02.14

Freedom-fighters (participants in the Nagorno-Karabakh war) are going
to return power to the Armenian people and re-establish constitutional
order in the country.

With this end in view, they demand that their former companions-in-arms
and opposition forces join them in Saryan park, stated a number of
freedom-fighters representing the Council of Field Commanders.

“A person has a right to defend himself and speak out. We are not at
all going to resort to any unconstitutional actions. We may hold a
march or join rallies (particularly the rally announced by the Armenian
National Congress party). But we state that no violence, similar to
that committed in Ukraine, will happen,” Vardan Malkhasyan said.

One of the freedom-fighters, Suren Sargsyan said that “March 1 belongs
to all of us, to the people. And all people can hold a rally that day.

We will decide on our further steps. We will call on the rally
participants.”

Armenian News – Tert.am

From: Baghdasarian

PSAA: AGHDAM EVENTS A SYMPTOMATIC EXAMPLE OF THE AZERBAIJANI AUTHORITIES’ FALSIFICATION POLICY

14:52 25.02.2014

On February 22, 2014, an enlarged session of the Board of Political
Science Association of Armenia (PSAA) was held on the Azerbaijani
falsifications of the Aghdam events (Khojalu provocation) of February
26, 1992, at the Drastamat Kanayan Institute for National Strategic
Studies of the Ministry of Defense, RA. The Chairman of the PSAA,
Doctor of Political Science Hayk Kotanjian headed the Session. At
the session the PSAA made the following announcement on “The Aghdam
Events (Khojalu Provocation) a Symptomatic Example of the Azerbaijani
Authorities’ Falsification Policy”.

“On February 26, 1992, the Aghdam events took place, which are
presented by the Azerbaijani side as the “Khojalu massacre”, during
which a group of inhabitants of Khojalu was cold-bloodedly shot
down by the Azerbaijani paramilitary forces in the territories under
their control.

Aiming to overthrow President Mutalibov, the oppositional Popular
Front of Azerbaijan used the Karabakh troops’ forced operation to
suppress the Azerbaijani forces’ Khojalu-stationed weapon emplacements
regularly shelling the Armenian-populated Stepanakert and surrounding
villages. President Mutalibov personally testified it in his interview
to the Russian “Nezavisimaya Gazeta” in 1992.

Prior to the operation, the Karabakh side abiding by the norms of
humanitarian law informed Khojalu authorities of the planned operation
and of a safe humanitarian corridor left for the evacuation of the
Azerbaijani population.

Right after the tragic events in the Azerbaijani-controlled
territories, the Azerbaijani journalist Chingiz Mustafayev photographed
and video-recorded the corpses, which were not mutilated.

Meanwhile, on the photos taken by the same Mustafayev two days later,
these people were already scalped, and their bodies were mutilated –
to demonstrate the Armenians’ “cruelty and inhumanity”. The existing
irrefutable facts prove that the Karabakh side did not have a physical
access to those territories where the people were killed, and later
on their corpses mutilated. It is symptomatic, that Mustafayev having
witnessed the horrific crime died a few months later in circumstances
not clarified yet in the vicinity of the same Aghdam during his
journalistic investigation of the villainous Aghdam events.

After the takeover of power in Baku in 1992, following the Aghdam
provocation, the new leadership of Azerbaijan, with Abulfaz Elchibey
at the helm, tried hard to hush up the heinous crime committed by
itself against the citizens of Khojalu, and initiated a targeted
falsification of events presenting its own provocation as a “massacre”
of civilian population organized by the Karabakh forces. The official
Azerbaijan continues this policy to this day.

By means of the vicious propaganda of the “Khojalu events” the
Azerbaijani authorities try to harm the international reputation of the
two Armenian states, as well as to impose a distorted picture of events
on the young generation, thereby favoring Armenophobia and xenophobia.

