The Human Rights Defender's Office has examined
the circumstances of the incident that took place today in the cafe between the
Minister of High Technological Industry Hakob Arshakyan of Armenia and the
journalist Paylak Fahradyan.
In addition, a
private conversation took place with journalist Paylak Fahradyan who insisted
that the minister insulted him, made threats, used violence against him, broke
the computer and damaged the phone. He informed the Defender's staff, that
before using violence against him, he approached the minister and asked
questions about what the minister was doing during working hours in the cafe.
The Defender's staff
also had a private conversation with journalist Tatev Ayvazyan, who noted that she
was in the same cafe with Paylak Fahradyan and heard the minister threatening
his colleague, as the minister had also cursed him after the incident of
violence.
According to P.
Fahradyan and T. Ayvazyan, the minister knew that they were journalists.
The Defender’s staff
also examined the published videos of the incident and subsequent publications
on the journalist's behaviour.
The Human Rights
Defender specifically emphasises that the professional activities of
journalists are protected by law.
In any case, the
minister had no right to use violence against a citizen.
The minister's behaviour
is most reprehensible when he was aware that he was being questioned by a
journalist, and he is using violence against the journalist.
As an important
circumstance, the Human Rights Defender considers the necessity to
differentiate, that the journalist approached a high-ranking public official,
the Minister, in a public place, not in a private one where the incident of
violence took place.
The Officials,
especially high-ranking officials must show tolerance in all cases, when
journalists ask unpleasant questions, or when they show a critical attitude
towards them.
Any person who
occupies a public function has an exhaustive framework of authority and is
limited within his legal status.
There can be no
justification for violence used against a journalist carrying out his
professional activities by an official. Any issue, whatever
it may be, must be resolved solely within the framework of due legal process by
the competent authorities.
In connection with
the incident, the Human Rights Defender's Office will send a letter to the
Prosecutor General's Office.
Currently,
the Defender's Office has registered that the Prosecutor's Office of Armenia
has sent the publications on the incident to the Special Investigation Service.
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