Observers’ Activities During Armenian Elections Hindered by Proxies

A representative of the Independent Observer monitoring group, Edmon Voskanyan, was attacked today at the 21/28 polling station in the Gegharkunik province Zolakar village, the Helsinki Citizens Assembly Vanadzor office (HCAV) reports.

Members of the election commission, along with several proxies of various political parties and blocs, forcibly removed Voskanyan from the premises after the observer tried to prevent occurring electoral violations.

The activities of another Independent Observer monitor, Madlen Antonyan, were hampered at a Malatia-Sebastia polling station in Yerevan, the HCAV statement said. A proxy for one of the parties first complained that Antonyan was walking around in the polling station while having a talk on the phone and then insulted her and tried to force the observer to leave the station.

When Antonyan demanded that head of the election commission make a record of the hampering behavior, the official claimed he had not “noticed anything.”