Considering the fact of the Turkish-Azerbaijani tandem’s activated
propaganda, in particular, the presentation of the myth about the
“Khojalu massacre” in the run-up to the 100th Anniversary of the
Armenian Genocide, the Political Science Association of Armenia
strictly condemns the malicious policy of distorting the facts
connected with this tragedy urging the international community not
to succumb to the falsifications of Baku and Ankara authorities. The
Political Science Association of Armenia calls the international
community to prevent the distortion of the historical truth.

The Political Science Association of Armenia also appeals to the
honest Azerbaijanis to impartially assess the historical facts and
not to fall for the Aliyev regime’s xenophobic policy.”

From: Baghdasarian

SCANDALOUS FACTS ON ARMENIA’S VOROTAN HYDRO CASCADE’S SALE TO AMERICAN COMPANY – NEWSPAPER

February 25, 2014 | 08:34

YEREVAN. – Zhoghovurd daily was able to acquire the Armenian
government’s secret decision on the sale of the Vorotan hydroelectric
power plant (HPP) to an American company, the daily reports.

“This deal was conducted in accordance with the decision, which was
reached at the government session on November 21, 2013, on approving
the agreement on the sale and purchase of Vorotan’s property.

Moreover, the draft decision was kept secret until the end.

“Incidentally, another decision on the Vorotan HPP, [and] on
increasing the charter capital, was adopted at the government session
on November 21. So, four reservoirs, worth over 89 million drams
[approx. $216,277], were returned to Vorotan and likewise sold to
the American company.

“But this sale runs contrary to the Armenian Law on National Water
Plan, pursuant to which the water systems of national significance
are not subject to privatization,” Zhoghovurd writes.

News from Armenia – NEWS.am

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIA: RUSSIA PUTS SQUEEZE ON MIGRANT WORKERS

EurasiaNet.org
Feb 24 2014

February 24, 2014 – 2:21pm, by Marianna Grigoryan

Armenia’s four competitors at the Sochi Winter Olympics didn’t come
close to winning a medal. But a joke making the rounds in Yerevan
goes that since the athletes made it into Russia, they should at
least stick around and look for work.

Russia has long been a magnet for Armenian migrant laborers. But under
new Russian regulations that came into force on January 1, Armenians
and other foreigners who lack long-term visas can stay in Russia for
only three months before they must leave the country for another 90
days. They must remain in their home country for the same amount of
time. Violators are subject to a three-year ban on entering Russia;
those who have already been deported face a five-year ban.

Many Armenians expected they would be exempt from the new Russian
rules, given Yerevan’s decision last September to join a Moscow-led
Customs Union along with Belarus and Kazakhstan. But it hasn’t worked
out that way, and many are distraught.

After agreeing to join the Customs Union, the Armenian government
“told us everything would be fine, but we got into trouble,” complained
55-year-old labor migrant Vanik Smbatian, who has worked on Russian
construction sites for the past 20 years to support his family. “The
new law came as a beautiful surprise, like the Olympic Games, and
simply spoiled our lives.”

Ninety days is not enough time to find a job in Armenia and earn
money for a $350-$400 plane ticket back to Russia, migrants contend.

Unofficial estimates of unemployment in Armenia soar far into the
double-digits, while nearly a third of its population of roughly 3
million people lives under the poverty line.

While high unemployment has long been a problem, government data
suggests that increasingly Armenians are dependent on finding jobs
in Russia – in particular in construction or in service-sector jobs
— to make ends meet. According to the Central Bank of Armenia,
remittances from Russia account for 84.6 percent of the overall $942
million transferred to Armenia during the first two quarters of 2013,
the latest period for which data is available. The amount marks a
12-percent increase from the same period in 2012.

Similarly, according to Russia’s Federal Migration Service, 20 percent
more Armenians traveled to Russia in 2013 (roughly 670,000) than in
2012. The National Statistical Service of Armenia estimates that 90
percent of those who travel to Russia go to find work there.

With reduced access to Russian jobs, many Armenian families may find
themselves with no adequate means of support, local experts warn.

Against this backdrop, many want to know why Russia isn’t willing
to give Armenian migrants a break. Officials in Moscow, however,
aren’t offering any insight into their decision-making process.

