HRW welcomes release of “Constituent Parliament" activists

The international organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) has treated the decision of Armenian authorities to release the activists of the "Constituent Parliament” as a right step.

On April 7, on suspicion of preparing mass disorders, Armenian authorities arrested the following activists of the movement named the "Constituent Parliament": the leader of the movement Zhirayr Sefilyan and activist Gevorg Safaryan, the deputy chairman of the movement Varuzhan Avetisyan and activist Pavel Manukyan, as well as the chairman of the movement Garegin Chukaszyan. All of them were charged with preparing mass disorders; and searches of their homes and of the office of the oppositional movement revealed weapons.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on May 4 the spokesman of the General Prosecutor’s Office of Armenia said that all the five arrested activists of the "Constituent Parliament" had been released under recognizance not to leave.

In its statement, the HRW has reminded that on April 27 they sent a letter to the General Public Prosecutor expressing their concern about the allegations and called to release the activists, the “Armenia Today” reports.

Now the Armenian authorities should ensure that the charges had not been put forward through the violation of the right to the freedoms of expression and assembly, said Georgy Gogiya, the HRW’s representative for Southern Caucasus.

It should be noted here that representatives of the "Constituent Parliament" have declared their intention to continue their political struggle.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.