Armenia: Gadfly Editor to Serve Three Years in Prison

Armenia's Court of Appeals on March 9 upheld a seven-year jail sentence for opposition journalist Nikol Pashinian. But the court ruling added that Pashinian, a protégé of opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosian, would be eligible for release in three years under terms of an amnesty program, the RIA Novosti agency reported.

Pashinian's lawyers said they were unhappy with the decision and vowed to continue fighting for their client's immediate release.

Pashinian, editor-in-chief of the Haykanan Zhamank newspaper, was indicted in connection with the March 2008 presidential election-related unrest. At least 10 people died during the rioting.

Pashinian and several opposition comrades went into hiding following the rioting. He reemerged in July 2009 after President Serzh Sargsyan announced an amnesty for those detained after the violence. However, Pashinian did not receive a pardon. [For details, see the Eurasia Insight archive.] Instead, a Yerevan court in January sentenced him to a seven-year term.