At a February 14 news conference, Svetlana Stepanova, the migration
policy officer at the Russian Embassy in Yerevan, dodged questions
related to Armenia and the Customs Union. She also declined to explain
why similar labor restrictions do not apply to citizens of fellow
prospective Union members Belarus and Kazakhstan. “You are trying to
interfere with politics again. I do not know if an exception will be
made for Armenia or not,” Stepanova told journalists.

Stepanova stressed that Armenians should be sure their papers are in
order before flying to Russia. The Russian government estimates that
170,000 Armenians are living in Russia illegally; Russian authorities
turned away 23,000 Armenian citizens trying to enter the country
in 2013.

Human rights activist Artur Sakunts, head of the Vanadzor branch
of the Helsinki Civil Assembly, believes Moscow is using the new
regulations as an instrument of pressure on former Soviet republics
with significant numbers of migrants in Russia. Under the existing
framework, Armenia is expected to complete the Customs Union accession
process by January 2015. “The aim is … to force these countries to
join the Customs Union, since they will lift these restrictions only
in the case these states enter the Customs Union’s unified space,”
he said.

Armenian leaders are already lobbying for changes. Foreign Minister
Eduard Nalbandian has pledged that immigration rules will be discussed
during upcoming talks about the Customs Union, and National Security
Council Secretary Artur Baghdasarian has written a letter to his
Russian counterpart, Nikolai Patrushev, asking that an exemption be
granted for Armenia.

If no exemption is granted, the domestic consequences for Armenia
could be dire, some observers predict.

For the thousands of people now left without work and who may find
themselves at a dead end, the only option may be to take to the streets
in mass protest, suggested political scientist Stepan Danielian,
chair of the Cooperation for Democracy Center. “If there aren’t any
jobs and your family is starving, then what do you do? You have to
either take to the streets, or commit suicide,” he concluded.

Independent political scientist Yervand Bozoian agreed, predicting
that “the numbers of protesters will significantly increase.” Already
struggling with a weak economy, and persistent protests over its
plans for pension reform, the government lacks the resources to defuse
tensions, Bozoian noted. “The authorities must think about this and
draw conclusions,” he said.

Editor’s note: Marianna Grigoryan is a freelance reporter in Yerevan
and the editor of MediaLab.am.

From: Baghdasarian

ARMENIAN AND RUSSIAN PMS DISCUSS CUSTOMS UNION IN SOCHI

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Feb 24 2014

24 February 2014 – 9:06pm

During a meeting in Sochi today Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan
and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev discussed Armenian-Russian
strategic cooperation, the press service of the Armenian government
reports.

The parties discussed a number of issues on the bilateral agenda,
including cooperation in the economic and investment fields,
including joint programmes in energy, industry and infrastructure,
Armenia Today reports.

Sargsyan and Medvedev also discussed the roadmap for Armenia’s
accession to the Customs Union. The Russian Prime Minister stressed
that Armenia’s participation in the Eurasian integration process will
give new impetus to the strengthening and development of economic
cooperation between the two countries.

From: Baghdasarian

TACHAT SARKISYAN BECOMES LEADER OF ARMENIAN COMMUNIST PARTY

Vestnik Kavkaza, Russia
Feb 24 2014

24 February 2014 – 11:26am

Tachat Sarkisyan, First Secretary of the Communist Party and its
acting leader in the past three months, has become its leader after
resignation of Ruben Tomasyan, News.am reports.

Yerdzhanik Kazaryan, Secretary of the Central Committee for Youth
Policy, has become the Second Secretary of the Central Committee of
the Communist Party.

Donar Nalbandian, Head of the Spandaryan District (Yerevan) office
of the party, and Andranik Gukasyan, Head of the Kirovakan (Vanadzor)
office, have become secretaries of the Central Committee.

A conference to elect leaders of primary party organizations will be
held in March-April. Heads of district and city committees will be
elected in May-June.

