ANNOUNCEMENT
On August 15 of 2009, Mariam Sukhudyan, an activist from our group, was charged with false denunciation based on lucrative motives. We believe that no objective and fair investigation of the case is being conducted. For that we have the following grounds.
In November 2008, "Hailur" TV program on Public TV broadcasted two video materials, where female students of boarding school N11 told about them being sexually abused by the teacher of Armenian language at the same school. Later on, during an interrogation at Erebuni district police, one of the girls backed down over the information she had provided. However, the police did not in any way assess the claim of the second schoolgirl, which confirmed the information about sexual abuse.
The term for starting a criminal case was violated (3 months instead of 10 days.)
The fact that the video material was prepared by Syuzan Simonyan, "Hailur" reporter, at her own initiative, rather than at suggestion of Mariam Sukhudyan, was not taken into account.
Mariam Sukhudyan provided the video recording of her interview with the first schoolgirl only at the request of journalist Syuzan Simonyan, which happened in the presence of not only Mariam, but also other members of our group, as well as Lena Nazaryan, journalist from "Hetq" newspaper.
The indictment is based on an allegation that Mariam had lucrative motives, which is not true, as Mariam Sukhudyan was the responsible person for implementation of the "Ten Best Schools" project in the boarding school N11, and as such was accountable to the organization that was financing the project - UNDP for implementation of activities approved by it and for costs incurred for that purpose. All of these responsibilities were carried out properly and in a timely manner. At the same time, the headmaster of the school had impeded the course of the project and refused to provide the project funds to the volunteers even in several installments.
We believe that the charges brought against Mariam Sukhudyan are ill-grounded and that the true purpose of the criminal prosecution against her is to suppress the public activism of our group.
Teghut Forest Preservation Group
MORE THAN POPE OF ROME…
There was a man called Balthazar Cosa in the 15th century Rome. His sentence was comprised of 74 points, 20 of which were not published, because the crimes the man had committed were too heinous. That man had molested three of his sisters, and the oldest one was 12. Nothing saved that man from his sentence, neither wealth, nor his unlimited power all in Europe. Balthazar Cosa, who was the 23rd Pope of Rome, has been judged and sentenced, just as any other man would be for the same crime. As you can see, child molestation has never been forgiven to anybody even in middle ages.
Therefore, it is not surprising, that there is criminal law against it. However, what is happening today, makes us feel dismayed.
The Union of Experts expresses its concern about charging Mariam Sukhudyan with libel. We express our support to Mariam and we ask all moral people to express their views on child sexual abuse. Otherwise,
it looks like we are more than Pope of Rome...
P.S. In all this story I would like to thank the girls in the Noubarashen boarding school for not being afraid to speak out, and by that preventing such things from happening in the future, and Haylur for airing the footage.
The case provoked against Mariam Sukhudyan proves, that in recent years the democratization processes in the Republic of Armenia continue to record alarming steps backward, about which HIMA youth initiative warned numerous times. Moreover, the most alarming is the fact that instead of revealing the real criminals, the RA law enforcement authorities have adopted and are “successfully” implementing a program of making a target for police and prosecutor general’s office of those who are raising an issue about the crime or those who are struggling against it, thus provoking artificial cases against these people. One of the most recent and vivid examples is the criminal case provoked against Mariam. Another artificial criminal case provoked against our friend Tigran Arakelyan just one month before. It is also alarming that the regime chooses especially young people as its targets. The fact that the ruling regime already decided for itself how Mariam Sukhudyan's investigation will end proves the thoughts made public during press conference by Chief of the RA Police Alik Sargsyan. “She made a baseless accusation, false crime reporting about the innocent people and induce the under aged to make these punishable actions”,- said he about Mariam’s crime. The criminal case is still in the process, but this position holder standing in the top of law enforcement authorities, without taking into account the presumption of innocence, speaks about Mariam's case in such a way as if the court adopted its decision to admit Mariam guilty just an hour ago!
Youth Initiative “HIMA” announces its support to Mariam Sukhudyan, who is widely known with her active participation in different improvement processes taking place in our society, and demands from respective authorities to stop all artificial criminal cases and to punish the real criminals. The initiative also declares that will use all possible legal means to clean up the law enforcement bodies from this deficient phenomena and illiterate “professionals”.
Young artists call to defend Mariam Sukhudyan
A group of young artists sent a letter to the RA President, RA Prime Minister, UN HR Defender, representatives of European Council and European Union calling them to defend young activist Mariam Sukhudyan.
In the letter it is said:
“We, a group of RA artists, express our deep disappointment about permissiveness and unlawful situation in the country, where criminal cases are provoked against innocent people.
The next victim is RA citizen, an activist of “SOS Teghut” youth green movement Mariam Sukhudyan, the provoked indictment against whom we consider to be baseless <…>.
We are concerned about the destinies of citizens of our country and declaring, that today everyone's security is threatened.
Mariam Sukhudyan today is appeared to be on the chair of accused for supporting helpless children and raising their voices. Tomorrow each of us who would dare to speak out the truth can appear on the same chair.
We express our concern about not professional, unresponsive work of the law enforcement bodies. Such widely known cases are processed with numerous gross errors, which Sukhudyan's advocate announced several times.
We, undersigned below demand thorough investigation of abovementioned case: Real guilty ones should get their punishment.
Nanor Petrosyan
Hasmik Simonyan
Anahit Hairapetyan
Gagik Ghazare
Vahram Akimyan
Lusine Mirzoyan
Tigran Khachatryan
Marianna Vardanyan
Mikael Mkrtchyan”
SUPPORTING MARIAM |
We, young citizens of the Republic of Armenia, call on the state bodies of the Republic, expecting corresponding response regarding the groundless accusation against Mariam Sukhudyan. We also inform all those, who persecuting Mariam Sukhudyan aim at preventing the civil and human right activities of the Armenian youth, that all these will lead to a new, more powerful movement – in sake of all the mariams and fair Armenia. We call on the RA President, Prime Minister, President of the National Assembly to make a public speech in defense of Mariam Sukhudyan and all the young active citizens, who do not leave their homeland, but strive for vulnerable and those in need, who strive for having legal and fair Armenia. Your silence will be taken as a direct consent and support to hiding the crime and to the self-willed actions of the Erebuni Investigative Unite of the RA Police. Signed by several dozen of young people |
