Author: Khoyetsian Rose

                                        Wednesday, 
Prosecutors To Appeal Against Kocharian Trial Suspension
        • Ruzanna Stepanian
Armenia -- Prosecutor-General Artur Davtian (C) at the opening session of 
former President Robert Kocharian's trial in Yerevan, May 13, 2019.
Armenian prosecutors have decided to appeal against a judge’s controversial 
decision to suspend former President Robert Kocharian’s trial and request an 
important clarification from the Constitutional Court.
In his decision publicized on Tuesday, the district court judge presiding over 
the trial, Davit Grigorian, cited a “suspicion of discrepancy” between the 
Armenian constitution and coup charges brought against Kocharian. He also 
suggested that the constitution gives the ex-president immunity from 
prosecution in connection with the 2008 post-election violence in Yerevan.
The decision was condemned by lawyers representing relatives of protesters 
killed in the March 2008 clashes with security forces. One of them said the 
Constitutional Court must not take up the case because he is legally unable to 
appeal against the judge’s decision.
The Office of the Prosecutor-General clarified later on Tuesday, however, that 
Armenia’s Code of Procedural Justice allows it to file such an appeal. A 
spokesman for the office said it will therefore ask the Court of Appeals to 
annul the trial’s suspension.
One of Kocharian’s lawyers, Aram Orbelian, insisted on Wednesday that while the 
prosecutors can challenge the judge’s decision, the Court of Appeals is not in 
a position to overturn it.
“Under the existing legislation, the Court of Appeals has no right to look into 
the justifications for the [judge’s] appeal to the Constitutional Court,” 
Orbelian told RFE/RL’s Armenian service.
He predicted that the Court of Appeals will therefore rebuff the prosecutors. 
“It cannot say in place of the Constitutional Court whether a particular law 
conforms to the constitution,” he said.
Armenian law gives the Constitutional has one month to decide whether to hold 
hearings and rule on the appeal.
Orbelian confirmed reports that the court chairman, Hrayr Tovmasian, is his 
godfather. He said this fact does not represent a conflict of interest.
“I am simply one of the lawyers in this case,” added Orbelian. “I am not the 
defendant or prosecutor. The case does not apply to me.”
The prosecutors are also planning to appeal against Judge Grigorian’s separate 
decision on Saturday to release Kocharian from custody pending the outcome of 
the trial.
The decision angered many political allies and supporters of Prime Minister 
Nikol Pashinian, who hold Kocharian responsible for the 2008 bloodshed. At 
Pashinian’s urging, they blocked the entrances to court buildings across the 
country on Monday.The premier also called for a mandatory “vetting” of all 
judges and said many of them should quit even before the start of such a 
process.
Council Of Europe Chief Discusses Judicial Reform With Pashinian
France -- Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland (R) and 
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian at a joint news conference in 
Strasbourg, April 11, 2019.
Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland and Prime Minister Nikol 
Pashinian discussed recent days’ developments in Armenia in a phone call on 
Wednesday.
“They agreed that the reform process, including the fight against corruption 
and the reform of the judiciary, should proceed in conformity with the 
Constitution, the relevant international standards and Armenia's obligations as 
a member state of the Council of Europe,” the Strasbourg-based human rights 
organization said in a statement.
“Secretary General Jagland confirmed the organization’s support to Armenia’s 
reform agenda,” it said. “A delegation of Council of Europe experts will travel 
to Yerevan in the next days to offer advice and assistance with the necessary 
reforms.”
Pashinian’s press office released an identical readout of the conversation.
The two men spoke by phone one day after two representatives of the Council of 
Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) expressed concern at Pashinian’s weekend 
calls for his supporters to block the entrances to all court buildings in 
Armenia. They at the same time welcomed Pashinian’s declared efforts to reform 
the Armenian judiciary.
“Political stakeholders must refrain from actions and statements that could be 
perceived as exerting pressure on the judiciary,” read a joint statement 
released by Yuliya Lovochkina and Andrej Sircelj, the PACE co-rapporteurs 
monitoring Armenia’s compliance with its membership obligations.
ARMENIA -- Supporters of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian are watched by police 
as they blockade the entrance to a court building in Yerevan, May 20, 2019
Lovochkina and Sircelj noted that Pashinian urged the court blockade following 
a Yerevan court’s controversial decision to order former President Robert 
Kocharian released from prison pending the outcome of his trial on coup charges 
denied by him.
