In 2003, presidential and parliamentary elections dominated Armenia’s
political scene. Though President Robert Kocharian managed to retain power, tens
of thousands of demonstrators angered by widespread electoral fraud took to the
streets in protest before the March runoff, calling for his resignation.



While state television did not cover the mass rallies, it did broadcast one
unprecedented event on the eve of the second round of voting: a live debate
between the two presidential candidates. Though this was seen as a positive
sign, the runoff was marred by fraud, according to U.S. and Western observers.



There were several blows to media freedom in 2003, starting with an April
amendment to the Criminal Code making libel a criminal offense punishable by up
to three years in prison. The new code also carries harsher punishments for
insulting government officials. More disturbing, in December, Parliament passed
a new bill that requires media outlets to disclose their sources of information
in closed court hearings if it is determined to relate to national security.



But the biggest threat to media freedom was the continued ban on the independent
television station A1+. In a country where 85 percent of the population receives
its news from television, the A1+ case has become a touchstone for press
freedom. Known for its professional standards and harsh criticism of the
government, A1+ was yanked off the air in April 2002 in the country’s first ever
frequency tender, a government procedure that allows for broadcast licenses to
be issued (or, in this case, reissued) in an allegedly fair and free process. In
an attempt to silence A1+, the president had stacked the National Council on
Television and Radio, the government body that oversees broadcast frequencies
and licenses, with loyalists who rejected the station’s application.



A1+ made several attempts to regain its frequency in a series of tenders, but
the government’s Broadcasting Commission repeatedly rejected the station’s bid
in favor of outlets owned by supporters of the president. The first tender of
2003, scheduled for January, was postponed, preventing viewers from accessing
A1+ before the presidential elections. While the Broadcasting Commission cited
financial concerns and technical reasons for repeatedly rejecting A1+’s bid,
many believe that the order came directly from Kocharian.



Armenia’s print media enjoy relative freedom but are largely controlled by
political parties and wealthy businessmen, which dampens outlets’ objectivity.
The print press is also plagued by low professional standards. According to IREX
ProMedia, a U.S.-based media training organization, journalists in Armenia often
take bribes for writing articles.



Meanwhile, the ongoing investigations and trials in two high-profile murder
cases captivated the country. In December 2002, the head of Armenian Public
Television (APT), Tigran Nagdalian, was shot dead in the capital, Yerevan. A
loyal supporter of Kocharian, Nagdalian had been scheduled to testify in the
other prominent murder case: the trial of six men accused of gunning down eight
high-ranking politicians in Parliament in 1999.



The two cases were linked by political intrigue and speculation. Some families
of those murdered in Parliament suggest that Nagdalian was killed because he had
information about Kocharian’s involvement in the murders. The presidential
administration countered with the theory that the opposition killed Nagdalian
because he had used his job at APT, the country’s most watched TV station, to
promote Kocharian and marginalize his rivals. Several months after the murder,
the younger brother of a political rival of Kocharian’s was arrested for hiring
a gunman to kill Nagdalian. Opposition members have condemned the arrest as
politically motivated.