Tachat Sarkisyan, First Secretary of the Communist Party and its
acting leader in the past three months, has become its leader after
resignation of Ruben Tomasyan, News.am reports.

Yerdzhanik Kazaryan, Secretary of the Central Committee for Youth
Policy, has become the Second Secretary of the Central Committee of
the Communist Party.

Donar Nalbandian, Head of the Spandaryan District (Yerevan) office
of the party, and Andranik Gukasyan, Head of the Kirovakan (Vanadzor)
office, have become secretaries of the Central Committee.

A conference to elect leaders of primary party organizations will be
held in March-April. Heads of district and city committees will be
elected in May-June.

From: Baghdasarian

ANALYSIS: EUROMAIDAN’S TRIUMPH IN UKRAINE; WHAT’S IN IT FOR ARMENIA?

ANALYSIS | 24.02.14 | 10:41

By NAIRA HAYRUMYAN
ArmeniaNow correspondent

The developments in Ukraine and their possible consequences for
other post-Soviet countries are being discussed these days. What was
dubbed Euromaidan, continuous street protests in Kiev and elsewhere in
Ukraine against the decision to ditch an Association Agreement with
the European Union that started last November, has led to President
Viktor Yanukovych’s ouster and arrival of a new, apparently pro-EU
force to the power in Ukraine.

Western media do not exclude that the protests from Ukraine could
spread to Russia and turn against its leader Vladimir Putin, the
architect of the Eurasian Union seen as a rival to European integration
projects that had been offered to a number of post-Soviet countries,
including Armenia.

Experts also say that if Ukraine terminates its current economic
and military agreements with Russia, it may lead to the failure of
Putin’s Eurasian Union that Armenia has been moving towards after
unexpectedly quitting the process of signing an Association Agreement
with Brussels last September.

Recently, Armenian Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan stated that the
preparations for Armenia’s accession to the Customs Union have been
completed by 50 percent. An agreement on Armenia’s joining the trade
bloc currently comprised of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan is due to
be signed in May along with the agreement on the establishment of
the Eurasian Union. However, there are now serious doubts that the
agreements will be signed in time.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko spoke about this last week.

He said that there were some doubts that the schedule will be met and
called for efforts to ensure that the agreements are signed in time.

However, the developments in Ukraine may upset all plans.

In particular, if Ukraine signs an Association Agreement with the
EU, revises its gas contracts with Russia and tries to denounce
the agreement on the Russian naval base in the Black Sea, it will
fundamentally change Russia’s position. Especially if Kyrgyzstan does
not sign an agreement on the Customs Union and the economies of the
current members of the CU continue to fall rapidly as it has been
the case in recent weeks.

Political analyst Igor Muradyan believes that the West will not stop
attempts to establish more friendly relations with Armenia, despite
efforts by Russia not opposed by the Armenian leadership to isolate
Armenia from regional projects. The West will offer projects favorable
for Armenia to diversify its Russian-oriented economy.

And there are already such projects – the purchase by an American
company of the Vorotan cascade of hydro-power plants and the offer
by an UAE-registered (presumably Chinese or American) company that
intends to invest in the construction of an Iran-Armenia railway.

British, American and German investors plan to increase their presence
in the mining sector of Armenia, and for this purpose they will
convene a major international conference in Yerevan in early March.

There are also other signs that the West will ‘inundate’ Armenia with
lucrative projects.

Some experts also do not exclude closer cooperation between Armenia and
NATO. There is some cooperation already now as Armenian servicemen are
taking part in NATO-led peacekeeping missions, however, Armenia has so
far declared that it is a member of the Russia-led Collective Security
Treaty Organization and, in fact, cannot work more closely with NATO.

Diversification of the trade, energy and security systems could
allow Armenia to lessen its dependence on Russia and reconsider its
participation in Eurasian and other unions. Evaluating this possibility
in Armenia many say that Armenians are not Ukrainians and are not
ready to go against the Kremlin to defend their sovereignty at the
cost of their lives. Kentron TV commentator Armen Dulyan, for example,
says that the Armenian leaders made the right decision on September
3, abandoning European integration. “Otherwise, what is going on in
Ukraine today, would be taking place in Armenia,” he said.