“Without prejudice to the merits of this decision, we wish to emphasise that 
the independence of the judiciary is a pre-requisite for the rule of law, and 
that the rule of law is therefore best served by the absence of any 
interference from political actors,” they said. “There are clear legal 
procedures, such as appeals to a higher court, to challenge a court decision 
that seems questionable.”
The PACE co-rapporteurs at the same time acknowledged “the still low level of 
public trust in the judiciary” in Armenia. “Judicial reforms remain a priority 
and we welcome Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian's stated desire for far-reaching 
reform of the judicial system, particularly with regard to the fight against 
corruption, as well as his wish to associate the Council of Europe with it,” 
they added.
The court blockade, condemned by the Armenian opposition as illegal, began on 
Monday morning. It ended a several hours later, shortly after Pashinian held an 
emergency meeting with senior state officials to announce a “surgical 
intervention” in the judicial system.
He said Armenian courts remains closely linked to the country’s “corrupt” 
former leaders. The premier announced plans for a mandatory “vetting” of all 
judges and said many of them should quit even before the start of such a 
process.
Council Of Europe Chief Discusses Judicial Reform With Pashinian
France -- Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland (R) and 
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian at a joint news conference in 
Strasbourg, April 11, 2019.
Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland and Prime Minister Nikol 
Pashinian discussed recent days’ developments in Armenia in a phone call on 
Wednesday.
“They agreed that the reform process, including the fight against corruption 
and the reform of the judiciary, should proceed in conformity with the 
Constitution, the relevant international standards and Armenia's obligations as 
a member state of the Council of Europe,” the Strasbourg-based human rights 
organization said in a statement.
“Secretary General Jagland confirmed the organization’s support to Armenia’s 
reform agenda,” it said. “A delegation of Council of Europe experts will travel 
to Yerevan in the next days to offer advice and assistance with the necessary 
reforms.”
Pashinian’s press office released an identical readout of the conversation.
The two men spoke by phone one day after two representatives of the Council of 
Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) expressed concern at Pashinian’s weekend 
calls for his supporters to block the entrances to all court buildings in 
Armenia. They at the same time welcomed Pashinian’s declared efforts to reform 
the Armenian judiciary.
“Political stakeholders must refrain from actions and statements that could be 
perceived as exerting pressure on the judiciary,” read a joint statement 
released by Yuliya Lovochkina and Andrej Sircelj, the PACE co-rapporteurs 
monitoring Armenia’s compliance with its membership obligations.
ARMENIA -- Supporters of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian are watched by police 
as they blockade the entrance to a court building in Yerevan, May 20, 2019
Lovochkina and Sircelj noted that Pashinian urged the court blockade following 
a Yerevan court’s controversial decision to order former President Robert 
Kocharian released from prison pending the outcome of his trial on coup charges 
denied by him.
“Without prejudice to the merits of this decision, we wish to emphasise that 
the independence of the judiciary is a pre-requisite for the rule of law, and 
that the rule of law is therefore best served by the absence of any 
interference from political actors,” they said. “There are clear legal 
procedures, such as appeals to a higher court, to challenge a court decision 
that seems questionable.”
The PACE co-rapporteurs at the same time acknowledged “the still low level of 
public trust in the judiciary” in Armenia. “Judicial reforms remain a priority 
and we welcome Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian's stated desire for far-reaching 
reform of the judicial system, particularly with regard to the fight against 
corruption, as well as his wish to associate the Council of Europe with it,” 
they added.
The court blockade, condemned by the Armenian opposition as illegal, began on 
Monday morning. It ended a several hours later, shortly after Pashinian held an 
emergency meeting with senior state officials to announce a “surgical 
intervention” in the judicial system.
He said Armenian courts remains closely linked to the country’s “corrupt” 
former leaders. The premier announced plans for a mandatory “vetting” of all 
judges and said many of them should quit even before the start of such a 
process.
Press Review
“Haykakan Zhamanak” says that former President Robert Kocharian has been the 
sole beneficiary of recent days’ dramatic developments triggered by his release 
from detention. The pro-government paper says Armenia and Karabakh “have paid 
the price” for his release. “The most terrible thing has happened: the 
administration of justice has turned into an Armenians-Karabakhis discourse and 
the two sides, so to speak, have gone over the top in some cases,” it says. 
“Robert Kocharian personally provoked that, and he did so skillfully.” This is 
why, it says, supporters of Kocharian waved Karabakh flags outside the Yerevan 
court that ordered his release.
