Nikol Pashinyan had nothing to do with it

Nikol Pashinyan's advocates have been presenting the 78-page appeal for two hours at the Appeals Court.

The advocates don't deny the fact that mass disturbances did take place in Yerevan on March 1, 2008, but they substantiate that Nikol Pashinyan had nothing to do with them.

The advocates presented facts and corroborated that not only did their client have to be acquitted by the first instance court by Article 316 of the Penal Code, but Part 1 of Article 225.

The appeal also includes testimonies of eyewitnesses who had informed the preliminary inquirers that Nikol Pashinyan was one of the organizers of the mass disturbances and had declared that they were seeing Nikol Pashinyan for the first time in court.

The advocates have also attached the declarations by international organizations that state that police applied disproportionate force on March 1.
It is still unclear how the appeal will be examined. Will it be through cassation or reexamination?

Editor-in-chief of "Haykakan Zhamanak" newspaper Nikol Pashinyan's advocates fear that the presiding judge Serzhik Avetisyan may surprise them at any moment.

Let us remind that during the cassation, the sides can only present the appeals, responses and petitions. In case of reexamination, the sides have the opportunity to call eyewitnesses.