This week National Assembly adopted in first reading the legislative package authored by coalition forces offering changes in the RA Civil, Criminal and Criminal Procedures Codes. Changes concern articles on insult and libel.   

The Parliament has decided to pass them from the criminal law plane to the civil law plane.

By these amendments insult and libel are already deeds punished not by imprisonment but by fines. These changes at first sight suggest mitigation; however, specialists are more concerned with them than relieved.

The idea is acceptable but its application is dangerous: this is almost how specialists express their attitude. No matter how much they try not to ignore the so-called positive tendency of the changes, they cannot keep noticing possible dangers.

The changes will unambiguously work against media outlets. Taking into account Armenian judicial practice it can be assumed that the law will be unambiguously used against independent and especially opposition media outlets.   

Not so unequivocal is the opinion of "Azg" daily editor-in-chief. For some media outlets use of insult and libel is a method of activity and they are often used intentionally, Hakob Avetikyan said talking to us. In this respect, these changes may be necessary. This however does not stop "Azg" editor to say the following:  

"If I answer as an editor, taking account impartiality of out judicial system, I'd say that I'd better go to prison than pay fine because if I go to prison the newspaper will not suffer, but it will go bankrupt due to big fines." 

"Hraparak" editor-in-chief Armine Ohanyan reminded that "the punishment for insult and libel until now was a criminal but not a working norm and in this respect it was less dangerous for media outlets."

However media cannot treat with the same composure prospects of fines of hundred thousands of drams.

"Now that the norm is decriminalized and the responsibility is defined by the Civil Code, it becomes obvious that the danger is growing by the sole reason that for our newspapers financial pressure is a bigger menace than criminal trials."

"Hraparak" editor-in-chief thinks that in the future there will be a big flow of suits demanding to fine media outlets. Hakob Avetikyan predicts the flow will not be big; instead there will be just several tests that will gain the force of precedents.

The draft law also attempts to define what "insult" and "libel" is. All interlocutors think that these notions need a more comprehensive definition, while the present definitions give courts "broad" chances for actions.  

"In Armenia simply false information is often interpreted as libel, and libel is interpreted as false denunciation,' says Aram Abrahamyan and mentions that the suggested draft law also has that discrepancy.

Armine Ohanyan believes definitions are so broad and general that can be used for any undesirable definition in the publication.

"For instance, a caricature can already be considered an insult against a person. And this means that we can get into judicial trouble for any minor cause."

In Hakob Avetikyan's opinion differentiating between deliberate libel and not deliberate one is important especially when there is successful experience of such differentiation in international practice.

I asked how changes in the law will make change the way of working. Aram Abrahamyan, editor-in-chief of "Aravot" daily, says the amendments will not cause too much change in their work "but we will still try to protect ourselves because on the whole they will be interpreted against reporters."

Hakob Avetikyan too is not very concerned: "However I have already instructed the reporters and myself to check our information with the second and if possible third source and also keep recordings for a longer period." 

"Hraparak" daily too has an interesting defense tactics.

"On the one hand I think that reporters need some kind of training. I am consulting with lawyers trying to understand how we can reduce the risks so that we can both express out attitude and not get fined for that." 

Lusine Manukyan

P.S. Though in the past the "libel" and "insult" articles of the Criminal Code were a threat against reporters and media outlets, authorities nevertheless did not put reporters into prison to avoid unnecessary noise. Now after passing the issue to the civil law plane and selecting the fine method, the undesirable (i.e. opposition) reporters or outlets will be regularly summoned to the court to make payments and obedient judges that we all know will fulfill instructions received from above.