“Zhamanak” reports that the two Armenia rapporteurs of the Council of Europe’s 
Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) issued a statement on Tuesday regarding Prime 
Minister Nikol Pashinian’s actions targeting the Armenian judiciary. “They 
welcomed Pashinian’s will and readiness to carry out judicial reforms, 
including with the Council of Europe’s assistance,” writes the paper. “But most 
of the statement was devoted to criticism of his calls for blockading the court 
buildings. In other words, the PACE co-rapporteurs focused their attention on 
an issue which served as a political background for ongoing realities, rather 
than their essence.” That essence, according to the paper, is “the immunity of 
the Armenian velvet revolution and political guarantees of the prospect of a 
democratic Armenia.” “The PACE co-rapporteurs have thus turned a blind eye to 
this extremely important political circumstance,” it says.
“Zhoghovurd” hits out at Vazgen Manukian, a veteran politician heading 
Armenia’s Public Council. Pashinian reappointed Manukian as chairman of the 
advisory state body recently. “Many criticized Nikol Pashinian [for doing 
that,] and with his actions in recent days Vazgen Manukian is consistently 
proving that they were right to criticize the prime minister for being so kind 
towards Manukian,” writes the paper. “At yesterday’s emergency meeting of the 
Public Council he rushed to criticize Nikol Pashinian’s statements made the 
previous day. And most importantly, he found dangerous and damaging the 
authorities’ intention to set up an ad hoc parliamentary commission that will 
investigate the April 2016 war [in Karabakh.]”
(Lilit Harutiunian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2019 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
www.rferl.org

                                        Tuesday, April 01, 2019
Pashinian Unrepentant About Flag Outburst
        • Naira Nalbandian
Armenia - Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian visits a customs terminal in Yerevan, 
April 9, 2019.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian rejected on Monday human rights activists’ and 
opposition leaders’ criticism of his angry behavior and sacking orders issued 
during a visit to a customs facility in Yerevan.
Pashinian berated a customs officer, Hayk Martirosian, for not standing at 
attention when he began inspecting the facility on April 9. He then entered an 
office and noticed an apparently dirty Armenian flag there before ordering 
everyone working in the room to be fired.
Human rights activists condemned Pashinian’s behavior, saying that he is not 
legally allowed to order such sackings. They also decried Martirosian’s 
humiliation in front of TV cameras.
Martirosian and the chief of the customs terminal resigned from their jobs 
following the incident. The State Revenue Committee (SRC), which comprises the 
Armenian customs service, denied forcing them to quit. The SRC chief, Davit 
Ananian, also claimed that Pashinian “urged,” rather than ordered, their 
dismissal.
Opposition politicians added their voice to the criticism. One of them compared 
Pashinian’s behavior to Belarusian strongman Alexander Lukashenko’s periodical 
public outbursts, while another published an open letter earlier on Monday 
accusing the prime minister of violating labor rights.
Pashinian scoffed at the letter. “If things continue like this, the next letter 
will be about us violating Serzh Sarkisian’s labor rights,” he said, referring 
to Armenia’s former leader overthrown in last year’s “velvet revolution.”
Pashinian said that Martirosian’s failure to stand at attention in his presence 
highlighted customs officers’ lack of respect for many citizens dealing with 
the customs service. “Why do you think we are getting hundreds of letters 
complaining about customs bodies?” he told reporters.
“He could have avoid writing the [resignation] letter,” Pashinian said of 
Martirosian. “What should I do? My position is that such people must not be [in 
the customs service.]”
“I think that no action aimed at enhancing [state bodies’ proper] attitude 
towards the national flag has been as effective as that incident,” he added.
Pashinian Unrepentant About Flag Outburst
        • Naira Nalbandian
Armenia - Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian visits a customs terminal in Yerevan, 
April 9, 2019.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian rejected on Monday human rights activists’ and 
opposition leaders’ criticism of his angry behavior and sacking orders issued 
during a visit to a customs facility in Yerevan.
Pashinian berated a customs officer, Hayk Martirosian, for not standing at 
attention when he began inspecting the facility on April 9. He then entered an 
office and noticed an apparently dirty Armenian flag there before ordering 
everyone working in the room to be fired.
Human rights activists condemned Pashinian’s behavior, saying that he is not 
legally allowed to order such sackings. They also decried Martirosian’s 
humiliation in front of TV cameras.
Martirosian and the chief of the customs terminal resigned from their jobs 
following the incident. The State Revenue Committee (SRC), which comprises the 
Armenian customs service, denied forcing them to quit. The SRC chief, Davit 
Ananian, also claimed that Pashinian “urged,” rather than ordered, their 
dismissal.