Editor-in-chief of the Lragir.am online portal Haikazn Ghahriyan,
on the contrary, believes that the September 3 precedent put the
Ukrainian authorities in a vulnerable position before Moscow and
contributed to the bloody scenario.

From: Baghdasarian

A MONTPELLIER, UNE JOURNéE SUR LA RéPRESSION DES AVOCATS TURCS

Publié le : 24-02-2014

Info Collectif VAN – Le Collectif VAN
vous propose cet article d’Etienne Copeaux publié sur son blog
susam-sokak.fr.

Légende photo : M. E. Aktar et R. Zarakolu

susam-sokak.fr

Mercredi 19 février 2014

Les chercheurs en sciences sociales ont tendance a négliger les
questions juridiques. Pourtant, le droit est l’une des interfaces
essentielles entre l’Etat, le citoyen et la société ; il protège,
régule et réprime.

En Turquie, cette dernière fonction a prévalu depuis les débuts de
l’époque républicaine. Pendant la guerre de libération, l’armée
kémaliste a instauré des tribunaux d’exception qui ont fait exécuter
près de 700 personnes. Ils étaient destinés a punir, mais surtout
a intimider, voire a terroriser. Puis cette tendance répressive a
été renforcée, au cours des insurrections kurdes de 1925 et 1938.

D’ailleurs, c’est le code pénal de l’Italie fasciste qui a servi de
modèle a l’élaboration du droit républicain. En fait, la répression
a pris un caractère permanent dans les régions kurdes ; et a partir
de 1960, la vie politique de l’ensemble du pays a été réglée par
une succession de coups d’Etat qui ont chacun produit leurs tribunaux,
leurs cours spéciales, leurs lois d’exception, l’instauration de la
loi martiale qui a été, dans de nombreux départements, le régime
en quelque sorte ordinaire. Le droit et la loi sont devenus, avant
tout, des instruments de répression.

C’est toujours vrai aujourd’hui, et particulièrement depuis
la dernière insurrection kurde, qui a commencé en 1984, et
l’instauration de la loi contre le terrorisme en 1991 2. Bien que
les mots ” kurde ” et même ” sécessionniste ” soient absents
du texte de cette loi, elle réprime la revendication kurde, les
parts de la société non kurde qui la soutiennent et préconisent
la négociation et la solution pacifique du conflit, en particulier
les intellectuels ; le système judiciaire a toujours réprimé la
gauche en général, alors que les mouvements d’extrême-droite
et leurs activistes violents ont toujours bénéficié de la ”
compréhension ” de la police et de la justice, puisqu’ils ne font
que pousser un peu plus loin l’idéologie nationaliste dominante.

Et la loi va plus loin puisqu’elle poursuit les avocats des personnes
inculpées de ” terrorisme ”.

La loi ” protège ” également des valeurs considérées comme
sacrées.

L’article 301 du code pénal interdit ” le dénigrement [asagılama]
de la turcité, de la république et des institutions de l’Etat,
du gouvernement, des tribunaux, de l’armée et des organes de
sécurité ”.

Tout mouvement d’opposition qui ne se coulerait pas dans le moule
du consensus imposé risque de se voir inculpé de tentative de
renversement de la forme républicaine de l’Etat ; c’est le cas pour
les mouvements qui se réclament du marxisme, communisme ou socialisme.

Les mouvements ou initiatives pro-kurdes risquent l’inculpation
de ” sécessionnisme ” tandis que l’accusation de ” terrorisme
” est applicable non seulement a tout acte mais aussi a toute
intention supposée de soutenir ces mouvements (article 2 de la loi
antiterroriste). L’intention est ” prouvée ” par des éléments
de comportement, de fréquentations, de lectures, etc. qui peuvent
s’appliquer a peu près a n’importe qui. C’est dire que la Turquie
est un Etat répressif par essence.

