Epress.am News from Armenia
"The two incidents in the past two weeks — Azerbaijanis' incursion into Armenia and sentencing Karabakh War veteran Volodya Avetisyan (pictured) to 6 years in prison — clearly characterize the state of Armenia's defense. They are 'shutting' the person who made a real contribution in defending the country, while those who supposedly provide protection (the generals, the MPs), who are immersed in corruption, are uncontrolled and at the same time such incidents occur at the border," said head of Helsinki Citizens' Assembly Vanadzor Office Artur Sakunts during a broadcast of Epress.am's Week in Review program [in Armenian only].
Sakunts said that Avetisyan made a huge contribution in the task of Armenia's defense, which will remain a state secret, since he, as a respectable officer, will not make it public.
The head of the human rights organization said if preserving people's rights and dignity is not at the basis of state security, it becomes merely a formal concept.
"What does state security mean without people? Volodya Avetisyan himself is not safe in his country because he presents a threat to the interests of the ruling authorities. For this reason, they're confining him, at the same time weakening defense there where there is a threat," he said.
According to Sakunts, as long as Armenia's Ministry of Defense continues to remain an uncontrolled source of corrupt income, the country's defense will weaken.