168 Zham newspaper reports that on Friday, April 17 the court of common law of Kentron and Nork-Marash Communities led by judge Armen Khachatryan have decided to fine Gagik Shamshyan, photojournalist of the Aravot (Morning) and the Chorord Ishkhanutyun (Fourth Power) newspapers by 350 000 drams (US$930). He was accused of his impolite attitude towards the court on August 5, 2008 during Smbat Ayvazyan’s trial, member of the political board of the Republican Party.
According to the accusant Gagik Shamshyan has named the judge “calf” or “fool”. Gagik Shamshyan announced he hasn’t used such words and assured he was going to take his claim to the Appeals Court, and in the case of a failure apply also to the European Court of Human Rights. Hetq.am internet periodical(April 13) informs that the criminal case brought before a court on August 11, 2008 on the basis of the attack on Lusineh Baghdasaryan, a journalist from the Haykakan Zhamanak daily (Armenian Times), has been dismissed as the criminals haven’t been revealed.
168 Zham newspaper reports that on Friday, April 17 the court of common law of Kentron and Nork-Marash Communities led by judge Armen Khachatryan have decided to fine Gagik Shamshyan, photojournalist of the Aravot (Morning) and the Chorord Ishkhanutyun (Fourth Power) newspapers by 350 000 drams (US$930). He was accused of his impolite attitude towards the court on August 5, 2008 during Smbat Ayvazyan’s trial, member of the political board of the Republican Party.
According to the accusant Gagik Shamshyan has named the judge “calf” or “fool”. Gagik Shamshyan announced he hasn’t used such words and assured he was going to take his claim to the Appeals Court, and in the case of a failure apply also to the European Court of Human Rights. Hetq.am internet periodical(April 13) informs that the criminal case brought before a court on August 11, 2008 on the basis of the attack on Lusineh Baghdasaryan, a journalist from the Haykakan Zhamanak daily (Armenian Times), has been dismissed as the criminals haven’t been revealed.
According to Hetq the court implementing proceedings has insisted it has done its best, but couldn’t reveal the criminals. Investigator Artashes Hovhannisyan from the investigation department of Nor Nork police office has assured that the case was under upper level state officials’ control. However Hetq has insisted that investigations made by them afford a ground to persist in that the court implementing proceedings hasn’t conducted necessary investigative steps to reveal the crime.
“The reason why the police haven’t answered to our questions and what kind of investigative steps haven’t been implemented to reveal the criminals will be represented in the near future,” promised the newspaper. A1Plus.am informs that on April 10 the court of common law of Kentron and Nork-Marash Communities has delayed the advisement of intercession by lawyer Hovik Arsenyan with regard to dismissal of the criminal case brought before a court towards Gohar Veziryan, reporter from the Forth Power.
Like photojournalist Gagik Shamshyan Gohar Veziryan too has been accused of her impolite behavior towards the court. The event took place on August 6, 2008 during Smbat Ayvazyan’s trial, a member of the political board of the Republican Party. According to A1Plus during Veziryan’s trial prosecutor Levon Charkhifalakyan has read the accusation and the record transcript according to which Veziryan has made a few offensive expressions, particularly “churl”, “small fry”.
In return the reporter has assured that she has used strong language like “5 people are standing over me” and “I don’t want your bacilli cling to me” towards the bailiffs only after they tried to take her out of the court by force. Lragir.am has covered the new legislative initiative on the media by the article ATTACK AGAINST THE OPPOSITION MEDIA this week.
The author Aram Enokyan has called it “authorities-born” considering it to be an imitation of “democratization”. It is about the proposed modifications within the Civil Code according to which penalties admeasured by the items on libel will be increased from 500 000 drams (US$1330) to 2 million drams (US$5330).
According to Enokyan as a result of such modification if the parliamentarians’ or other officials’ nicknames are mentioned in the media and the officials consider it as personal offence then they could appeal to the court and win the case easily. According to Enokyan the same will refer also while assessing their activities: if a journalist or a citizen will try to express an opinion on an official’s dishonest activity unpleasant for the last through the media, then he too could be subjected to a great financial penalty… “Here is the real essence of the “proposal”,” says Enokyan and concludes that the opposition media too will be taken under control as a result of this modification.
Source: JNews.am