SOS

Anush Ghavalyan is subjected to political persecutions

Anush Ghavalyan was born in 1972. She is a widow who is a guardian of unemployed mother and two children under age. She has been under arrest since March 21, 2008 till now. Anush Ghavalyan is a waitress in the Pizza de Roma café. She is accused by the 2nd  part of 205 article of the RA Criminal Code, i.e. avoidance of paying charged taxes, duties or other obligatory payments.  The case is under investigation.

There is no well-founded evidence that Anush Ghavalyan has committed crime. She is a waitress and cannot be accused of the crime committed by a person-in charge.

Besides, all the mediations of advocates for not applying the arrest against Anush Ghavalyan were rejected. It is not pointed out and there is no base of how the person, who looks after three people, can avoid investigation and commit a new crime in the decision to reject.

Anush Ghavalyan claims that the officials carrying out the investigation are trying to force testimony out of her while promising to set her free instead. Anush Ghavalyan works at one of the Pizza de Roma cafés which is owned by Khachatur Suqyasyan who is under political persecution now. At the same time for over 6 months the director/manager of the chain of cafés has been accused of avoiding paying taxes. Officials carrying out the investigating, through forcing out testimony, are trying to obtain necessary proof to put charge against the above-mentioned people. 

We demand to set free Anush Ghavalyan immediately and put end to her political persecution.

We appeal to everyone to support Anush Ghavalyan.

Initiative group:

Zaruhi Postanjayn, MP 091 40-39-00

Seda Melikyan, "Lawyers for Human Rights" NGO

Silva Vardanyan, "Zartonq 89" NGO

Gohar Armenakyan, "For the Protection of Soldiers' rights" Initiative group of Mothers

Lala Aslikyan, citizen 093-447643, lalakap2000@yahoo.com

Blog on Armenian Political Prisoners (only in Armenian yet) :  http://qbhima.blogspot.com 

APPEAL TO THE PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY

OF THE COUNCIL OF EUROPE

(April 17 plenary session)

We, the undersigned Armenian Non-Governmental Organizations, call upon the deputies of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe to adopt a resolution that will contribute to the resolution of the gravest political crisis in the history of modern Armenia.

The current crisis began following the large-scale falsification of the 19 February, 2008 presidential election by Armenia’s current authoritarian regime. Electoral violations included the systematic beating and intimidation of proxies of the main opposition challenger, Levon Ter-Petrossian, the intervention, in coordination with the police, of criminal gangs in the electoral process, ballot-stuffing, vote-buying, multiple voting, flawed counting and tabulation processes, and refusals to register or consider the appeals of Ter-Petrossian’s team by electoral commissions at all levels.