Opposition politicians added their voice to the criticism. One of them compared 
Pashinian’s behavior to Belarusian strongman Alexander Lukashenko’s periodical 
public outbursts, while another published an open letter earlier on Monday 
accusing the prime minister of violating labor rights.
Pashinian scoffed at the letter. “If things continue like this, the next letter 
will be about us violating Serzh Sarkisian’s labor rights,” he said, referring 
to Armenia’s former leader overthrown in last year’s “velvet revolution.”
Pashinian said that Martirosian’s failure to stand at attention in his presence 
highlighted customs officers’ lack of respect for many citizens dealing with 
the customs service. “Why do you think we are getting hundreds of letters 
complaining about customs bodies?” he told reporters.
“He could have avoid writing the [resignation] letter,” Pashinian said of 
Martirosian. “What should I do? My position is that such people must not be [in 
the customs service.]”
“I think that no action aimed at enhancing [state bodies’ proper] attitude 
towards the national flag has been as effective as that incident,” he added.
Pashinian Unrepentant About Flag Outburst
        • Naira Nalbandian
Armenia - Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian visits a customs terminal in Yerevan, 
April 9, 2019.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian rejected on Monday human rights activists’ and 
opposition leaders’ criticism of his angry behavior and sacking orders issued 
during a visit to a customs facility in Yerevan.
Pashinian berated a customs officer, Hayk Martirosian, for not standing at 
attention when he began inspecting the facility on April 9. He then entered an 
office and noticed an apparently dirty Armenian flag there before ordering 
everyone working in the room to be fired.
Human rights activists condemned Pashinian’s behavior, saying that he is not 
legally allowed to order such sackings. They also decried Martirosian’s 
humiliation in front of TV cameras.
Martirosian and the chief of the customs terminal resigned from their jobs 
following the incident. The State Revenue Committee (SRC), which comprises the 
Armenian customs service, denied forcing them to quit. The SRC chief, Davit 
Ananian, also claimed that Pashinian “urged,” rather than ordered, their 
dismissal.
Opposition politicians added their voice to the criticism. One of them compared 
Pashinian’s behavior to Belarusian strongman Alexander Lukashenko’s periodical 
public outbursts, while another published an open letter earlier on Monday 
accusing the prime minister of violating labor rights.
Pashinian scoffed at the letter. “If things continue like this, the next letter 
will be about us violating Serzh Sarkisian’s labor rights,” he said, referring 
to Armenia’s former leader overthrown in last year’s “velvet revolution.”
Pashinian said that Martirosian’s failure to stand at attention in his presence 
highlighted customs officers’ lack of respect for many citizens dealing with 
the customs service. “Why do you think we are getting hundreds of letters 
complaining about customs bodies?” he told reporters.
“He could have avoid writing the [resignation] letter,” Pashinian said of 
Martirosian. “What should I do? My position is that such people must not be [in 
the customs service.]”
“I think that no action aimed at enhancing [state bodies’ proper] attitude 
towards the national flag has been as effective as that incident,” he added.
Press Review
“Zhoghovurd” reports that an Armenian parliament committee discussed on Monday 
a government bill that would reduce the number of ministries in the country 
from 17 to 12. The paper notes that Armenia’s government was already downsized 
under former Prime Minister Karen Karapetian and that the resulting staff cuts 
not only did not spark protests but were also backed by many Armenians at the 
time. It complains that the new government’s plans to continue that process are 
meeting with hostile reaction from some media outlets and opposition forces.
“Aravot” believes that the staff cuts must be coupled with more efficient work 
of government agencies and greater competence of civil servants. “Audacious and 
non-populist steps are needed here,” editorializes the paper. It says that 
higher wages alone will not attract competent professions to the public sector. 
It says the latter would hate work for disrespectful, whimsical and 
unpredictable ministers or other senior government officials.
Lragir.am sees a growing “wave of sabotage” against Pashinian’s government. 
“Workers of enterprise whose profits are at risk are speaking out against 
layoffs,” writes the online publication. “In the last ten days this has been 
the case at three large enterprises: Spayka, the Ararat Tsement plant and 
Gazprom Armenia. In all three cases the factors of sabotage and blackmail are 
evident. The state is trying to play a regulatory role but the companies 
accustomed to old patterns of kickbacks and deals are failing to reach legal 
common ground with the government and are resorting to blackmail.”
(Lilit Harutiunian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2019 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
www.rferl.org