FORUM 18 NEWS SERVICE, Oslo, Norway
The right to believe, to worship and witness
The right to change one’s belief or religion
The right to join together and express one’s belief
===============================================
Thursday 17 October 2013
ARMENIA: “IMPRISONED CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTORS SHOULD BE IMMEDIATELY AND
UNCONDITIONALLY RELEASED”
Armenian Jehovah’s Witnesses have welcomed the release from jail of nine
conscientious objectors to military service. The men all had less than six
months of their sentences to run. However, 20 prisoners of conscience
remain in jail. “Our position is that the 20 imprisoned conscientious
objectors should be immediately and unconditionally released”, they told
Forum 18 News Service. The government has now introduced alternative
civilian service and set up an Alternative Service Committee to decide on
applications for alternative service. It is due to hold its first full
meeting to consider 65 applications – from Jehovah’s Witnesses and others –
in the week of 21 to 25 October. Yet Jehovah’s Witnesses state that 97 of
their young men, including the 20 prisoners of conscience, have applied to
have their cases considered. Questions also remain over how the Committee
will make decisions. Stepan Danielyan of Collaboration for Democracy notes
that only during the November call-up will it be clear whether the new
system will allow individuals to choose which type of service to do in
accordance with their conscience.
ARMENIA: “IMPRISONED CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTORS SHOULD BE IMMEDIATELY AND
UNCONDITIONALLY RELEASED”
By Felix Corley, Forum 18 News Service
Armenia’s Jehovah’s Witness community has welcomed as “positive” the
release from prison of nine conscientious objectors to military service in
a prisoner amnesty. “The families of the imprisoned men were overjoyed to
welcome their loved ones home,” Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18 News
Service from Yerevan on 9 October. The men all had less than six months of
their sentences to run. However, the Jehovah’s Witness are disappointed
that, although their terms have been reduced by six months, a further 20
prisoners of conscience remain in prison. “Our position is that the 20
imprisoned conscientious objectors should be immediately and
unconditionally released.”
Stepan Danielyan of Collaboration for Democracy – which has long campaigned
against the imprisonment of conscientious objectors – agrees. “It is not
right that the 20 are still imprisoned,” he told Forum 18 from Yerevan on
16 October. “They should be freed and allowed to perform alternative
service.”
Two of the Deputy Justice Ministers involved in the issue were unavailable
each time Forum 18 called. Officials told Forum 18 that Grigor Muradyan was
out of Armenia, while Ruben Melikyan each time Forum 18 called on 16 and 17
October.
The government has now introduced alternative civilian service and set up
an Alternative Service Committee to decide on individual alternative
service applications (see F18News 6 June 2013
). It is due to hold
its first full meeting to consider 65 applications – from Jehovah’s
Witnesses and others – in the week of 21 to 25 October, two officials told
Forum 18. Yet Jehovah’s Witnesses state that 97 of their young men have
applied to have their cases considered by the Committee (see below).
Free prisoners of conscience now
Human rights defenders and Jehovah’s Witnesses insist all imprisoned
conscientious objectors should have been freed long ago and that the
remaining 20 prisoners of conscience should be freed immediately. Armenia
committed itself on joining the Council of Europe to introduce a civilian,
non-military alternative service by January 2004, it failed to do so. It
also pledged to release all those imprisoned for refusing military service
in the interim, but continued with a policy of imprisonment. For this it
has been strongly criticised by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council
of Europe (PACE) and the United Nations Human Rights Committee (see F18News
20 September 2012 ).
In addition, in July 2011 the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in
Strasbourg ruled in the case of former conscientious objector prisoner
Vahan Bayatyan (Application No. 23459/03) that the right to conscientious
objection is protected by Article 9 (“Freedom of thought, conscience and
religion”) of the European Convention (see commentary by Derek Brett of
Conscience and Peace Tax International at F18News 26 July 2011
).
The ECtHR also handed down two similar judgments against Armenia – in cases
brought by Hayk Bukharatyan (Application No. 37819/03) and Ashot Tsaturyan
(Application No. 37821/03) – in January 2012 (see F18News 1 February 2012
).
In November 2012, the ECtHR – in its fourth decision against Armenia in
conscientious objector cases – found in the case of Khachatryan and Others
(Application No. 23978/06) that Armenia had violated the rights of 17
Jehovah’s Witness conscientious objectors (see F18News 3 December 2012
).
Jehovah’s Witnesses state that 29 of their young men have been convicted
since the Bayatyan judgment, and a further 33 cases are pending with
investigators or the courts. All were punished or investigated under
Criminal Code Article 327, Part 1, which punishes evasion of the call-up to
military or alternative service. The maximum sentence under this article
was increased to three years’ imprisonment in December 2005.
