“I MUST RESTORE THE VIOLATED RIGHTS OF PEOPLE WITH THE HELP OF THE AUTHORITIES”, says Ombudsman Lari

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- Was the National Security Service supposed to let you know about the secret shooting of Serob Antinyan and the seizure of the Ombudsman office computer?

- The Criminal Code envisages that he must be caught, but the Law on the Ombudsman says nothing about it. This question is still open, as the Criminal Code envisages punishments for such kind of actions, and the Law on the Ombudsman does not speak about it. As for the seizure of the computer, they ought to have informed me about it. Instead they had written in their message that everyone is equal before the law. Equality is exactly what I am speaking about. That is, I must have been informed about the seizure. And now we are not on equal terms.

- You have mentioned that broadcasting the shootages, they have violated the presumption of innocence. The National Security Service could not but know that. Why do you think they have acted thus?

- The violation of the Presumption of Innocence is already a “norm” in Armenia. This case is not the first. Many people can think that we try to defend our worker. But I speak about the Constitutional norm. I think they do not even realize that they are violating a norm. I am sure of it. This time they have violated it according to their habit. The continuous showing of the footage gave me a hint that there is a tendency to create a negative opinion about our institute. Then we receive the answer of the National TV Company head where he says that they can do whatever they want and we must not correct them. And we are convinced of this not only by the written answer, but also by their actions. There was something terribly unpleasant in their actions. And it does not refer to whether Serob Antinyan is guilty or not. The investigation is going on, and it will find everything out.

- You said they try to compromise the Ombudsman Institute. Who and why tries to do so?

- I cannot say who. If I knew, believe me, I would say the names immediately. In this case the principle of true democracy is put under doubt. This is the first point. The actions f the authorities remind me of the methods of the past. Let us not forget that I must restore the violated rights of people with the help of the authorities. I have that right. That is, I am interested in the executive powers to act right. That is my second concern. And the third is that the Ombudsman Institute is a young structure. There are so many people who call us and say that everything will be all right, and there is no need to worry. But there are also people who may think that we did not manage to do it. I have nothing to say about Serob Antinyan. If he has committed a crime, let him be punished. But anyway, the Institute will suffer too.

Mher Arshakyan