(Summarized from Radio Liberty broadcast, May 3, 2008 and Haykakan Zhamanak, May 2)
These days, the police are busy “inviting” citizens for “chats” in Yerevan and elsewhere in the country.
On the morning of May 3, Anahit Bakhshian, MP of the Zharangutyun party, reported that three citizens were “invited” to the police station of Sebastya-malatya district in Yerevan. The police representative confirmed that they had been “invited” to the police station for having participated in the rallies. Two of the “invitees” were Azadamartiks.
Radio Liberty also reports that Samvel Tateosyan, a member of the People’s Party of Armenia (headed by Stepan Demirjyan), was taken to the police station without a warrant. According to the spokeswoman of the party, Ruzanna Khatchatryan, the police later contacted Tatevosyan’s family and demanded his passport, saying that they planned to charge him with criminal offence.
According to news received by Radio Liberty, a number of residents of Artashad were also “invited” to the police station, but were released after a “chat”.
On a similar note, as reported by Haykakan Zhamanak, on May 1, police telephoned Aida Sartaryan, the wife of HHSH board member Aram Manukyan, and “invited” her for a “chat” at the police station. Ms. Sartaryan refused to “chat”.
On the same day, two young men dressed in civilian clothes appeared at the home of Karen Karapetyan, the leader of the youth wing of HHSH, and told his mother that if her son did not appear at the Kentron police station in Yerevan within one hour, they would arrest her.
Still on the same day, some men identifying themselves as members of the Criminal Division of the Kentron police station, telephoned Gurgen Babikyan, the son of the former president of the National Assembly of Armenia, and “invited” him for a “chat” at the police station. Gurgen Babikyan declined the “invitation” and asked to see a warrant.
[end summary]
I'm confused - how does all this fit in with the PACE recommendations...?
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