Il est stimulant d’assister a un colloque sur la Turquie qui pour
une fois n’a pas été concu par des spécialistes de la Turquie
mais par des professionnels qui se penchent sur le cas d’un pays,
préoccupés par la situation de leurs confrères. Il s’est tenu
le 24 janvier 2014, organisé par la Ligue des Droits de l’Homme
(LDH), l’Institut des droits de l’homme du barreau de Montpellier,
le Syndicat des Avocats de France, avec le soutien du Barreau de
Montpellier, grâce au dynamisme unanimement salué de Sophie Mazas,
avocate et présidente de la LDH de Montpellier.

C’est une démarche qui exclut toute vision orientaliste ; elle
est a la fois technicienne, politique et militante, vise juste
et élimine le bavardage et le vain étalage de connaissances. Les
organisateurs avaient également visé juste en invitant a s’exprimer
des acteurs turcs, victimes bien connues de la répression (Busra
Ersanlı et Ragıp Zarakolu) et des avocats turcs, pour certains
a la fois spécialistes et victimes de la répression. La journée
était encadrée par des personnalités qui sont au croisement du
monde judiciaire et des droits de l’homme : Christine Lazerges,
présidente de la Commission consultative des droits de l’homme,
Michèle Tisseyre, présidente de l’Institut de droits de l’homme du
barreau de Montpellier, Jean-Jacques Gandini, président du Syndicat
des avocats de France, Maryvonne Lozac’hmeur, ancien bâtonnier de
Rennes, qui a participé a des missions d’observation des procès
visant les avocats en Turquie.

C’est depuis 2010 que se tient a Montpellier une ” Journée des
avocats menacés ”. La situation en Turquie préoccupe depuis
longtemps les juristes défenseurs des droits de l’homme, notamment
depuis l’arrestation d’une cinquantaine d’avocats en 2011.

Pour commencer, Rusen Aytac, avocate au barreau de Paris, a brièvement
rappelé les dispositions du traité de Sèvres a l’égard des Kurdes,
puis celles du traité de Lausanne, annulant le précédent, qui est
l’acte fondateur de la république et prévaut toujours. L’article
39 de ce traité établit une égalité totale entre tous les
ressortissants turcs : ” Tous les habitants de la Turquie, sans
distinction de religion, seront égaux devant la loi. (…) Il ne
sera édicté aucune restriction contre le libre usage par tout
ressortissant turc d’une langue quelconque, soit dans les relations
privées ou de commerce, soit en matière de religion, de presse ou
de publications de toute nature, soit dans les réunions publiques
”. Enfin, ” Nonobstant l’ existence de la langue officielle, des
facilités appropriées seront données aux ressortissants turcs de
langue autre que le turc, pour l’usage oral de leur langue devant
les tribunaux ”. Même si les dispositions du traité de Lausanne
visaient avant tout a protéger les minorités définies par la
religion (Arméniens, orthodoxes et juifs), on sait a quel point les
” ressortissants de langue autre que le turc ” ont été et restent
discriminés. Il a fallu attendre 2012 pour que les Kurdes puissent
se défendre dans leur langue devant un tribunal, en disposant d’un
interprète.

Rusen Aytac a évoqué la célèbre citation de Mahmut Esat Bozkurt,
fondateur du droit turc au début de la république : ” Le Turc
est le seul maître de ce pays. Ceux qui n’appartiennent pas a la
pure race des Turcs n’ont qu’un droit, celui d’être serviteurs et
esclaves. Que nos amis et nos ennemis, et les montagnes elles-mêmes,
le sachent bien ! ” Or, le prix de droit du barreau d’Istanbul
porte aujourd’hui encore le nom de cet ” éminent ” juriste, c’est
direl’état d’esprit qui règne sur le système judiciaire.

