Epress.am News from Armenia
The deadline to release from the military Arman Mnatsakanyan, a witness in the case of rifle platoon commander Artak Nazaryan, who died suddenly while serving in Tavush marz (province) during peacetime on Jul. 27, 2010, expired on Dec. 4 of this year, but he has not yet been discharged.
Artak Nazaryan’s sister, Tsovinar Nazaryan, who spoke with Epress.am at a protest outside the Armenia government building today, said that they discovered that the RA Law on Military Duty stipulates that a draftee can serve only 24 months and his mandatory military service can be extended by two months only by a government decision and by one month only by the defense minister’s decision.
“Now I don’t know whether there’s a Minister of Defense decision or not; however, his service term expired on the 4th of the month; on the 6th when my mother and defense attorney Ruben Martirosyan met with the Defense Minister and said that at least this matter of the discharge has to be solve, the minister showed interest and wrote down his name. That is, at that time he showed no sign that he is informed or gave an order to extend [Mnatsakanyan’s term]. He said, ‘Yeah, if his term is up, he will be discharged, no problem.’ But at court yesterday, Arman Mnatsakanyan again came dressed in army fatigues, accompanied by military police and gave a testimony and he didn’t know when he was going to be discharged,” she said.
Tsovinar believes that at this time the defense minister is personally responsible for both the impartiality of the investigation and the fact that this soldier is not being released and is being kept at the military police.
In the question of testifying, it’s obvious that Mnatsakanyan is being subject to pressure by the military police, Tsovinar said.
Artak Nazaryan’s sister also informed Epress.am that at court yesterday Mnatsakanyan again said that the investigator wrote his testimony, but added that they was his own thoughts.
“We said, great, then tell us what’s a priority, he didn’t know; we said, what’s ‘fuflo,’ it’s written, he didn’t know; we said which one’s the left forearm, he said I don’t know. Then when I asked, Hakob Manukyan [one of the accused in the case] hit your left forearm, would you show us where he hit you, he said yes, he hit me and showed part of his back. So, he doesn’t know what a left forearm is, what’s priority, what’s ‘fuflo,’ but in his testimony — he wrote well during dictation classes,” she said.
Arman Mnatsakanyan will continue his testimony in court on Dec. 20 at 12 pm.