Against Freedom of Expression: Armenian Media Digest, June 15-21
1. European Court verdict disregarded in Armenia?
The “168 Zham” newspaper made a reference to the first anniversary of the European Court verdict for A1plus TV Company in its June 18 issue. The television company’s representative, lawyer Tigran Ter-Yesayan has particularly told 168 Zham that a year has already passed since the verdict was taken by the European Court, whereas the Armenian authorities haven’t yet implemented the Court’s demands.
According to the lawyer the European Court demands to restore the rights of A1plus, which is impossible because the adopted decisions impede the demand’s realization. Ter-Yesayan has told that the authorities of Armenia via National Assembly have deliberately made an amendment in the law (December 10, 2008), according to which the competition for frequency allocation is frozen until January 21, 2011. Whereas the government reasons the adoption of this item on not holding competition for frequency allocation by the ground that the field of television should pass to digital broadcasting over the next two years, thus it is not reasonable to hold competition for two years.
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