Busra Ersanlı, professeure de sciences politiques a l’Université
de Marmara (Istanbul) a elle-même été incarcérée d’octobre
2011 a juillet 2012 pour ” soutien a un mouvement terroriste ”,
en fait, selon ses propres termes, pour avoir participé au combat
des Kurdes. Elle a développé dans son intervention quelques
points de la politique d’enseignement, dénoncé la partialité des
manuels et programmes scolaires, la censure dans l’enseignement et
la recherche. Pour mettre au pas le corps enseignant, les formes
minimales de répression sont la mutation non demandée, la ” mise
au placard ” [itibarsızlık] ou les obstacles bureaucratiques ou
autres dressés a l’encontre de la plupart des recherches portant
sur les minorités ou les Kurdes. Les enseignants et chercheurs qui
veulent travailler librement manquent de soutien a l’étranger,
malgré la création en France en 2011 du Groupe International
de travail (GIT), qui a une branche importante en Turquie. Le YOK
(institution de contrôle de l’enseignement supérieur) veille a ce
que les nominations dans les universités, l’attribution du rôle de
direction de thèse, la participation a des jurys, etc. se fassent
sur critères idéologiques. Pour illustrer le poids d’un kémalisme
calcifié, elle cite l’exemple du cours d’ ” Ataturkculuk ” (vie et
Å”uvre d’Ataturk) obligatoire pour tous les étudiants de première
année ; a l’Université technique du Moyen-Orient (ODTU, Ankara),
les professeurs ont essayé de changer ne serait-ce que le nom de ce
cours en ” histoire de la république ”, en vain !

Sur le sujet de l’enseignement de la ” langue maternelle ” (anadil,
euphémismequi désigne le plus souvent la langue kurde), Busra
Ersanlı reconnaît qu’il y a des progrès : le nombre d’étudiants
kurdes a augmenté en général, ainsi que la possibilité pour eux
d’étudier a l’étranger. Mais les études et recherches sur les
minorités et les Kurdes restent plus difficiles, ainsi que dans
d’autres domaines, comme certaines recherches en chimie ou biologie
considérées comme ” gênantes pour le marché ”. Depuis trois a
cinq ans, les partis ont leurs propres écoles politiques pour former
les cadres ; le BDP, parti pro-kurde, en a installé deux, a Istanbul
et Diyarbakır ; mais c’est justement pour avoir enseigné dans ces
écoles du BDP que B. Ersanlı a été accusée de ” terrorisme ”! Ce
qui a amené le bâtonnier Luc Kiryacharian, après cette intervention,
a souligner que la France dispose également, avec l’article 421 du
code pénal, d’un redoutable instrument de répression.

Erdal Dogan, avocat au barreau d’Istanbul, a procédé a l’analyse
de la loi antiterroriste turque. La notion de terrorisme se confond
partiellement avec celle de ” lutte contre l’ennemi ”, en particulier
l’ ” ennemi intérieur ”, notion qui a toujours été obsessionnelle
dans ce pays, et a été renforcée par l’école américaine de
lutte contre le terrorisme et son idée d’ ” ennemi potentiel ”
appliquée en Irak et en Afghanistan.

Comme Rusen Aytac, Erdal Dogan est remonté aux origines du droit
républicain : Mahmut Esat Bozkurt, dont le nom a souvent été
évoqué au cours de la journée, est l’auteur de la constitution
de 1924 et du code civil… mais il est également a l’origine de la
loi dite de Tunceli (7 novembre 1935), qui restreint les droits de la
défense, supprime le droit a la traduction (malgré l’article 39 du
traité de Lausanne) et permet aux officiers d’occuper la fonction
de juge. C’est cette loi qui a été appliquée pour la répression
du soulèvement de Dersim (Tunceli) en 1938.

Erdal Dogan considère que démocratisation et confrontation avec le
passé sont étroitement liés. L’une ne va pas sans l’autre ; ainsi,
on approche de l’année du centenaire du génocide des Arméniens,
mais en Turquie ” on ne va pas parler d’autre chose que du centenaire
de la bataille des Dardanelles [dont Ataturk est considéré comme
le héros] ” .

