Observers are surprised at behavior of the RA authorities during July events (video)
Lene Wetteland, the Senior Adviser of Norwegian Helsinki Committee, is very surprised at the reaction of the RA authorities to July 17-30 events in Yerevan in terms of hindering the right to freedom of peaceful assemblies. Today “International Association for Human Rights” organization and Helsinki Association for Human Rights NGO in cooperation with Helsinki Committee of Norway, Protection of Rights without Borders organization and Helsinki Citizens' Assembly Vanadzor Office, presented a report made as a result of monitoring of July 17-30 events in Yerevan. The report sums up information, which was obtained as a result of fact-finding work carried out in Yerevan from July 28 to August 1. The report includes evidence of 42 injured and witnesses. According to Lene Wetteland, on July 17-30 the RA authorities carried out inhuman persecution and hindering of peaceful assemblies in Yerevan, “The authorities don’t have a right to show such an attitude, even if the protestors had shown aggressive attitude. There was disparity of law; the police officers even broke into the houses of peaceful residents and showed inhuman attitude. There were baseless arrests, the grounds of arrests weren’t presented, after arrests no legal assistance was provided to the protesters. Even the passive resistance of protesters must be considered a peaceful assembly. Even if some objects were thrown at the police, the assembly mustn’t be labeled as not to be peaceful.” Svetlana Valko, Coordinator at the International Association for Human Rights organization, highlighted that the police officers were in uniforms as well as in civilian clothing and were among the protesters, “Even when the protesters were in peaceful condition, the police officers showed heated reaction to their applause. During the assemblies several kinds of bombs were used against the protesters. I also can state that the assemblies were peaceful, as the people came to the assemblies even with their children.” She says that like during Electric Yerevan, on July 17-30 the activists, who could lead the rally in an organized way, were arrested.” Haykuhi Harutyunyan, Chairman of Protection of Rights without Borders organization, reminded of Serzh Sargsyan’s speech, during which he thanked the police for good work, “I think it grants an opportunity to predict what will be the result of the investigation of the law enforcement bodies. By the way, the investigation is carried out by two different bodies- the SIS, which investigates the lawfulness of the police actions, and the Investigative Committee, which investigates the disorders, which happened during the assemblies. In terms of documentary, there is no difference between these two investigations- at one place people are the witnesses, at the other place- the aggrieved party.” Nina Karapetyants, newly elected Chairman of Helsinki Association for Human Rights NGO, before presenting her observations, organized a small flash-mob dedicated to the memory of the Chairman of the Association Mikael Danielyan. She noted that the report is also dedicated to his memory, as well as she informed that they asked the relatives of Mikael Danielyan for his shirts, several of which were worn by the members of the Association during the presentation of the report. According to the presentation of Nina Karapetyants, nothing extraordinary happened on July 17-30, except the rude and cruel attitude towards the journalists, “In other cases there was nothing extraordinary or surprising by the authorities, everything was the same. There were so many arrestees that the police departments were full, and some of them were even transferred to schools and military units, where the arrestees were even deprived of their right to use restroom or drink water. She highlighted that according to the law on the police, the special measures are intended for not hurting the people, but frightening them so that they leave the area. Yet the footage clearly shows that the police officers opened fire on the places, where there were many people, and even the people, who were standing far away, were injured.”
