Epress.am News from Armenia
Armenian National Congress (HAK) coordinator Levon Zurabyan considers the acts of putting pressure on Nikol Pashinyan to be horrific.
“It shows that the regime is in a panic,” said Zurabyan, while speaking to journalists today.
He also noted that this is not the first time that political prisoners have been pressured. As examples, he cited the Dec. 2008 incidents against Vardges Gaspari, Grigor Voskerchyan and Gevorg Manukyan.
“That time the regime was making an attempt to extort petitions for pardon from them. Today the regime’s political aim is different. They are trying to silence Haykakan Jamanak [“Armenian Times,” the local daily of which Pashinyan is the chief editor],” said the HAK coordinator.
“Naturally, they will not succeed. As much as possible, we are overseeing the situation; we are meeting with local and international organizations. But this struggle should be not just our own, but [it should be] also journalists’ struggle, since, at last count, we are talking about a journalist,” summed up the opposition group member.
Note that on Jan. 19, 2010, the Court of General Jurisdiction in Armenia found Nikol Pashinyan guilty in the mass riots of March 1, 2008, in Yerevan, and sentenced him to seven years’ imprisonment. On Mar. 9, 2010, the Criminal Court of Appeal, by granting Pashinyan amnesty, cut his prison term by half, reports the Yerevan Press Club. Pashinyan is currently serving his term at Kosh penitentiary (in Aragatsotn marz or province).
As previously reported, a dispute between Pashinyan and one of his cellmates took place on Nov. 3. According to Pashinyan, after the verbal skirmish the cellmate attacked him. Meanwhile, during the 15 minutes of the scramble no prison security officers approached them, the journalist noted. This and many other facts indicate the deliberate nature of the incident, stressed Pashinyan.