C’est que la démocratisation n’avance pas, ou pas assez vite. Le
Conseil national de sécurité (MGK) veille sur la notion d’ ” ennemi
potentiel ”, qui inclut les ” missionnaires ” [ce terme désigne en
fait tout religieux catholique ou protestant] et les minorités. Même
si le MGK a vu ses pouvoirs réduits par le gouvernement de l’AKP, il
continue d’établir périodiquement un document politique auquel les
ministres doivent se conformer, sous peine de tomber ; un document dont
la publication est interdite, et auquel juristes et même députés
n’ont pas accès… Comme cela a été souligné maintes fois au
cours de la journée, ces ” ennemis de l’intérieur ” ne sont pas
présumés innocents ; bien au contraire, l’acte d’accusation est une
charge a part entière. Les magistrats préparent les jugements et
participent aux délibérés. Les procureurs interviennent directement
et font fonction de juges et accusateurs.

Ragıp Zarakolu, éditeur bien connu, a lui aussi été emprisonné
en 1971, 1974, 1982, et interdit de sortie du territoire entre
1971 et 1991. Il a été de nouveau incarcéré en 2011-2012,
et son fils Deniz, politologue, est toujours en prison. Il est
intervenu, très amer, sur les libertés – ou leur absence –
d’édition et de publication. ” On ne peut plus dire que l’Etat
turc est légitime. C’est un devoir que de se soulever contre cet
Etat. (…) Dès l’arrestation on se voit reprocher son passé
; mais le passé de l’Etat n’est absolument pas propre ; or il
nous est interdit de le lui reprocher et même d’en parler. (…)
C’est un Etat pirate, un Etat faussaire ; il a copié l’Etat francais
comme on copie la-bas les chemises Lacoste, mais c’est une copie
non conforme, une caricature. (…) Nous payons très cher pour la
liberté d’expression ”.

Ragıp Zarakolu retrace alors quelques épisodes de cette lutte,
a partir de la répression de la presse en 1908, en passant par les
déboires de Sebahattin Ali (1907-1948), emprisonné en 1933 pour
avoir ” diffamé ” Ataturk dans un poème, puis poursuivi pour
sa revue Yeni Dunya (” Le nouveau monde ”) qui n’a pu paraître
que quatre jours (1945). Il a également évoqué les poursuites
contre la revue de gauche TAN, en 1945, et la dure répression,
en 1958-1960, a la fin du gouvernement Menderes. ” Depuis 1990,
conclut Ragıp Zarakolu, ce sont les Kurdes qui portent l’étendard
de la liberté. Si j’écris dans des quotidiens kurdes [Zarakolu
n’est pas kurde], c’est parce que c’est la qu’on se sent libre. ”

Mehmet Emin Aktar est ancien bâtonnier de Diyarbakır, la grande ville
du Kurdistan turc, et défenseur des confrères emprisonnés. Vingt
avocats sont toujours en prison dont onze parce qu’ils sont les avocats
d’Abdullah Ocalan, le chef du PKK incarcéré depuis avril 1999.

Certains sont en prison depuis neuf ans. M.E. Aktar rappelle que la
répression contre les avocats de la cause kurde est aussi vieille que
l’histoire des soulèvements. L’une des premières victimes, peut-être
la plus célèbre, fut l’avocat Tevfik Bey, accusé d’avoir clamé le
27 mai 1925 ” Vive le Kurdistan ! ” avec d’autres intellectuels. Ils
furent accusés d’avoir un ” plan ” subversif en quatre phases
et jugés par des lois d’exception au cours d’un procès sans appel
mené par des officiers. Tevfik est le premier ” martyr ” kurde. ”
[Après le massacre du Dersim (1938)] il est extraordinaire que dans
un pays interdit, réprimé, massacré, il se soit encore trouvé
des Kurdes qui voulaient devenir avocats ! ” estime M.E . Aktar.

Lire la suite sur susam-sokak le blog d’Etienne Copeaux

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Source/Lien : susam-sokak.fr

From: Baghdasarian