Nine prisoners of conscience freed, 20 still jailed
Nine imprisoned conscientious objectors were freed on 8 and 9 October after
they were included in a prisoner amnesty. The amnesty, to mark the 22nd
anniversary of Armenia’s independence from the Soviet Union, was proposed
by President Serj Sarkisyan and approved by parliament on 3 October, the
parliamentary website noted the same day.
The longest-serving of the nine amnestied prisoners, Aharon Mushegyan, had
been given a three-year sentence in November 2010. The other eight were all
imprisoned in 2011, serving sentences of 30 or 36 months. Three of the nine
amnestied prisoners had less than 10 days left to serve at the time of
their release, Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18.
Jehovah’s Witnesses remain concerned about the 20 current prisoners.
“Unfortunately, the amnesty only reduced their sentences by six months,”
Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18.
Criminal cases continue
Three Jehovah’s Witness conscientious objectors were sentenced under
Criminal Code Article 327, Part 1 in 2013. Samvel Abrahamyan received a
30-month sentence on 29 January. Narek Grigoryan, was sentenced to 24
months’ imprisonment on 25 February. Vahagn Paronikyan received a 24-month
sentence on 4 March. However, the three young men were not imprisoned
pending their appeals. Grigoryan’s appeal is due to be heard at Armenia’s
Criminal Appeal Court in Yerevan on 21 October.
A total of 27 other criminal cases under Article 327, Part 1 are being
investigated. Six more are already in the courts, though no verdict has yet
been reached in any of the trials.
All 36 of these individuals have applied for the new alternative civilian
service, Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18. However, the criminal cases
against them have not been dropped. “We have not received any information
about what they are planning to do with them,” Jehovah’s Witnesses told
Forum 18.
Forum 18 was unable to reach Gevorg Kostanyan, Armenia’s Military
Prosecutor, on 17 October.
Civilian institutions
Armenia has long imprisoned those young men unwilling to perform military
service or the alternative service under military control. All forms of
military service were and are unacceptable to Jehovah’s Witness young men
and to at least one member of the Molokan community. Hundreds of Jehovah’s
Witnesses and one Molokan were imprisoned, with prison sentences of up to
three years.
The Justice Ministry finally drafted amendments to the 2003 Alternative
Service Law and to the 2003 Law on Implementing the Criminal Code to
introduce for the first time a genuinely civilian alternative. They were
approved by parliament and signed into law by President Sarkisyan in May.
They came into force on 8 June (see F18News 6 June 2013
).
Under a 25 July government decision, 11 institutions were identified as
places where alternative civilian service would be carried out including
nursing homes, children’s homes and psychiatric clinics. The 11
institutions are controlled by a number of ministries: the Labour and
Social Affairs Ministry, the Health Ministry and the Emergency Situations
Ministry. A separate list identified tasks the alternative service workers
would carry out, including hospital orderly, laundry worker, kitchen
worker, ground staff or emergency rescuer’s assistant.
“We’re not against these institutions,” Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18.
“They are civilian.”
Alternative Service Committee
Under another 25 July government decision, the government appointed the
members of the seven-strong Alternative Service Committee to review
applications for alternative civilian service. Chairing the Committee is
Vache Terteryan, First Deputy Minister of Territorial Administration. Its
other members come from various ministries and agencies, including the
Defence Ministry, Health Ministry, the Police and Vardan Astsatryan of the
government’s Department for Ethnic Minorities and Religious Affairs. The
Defence Ministry’s representative on the Committee is Deputy Minister Ara
Nazaryan, who is a civilian and not a military officer.
Applications
A total of 97 Jehovah’s Witness young men have made individual applications
to the Committee for alternative civilian service.
Among the 97 applicants are all 20 current conscientious objector
prisoners, who applied for transfer to alternative civilian service by the
1 August deadline in accordance with the terms of the amendments. They did
so “under protest” to be released from jail, Jehovah’s Witnesses complained
to Forum 18. “We are at a loss to understand why their applications for
alternative service have not yet been processed and they have not been
freed.”
Any young man transferring from prison to the new alternative civilian
service would have the length of time they have been imprisoned deducted
from their alternative service, Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18.
How will Alternative Service Committee operate?
Human rights defenders have expressed some concern over the role of Defence
Ministry officials in the Alternative Service Committee, and vagueness over
the way it is supposed to operate (see F18News 6 June 2013
). Forum 18 was unable
to reach Deputy Defence Minister Nazaryan on 17 October.
