NGOs condemn arson attack on Shirak branch of Sakharov Human Rights Center
A group of NGOs have issued a statement condemning the arson attempt on Shirak branch of the Sakharov Center for Human Rights Protection in Armenia.
In the morning of the 6th of July at about 5 a.m. in the building of Shirak branch of the Armenian human rights protection center named after Sakharov the arson was committed.
An arson attempt was reported in the Shirak branch of the Armenian Center for the Protection of Human Rights after Sakharov in the morning of July 6. At around 5 a.m. unknown people broke the glass through metal bars and ignited the window and window path with liquid fuel.
On noticing the fire, people living near the office called the local fire service. However, they were able to extinguish the fire before the arrival of firefighters. The attack significantly damaged the training hall with its property, the repair cost of which exceeds 600,000 drams.
"We, the undersigned representatives of civil society, express our concern over the arson attack and condemn the sauce of makers and implementers, noting that this is not the first time, when similar methods are used in attempt to intimidate or punish human rights protection defenders and non-governmental organization.
The police must make every effort to discover the direct doers and the men who ordered this crime, to ensure adequate publicity about the process of the case as soon as possible.
We urge the authorities to condemn such violence and to assist the Sakharov human rights organization and its Gyumri-bashed office to continue its normal activity.
We hope that the office will quickly overcome temporary difficulties, remaining so consistently in protection of human rights, as they have been for 15 years," reads the statement signed by some 70 NGOs.
