EurasiaNet Eurasia Insight - Murder of Armenian State TV Chief Heightens Political Tension

EURASIA INSIGHT

MURDER OF ARMENIAN STATE TV CHIEF HEIGHTENS POLITICAL TENSION
Emil Danielyan 1/17/03

The criminal investigation into the December murder of the chief of Armenia’s state television and radio appears to be deadlocked amid bitter recriminations traded by pro-government and opposition forces. Each side holds the other responsible for the killing that has heightened political tensions ahead of presidential elections scheduled for February 19.

Tigran Naghdalian, head of state-run Armenian Public Television and Radio (APTR), was killed December 28 with a single shot to the head, as he left his parents’ home. Naghdalian had been a staunch supporter of President Robert Kocharian and had harshly criticized Kocharian’s opponents. The country’s political and cultural elite widely denounced the assassination.

A commentary in the Yerevan daily "Aravot" said: "In the pre-election period, authorities and the opposition will save no effort to exploit the murder by blaming it on each other. The elections will take place and everyone will forget the crime."

Outside observers also condemned the unsolved crime. Walter Schwimmer, secretary general of the Council of Europe, called it "an attack on freedom of the media." Schwimmer called on Armenian officials to bring Naghdalian’s killer to justice. "I call on the competent Armenian authorities to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation," Schwimmer said.

The investigation appears to have stalled. Law-enforcement authorities made three December 30 arrests, but they did not yield a prime suspect. Authorities now are offering a $250,000 reward for information that would help them solve the politically-charged crime. This reward hints at officers’ lack of leads in the case.

The political charges and counter-charges began to fly soon after the murder. Kocharian said on December 29 that Naghdalian’s killing was meant to undermine Armenia’s "stability and progress" by throwing the presidential election campaign into disarray. The president pledged to "do everything" to punish its perpetrators. A special team of top prosecutors and police investigators promptly opened a criminal case under an article of the Armenian Criminal Code that deals with assassinations of senior officials aimed at "subverting or weakening the government."

Naghdalian’s replacement, Aleksan Harutiunian, promised on January 14 to give all presidential hopefuls equal airtime, but media outlets have raised the pitch of the debate.

Some presidential loyalists have charged that the shooting was the work of unnamed opposition forces that are unhappy with state television’s coverage of their activities. "You wanted a war? You will get a war. We are prepared for it," the pro-Kocharian daily "Hayots Ashkhar" thundered on January 8.

This line of argument is also advanced, albeit with greater caution, by APTR, which has conspicuously failed to showcase opposition figures on its post-assassination talk shows. Meanwhile, authorities detained several dozen opposition activists on New Year’s Eve. No charges in connection with Naghdalian’s murder were ultimately filed, although two senior members of the left-wing Socialist Armenia bloc were sentenced to ten days in jail � presumably for calling for a "violent overthrow" of the government.

Not surprisingly, leading Armenian opposition parties condemned the arrests, accusing the authorities of using the issue to intimidate their critics and propel Kocharian to victory on February 19. In a joint statement, they said Naghdalian’s death was made possible by "the atmosphere of impunity" reigning in Armenia’s criminal justice system.

Political violence and contract killings are not a new phenomenon in Armenia. The most prominent political murders occurred in October 1999, when a group of armed men seized the Armenian parliament, killing Speaker Karen Demirchian and Prime Minister Vazgen Sarkisian, along with six other officials. [For background, see the Eurasia Insight archives.] Today, opposition leaders are urging investigators to explore a possible link between the parliament shootings and the state TV chief’s murder. The rationale is that Naghdalian was due to testify in the ongoing trial of the parliament gunmen. Their leader, former journalist Nairi Hunanian, had long known Naghdalian and even worked for his TV channel in 1998-1999.

This idea connects Naghdalian’s murder to earlier allegations that state television had edited a famous video of the Hunanian-led gang bursting into the parliament and spraying it with bullets. Some associates and relatives of the parliament attack victims � who suspect Kocharian of playing a background role in the parliament shootings � alleged Naghdalian directed a cover-up of the incident. The state prosecutor on January 13 dismissed the idea that Naghdalian’s murder had any connection to the parliament attack.

Naghdalian’s friends and other Kocharian supporters, meanwhile, remain convinced that the December 28 shooting aimed to scuttle the incumbent’s reelection. "Naghdalian was not only one of the president’s closest associates but also one of the most ardent supporters of his policies and, therefore, reelection," the pro-establishment newspaper "Azg" argued in a representative editorial.

Observers generally agree that Naghdalian was instrumental in turning Armenia’s biggest and most accessible television network into the main mouthpiece of pro-Kocharian political forces. He personally anchored a controversial weekly program that sought to promote the president’s accomplishments to the public and often ridiculed the opposition leaders. Skeptics also note that Kocharian appointed one of Naghdalian’s top aides, Harutiunian, as the new public television boss � portending little change in pre-election coverage.

Whatever the motives for the murder, Naghdalian was the first journalist killed in post-Soviet Armenia, and his death marks a grim end to a year that saw increased violence against local journalists. With political battles at a high pitch, the truth about his death may never emerge.

Editor�s Note: Emil Danielyan is a Yerevan-based journalist and political analyst.

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