Alternative Service Committee chair Terteryan was unavailable when Forum 18
called on 17 October. But a colleague from his Territorial Administration
Ministry, Artur Sogomonyan, head of the Municipal Administration
Department, told Forum 18 that the Committee meeting in the week of 21 to
25 October will consider all 65 applications it has received. He said these
are not only from Jehovah’s Witnesses but others too, though he would not
identify the background of these other applicants.
It is unclear how the figure of 65 applications that Sogomonyan quoted
matches the 97 applications Jehovah’s Witness state have been made from
their community, or where other applications – numbering at least 32 – may
be in the application process.
Astsatryan of the Department for Ethnic Minorities and Religious Affairs
told Forum 18 on 17 October that the Alternative Service Committee has held
preliminary meetings, but that the meeting in the week of 21 to 25 October
will be the first full meeting and will consider the applications for
alternative service received.
Asked if the Committee will approve applications from individuals who base
their objections on non-religious reasons of conscience, Sogomonyan of the
Territorial Administration Ministry responded: “Each case will be decided
individually.”
Astsatryan of the Department for Ethnic Minorities and Religious Affairs
was also asked by Forum 18 if the Committee will approve applications from
individuals who base their objections on non-religious reasons of
conscince. He replied that “we will listen and decide on each case. My
approach is that alternative service will be open to religious and
non-religious applicants.”
Yet how the Alternative Service Committee will assess individuals and
decide which applicants can proceed to alternative civilian service remains
unclear, according to Danielyan of Collaboration for Democracy (see F18News
6 June 2013 ).
“I asked about the procedures it will adopt, but no one could tell me,”
Danielyan told Forum 18. “This is the most important question – will
alternative service be for all who apply? Or just for religious objectors?
What will happen to the other applicants?” He added that officials fear
many people might apply for the alternative, rather than for military
service.
Danielyan believes only during the November call-up will it be clear
whether the new system is functioning in a way that allows individuals to
make a free choice over which type of service to do in accordance with
their conscience.
Length of alternative service
Human rights defenders have criticised the length of the alternative
civilian service – three years compared to two years’ military service (see
F18News 6 June 2013 ).
However, Jehovah’s Witnesses state that the longer alternative service is
not the “main concern” for them. “Alternative service is longer, but for us
the main concern is that alternative civilian service is not under military
control,” they told Forum 18. “It seems this has now been met.” (END)
More coverage of freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Armenia and
the unrecognised entity of Nagorno-Karabakh is at
A personal commentary, by Derek Brett of Conscience and Peace Tax
International, on conscientious objection to military service and
international law in the light of the European Court of Human Rights’ July
2011 Bayatyan judgment is at
.
A compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments can be found at
.
A printer-friendly map of Armenia is available at
.
All Forum 18 News Service material may be referred to, quoted from, or
republished in full, if Forum 18 is credited as the
source.” />Armenia’s Jehovah’s Witness community has welcomed as “positive”
the release from prison of nine conscientious objectors to military service
in a prisoner amnesty. “The families of the imprisoned men were overjoyed
to welcome their loved ones home,” Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18 News
Service from Yerevan on 9 October. The men all had less than six months of
their sentences to run. However, the Jehovah’s Witness are disappointed
that, although their terms have been reduced by six months, a further 20
prisoners of conscience remain in prison. “Our position is that the 20
imprisoned conscientious objectors should be immediately and
unconditionally released.”
Stepan Danielyan of Collaboration for Democracy – which has long campaigned
against the imprisonment of conscientious objectors – agrees. “It is not
right that the 20 are still imprisoned,” he told Forum 18 from Yerevan on
16 October. “They should be freed and allowed to perform alternative
service.”
Two of the Deputy Justice Ministers involved in the issue were unavailable
each time Forum 18 called. Officials told Forum 18 that Grigor Muradyan was
out of Armenia, while Ruben Melikyan each time Forum 18 called on 16 and 17
October.
The government has now introduced alternative civilian service and set up
an Alternative Service Committee to decide on individual alternative
service applications (see F18News 6 June 2013
). It is due to hold
its first full meeting to consider 65 applications – from Jehovah’s
Witnesses and others – in the week of 21 to 25 October, two officials told
Forum 18. Yet Jehovah’s Witnesses state that 97 of their young men have
applied to have their cases considered by the Committee (see below).
