EurasiaNet Civil Society - Armenia: Prison Term for Opposition Activist Revives Democratization Debate

CIVIL SOCIETY

ARMENIA: PRISON TERM FOR OPPOSITION ACTIVIST REVIVES DEMOCRATIZATION DEBATE
Marianna Grigoryan: 1/20/10

The seven-year prison sentence handed down to opposition activist and journalist Nikol Pashinian on January 19 for his alleged role in Armenia’s violent 2008 election protests is stoking fresh debate about civil liberties and rule of law.

Pashinian, editor-in-chief of the opposition daily Haykakan Zhamanak, led crowds of young protestors through central Yerevan during demonstrations against the 2008 presidential election that brought President Serzh Sargsyan to power. [For details, see the Eurasia Insight archive.]

A charismatic and energetic public speaker, the 34-year-old Pashinian was billed as former president Levon Ter-Petrosian’s protégé, a fiery figure capable of stirring support for the former president among Armenians.

The newspaper editor, wanted for allegedly helping to organize clashes between police and protestors that resulted in at least 10 deaths, emerged from hiding in July 2009 after the announcement of a presidential amnesty for individuals detained after the violence. [For details, see the Eurasia Insight archive.]

Earlier this month, he failed in a bid for a parliamentary seat that would have given him immunity from prosecution.

The seven-year prison sentence handed down by Yerevan’s Central and Nork-Marash District Court means that Pashinian will not be eligible for the presidential amnesty, which applies only to those convicted of crimes carrying a sentence of five years or less.

Pashinian’s attorney, Lusine Sahakian, along with the editor’s supporters, contend that politics, rather than the rule-of-law, determined the January 19 verdict. "Of course, we made no forecasts with regard to this case, and didn’t expect the court to bring in a fair verdict," Sahakian said. "Armenia hasn’t seen a fair verdict for a long time."

Sahakian added that Pashinian will appeal in an Armenian court, and intends to bring the case to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. At the same time, Sahakian said she did not expect an appeal in Armenia to be successful in overturning the verdict. "The judges are all the same," she said.

On January 20, several of local media organizations assailed the verdict, asserting that it served to muzzle free speech and intimidate independent-minded journalists. Pro-government lawmakers, meanwhile, robustly defended the court’s verdict, contending that Pashinian was not acting in the capacity of a journalist during the 2008 election-related protests. "At least on Shahumian Square, Pashinian was not engaged in journalist activities," said Hovhannes Sahakian, an MP affiliated with the governing Republican Party of Armenia. "Our court is independent, and it has reached its verdict after investigating the case. If [Pashinian’s supporters] do not trust the Armenian judicial system, they are free to appeal to international courts."

A spokesperson for the Prosperous Armenia Party, a member of Armenia’s three-party ruling coalition, echoed that opinion. "The court has made a legal decision," said Khachik Galstian.

In a statement released January 19, Pashinian argued that no legal grounds exist for what he termed his "persecution."

"No threat will make me yield to the criminal authorities," the statement said. "I will fight till the end, for the sake of justice, lawfulness, the establishment of power by the people, freedom of speech, human rights -- whether I’m in jail or free."

Following Pashinian’s verdict, opposition leaders lamented what they portrayed as the Armenian judicial system’s subservience to the executive branch of government. "This is just another link in a chain of shameful trials," claimed Stepan Demirchian, the leader of the Popular Party of Armenia. He was referring to previous trials of Ter-Petrosian supporters that occurred in the wake of the March 2008 clashes. [For details, see the Eurasia Insight archive.]

Vladimir Karapetian, a senior member of Ter-Petrosian’s Armenian National Congress, said that a "not guilty" verdict for Pashinian would have been possible only in a "normal country" with a "normal [political] situation." Karapetian added that the Pashinian verdict would re-invigorate support for Armenian opposition parties.

Such an assertion could not be immediately verified. Residents of Yerevan interviewed by EurasiaNet expressed mixed emotions about the verdict; some supported it, believing that it bolstered political stability; others decried it as the ruling of a kangaroo court.

"Levon Ter-Petrosian and his team screwed up everything on March 1 and Pashinian was leading that," opined 45-year-old homemaker Narine Mkrtchian. "Those who are to blame for that should be called to account."

Fifty-year-old engineer Arman Muradian compared the verdict to a lid placed on a pot of boiling water. "Every time the government is choosing the same primitive, predictable way [of dealing with the opposition], but one day they will not be able to keep the lid on," Muradian said.

In turn, 63-year-old pensioner Hrant Tovmasian believes the verdict signals that "Pashinian is a threat for the government." "But how long can this last?" he wondered aloud.

Editor's Note: Marianna Grigoryan is a freelance reporter based in Yerevan.