Free prisoners of conscience now
Human rights defenders and Jehovah’s Witnesses insist all imprisoned
conscientious objectors should have been freed long ago and that the
remaining 20 prisoners of conscience should be freed immediately. Armenia
committed itself on joining the Council of Europe to introduce a civilian,
non-military alternative service by January 2004, it failed to do so. It
also pledged to release all those imprisoned for refusing military service
in the interim, but continued with a policy of imprisonment. For this it
has been strongly criticised by the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council
of Europe (PACE) and the United Nations Human Rights Committee (see F18News
20 September 2012 ).
In addition, in July 2011 the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in
Strasbourg ruled in the case of former conscientious objector prisoner
Vahan Bayatyan (Application No. 23459/03) that the right to conscientious
objection is protected by Article 9 (“Freedom of thought, conscience and
religion”) of the European Convention (see commentary by Derek Brett of
Conscience and Peace Tax International at F18News 26 July 2011
).
The ECtHR also handed down two similar judgments against Armenia – in cases
brought by Hayk Bukharatyan (Application No. 37819/03) and Ashot Tsaturyan
(Application No. 37821/03) – in January 2012 (see F18News 1 February 2012
).
In November 2012, the ECtHR – in its fourth decision against Armenia in
conscientious objector cases – found in the case of Khachatryan and Others
(Application No. 23978/06) that Armenia had violated the rights of 17
Jehovah’s Witness conscientious objectors (see F18News 3 December 2012
).
Jehovah’s Witnesses state that 29 of their young men have been convicted
since the Bayatyan judgment, and a further 33 cases are pending with
investigators or the courts. All were punished or investigated under
Criminal Code Article 327, Part 1, which punishes evasion of the call-up to
military or alternative service. The maximum sentence under this article
was increased to three years’ imprisonment in December 2005.
Nine prisoners of conscience freed, 20 still jailed
Nine imprisoned conscientious objectors were freed on 8 and 9 October after
they were included in a prisoner amnesty. The amnesty, to mark the 22nd
anniversary of Armenia’s independence from the Soviet Union, was proposed
by President Serj Sarkisyan and approved by parliament on 3 October, the
parliamentary website noted the same day.
The longest-serving of the nine amnestied prisoners, Aharon Mushegyan, had
been given a three-year sentence in November 2010. The other eight were all
imprisoned in 2011, serving sentences of 30 or 36 months. Three of the nine
amnestied prisoners had less than 10 days left to serve at the time of
their release, Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18.
Jehovah’s Witnesses remain concerned about the 20 current prisoners.
“Unfortunately, the amnesty only reduced their sentences by six months,”
Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18.
Criminal cases continue
Three Jehovah’s Witness conscientious objectors were sentenced under
Criminal Code Article 327, Part 1 in 2013. Samvel Abrahamyan received a
30-month sentence on 29 January. Narek Grigoryan, was sentenced to 24
months’ imprisonment on 25 February. Vahagn Paronikyan received a 24-month
sentence on 4 March. However, the three young men were not imprisoned
pending their appeals. Grigoryan’s appeal is due to be heard at Armenia’s
Criminal Appeal Court in Yerevan on 21 October.
A total of 27 other criminal cases under Article 327, Part 1 are being
investigated. Six more are already in the courts, though no verdict has yet
been reached in any of the trials.
All 36 of these individuals have applied for the new alternative civilian
service, Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18. However, the criminal cases
against them have not been dropped. “We have not received any information
about what they are planning to do with them,” Jehovah’s Witnesses told
Forum 18.
Forum 18 was unable to reach Gevorg Kostanyan, Armenia’s Military
Prosecutor, on 17 October.
Civilian institutions
Armenia has long imprisoned those young men unwilling to perform military
service or the alternative service under military control. All forms of
military service were and are unacceptable to Jehovah’s Witness young men
and to at least one member of the Molokan community. Hundreds of Jehovah’s
Witnesses and one Molokan were imprisoned, with prison sentences of up to
three years.
The Justice Ministry finally drafted amendments to the 2003 Alternative
Service Law and to the 2003 Law on Implementing the Criminal Code to
introduce for the first time a genuinely civilian alternative. They were
approved by parliament and signed into law by President Sarkisyan in May.
They came into force on 8 June (see F18News 6 June 2013
).
Under a 25 July government decision, 11 institutions were identified as
places where alternative civilian service would be carried out including
nursing homes, children’s homes and psychiatric clinics. The 11
institutions are controlled by a number of ministries: the Labour and
Social Affairs Ministry, the Health Ministry and the Emergency Situations
Ministry. A separate list identified tasks the alternative service workers
would carry out, including hospital orderly, laundry worker, kitchen
worker, ground staff or emergency rescuer’s assistant.
“We’re not against these institutions,” Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18.
“They are civilian.”
Alternative Service Committee
Under another 25 July government decision, the government appointed the
members of the seven-strong Alternative Service Committee to review
applications for alternative civilian service. Chairing the Committee is
Vache Terteryan, First Deputy Minister of Territorial Administration. Its
other members come from various ministries and agencies, including the
Defence Ministry, Health Ministry, the Police and Vardan Astsatryan of the
government’s Department for Ethnic Minorities and Religious Affairs. The
Defence Ministry’s representative on the Committee is Deputy Minister Ara
Nazaryan, who is a civilian and not a military officer.
Applications
A total of 97 Jehovah’s Witness young men have made individual applications
to the Committee for alternative civilian service.
Among the 97 applicants are all 20 current conscientious objector
prisoners, who applied for transfer to alternative civilian service by the
1 August deadline in accordance with the terms of the amendments. They did
so “under protest” to be released from jail, Jehovah’s Witnesses complained
to Forum 18. “We are at a loss to understand why their applications for
alternative service have not yet been processed and they have not been
freed.”
Any young man transferring from prison to the new alternative civilian
service would have the length of time they have been imprisoned deducted
from their alternative service, Jehovah’s Witnesses told Forum 18.
How will Alternative Service Committee operate?
Human rights defenders have expressed some concern over the role of Defence
Ministry officials in the Alternative Service Committee, and vagueness over
the way it is supposed to operate (see F18News 6 June 2013
). Forum 18 was unable
to reach Deputy Defence Minister Nazaryan on 17 October.
Alternative Service Committee chair Terteryan was unavailable when Forum 18
called on 17 October. But a colleague from his Territorial Administration
Ministry, Artur Sogomonyan, head of the Municipal Administration
Department, told Forum 18 that the Committee meeting in the week of 21 to
25 October will consider all 65 applications it has received. He said these
are not only from Jehovah’s Witnesses but others too, though he would not
identify the background of these other applicants.
It is unclear how the figure of 65 applications that Sogomonyan quoted
matches the 97 applications Jehovah’s Witness state have been made from
their community, or where other applications – numbering at least 32 – may
be in the application process.
Astsatryan of the Department for Ethnic Minorities and Religious Affairs
told Forum 18 on 17 October that the Alternative Service Committee has held
preliminary meetings, but that the meeting in the week of 21 to 25 October
will be the first full meeting and will consider the applications for
alternative service received.
Asked if the Committee will approve applications from individuals who base
their objections on non-religious reasons of conscience, Sogomonyan of the
Territorial Administration Ministry responded: “Each case will be decided
individually.”
Astsatryan of the Department for Ethnic Minorities and Religious Affairs
was also asked by Forum 18 if the Committee will approve applications from
individuals who base their objections on non-religious reasons of
conscince. He replied that “we will listen and decide on each case. My
approach is that alternative service will be open to religious and
non-religious applicants.”
Yet how the Alternative Service Committee will assess individuals and
decide which applicants can proceed to alternative civilian service remains
unclear, according to Danielyan of Collaboration for Democracy (see F18News
6 June 2013 ).
“I asked about the procedures it will adopt, but no one could tell me,”
Danielyan told Forum 18. “This is the most important question – will
alternative service be for all who apply? Or just for religious objectors?
What will happen to the other applicants?” He added that officials fear
many people might apply for the alternative, rather than for military
service.
Danielyan believes only during the November call-up will it be clear
whether the new system is functioning in a way that allows individuals to
make a free choice over which type of service to do in accordance with
their conscience.
Length of alternative service
Human rights defenders have criticised the length of the alternative
civilian service – three years compared to two years’ military service (see
F18News 6 June 2013 ).
However, Jehovah’s Witnesses state that the longer alternative service is
not the “main concern” for them. “Alternative service is longer, but for us
the main concern is that alternative civilian service is not under military
control,” they told Forum 18. “It seems this has now been met.” (END)
More coverage of freedom of thought, conscience and belief in Armenia and
the unrecognised entity of Nagorno-Karabakh is at
A personal commentary, by Derek Brett of Conscience and Peace Tax
International, on conscientious objection to military service and
international law in the light of the European Court of Human Rights’ July
2011 Bayatyan judgment is at
.
A compilation of Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe
(OSCE) freedom of religion or belief commitments can be found at
.
A printer-friendly map of Armenia is available at
.
All Forum 18 News Service material may be referred to, quoted from, or
republished in full, if Forum 18 is credited as the
source.
© Forum 18 News Service. All rights reserved. ISSN 1504-2855.
http://www.forum18.org/
http://www.forum18.org/archive.php?article_id=1887