On February 28, Helsinki Association presented the report of 2010 on Human Rights which stated the grave violation of human rights and fundamental freedoms.

Such issues as conscience, belief, freedom of speech, rights of peaceful assembly, torture, the situation in prisons, justice system are all included in the two-volume report. A separate appendix is devoted to Vahan Khalafyan, who died in the Police Department of Charentsavan in April 2010.

Various violations have been recorded by the Helsinki Association in all above mentioned areas.   But Chairman Michael Danielyan said that the situation is especially worrying in terms of the courts, torture, and murders registered in the army.

"Investigative agencies are cooperating with medico-judicial centers performing an examination. A great attention should be paid to the medico-judicial examination: they hide everything starting from there", said Danielyan.

He suggested to exclude the army service of citizens of the Republic of Armenia in the territory of Nagorno Karabakh and to create a professional army, to avoid the incidents taking place in the army, while he will present other proposals later in a separate report.

"Artik" is the only building which can be presented as a penitentiary. In other penitentiaries the situation is shameful", mentioned Monitor Program Manager Arsen Babayan, adding that if they previously said that a major repair is necessary, then, now they think that those penitentiaries that appear to be in poor conditions should be destroyed and new ones should be built.

Some detentions are deprived even of elementary conditions. As Arsen Babayan noted, even people working there are in poor conditions: the salary is very low, they are not provided with facilities to be nourished and have a rest. And Michael Danielyan considers the situation in prisons as "a torture and ill-treatment".

According to the report, violence against journalists, pressure on mass media and limitations of information dissemination and information receipt has been recorded in 2010. On the other hand, the Chairman of the Helsinki Association mentioned that journalists are intolerant with minorities, they publish materials in which discrimination toward especially Jehovah's Witnesses and sexual minorities are obvious.

Human rights organization recorded that the authorities ignore 2008-2009 CEPA report about Armenia on implementing the requirements of the 4 resolutions.

The report was sent to the President, the Chief Prosecutor, Justice and Defense ministers, the prefect, though Michael Danielyan does not expect any response. "They do not even respond to the decisions of CEPA (Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly), so what else are you talking about?"

Mary Alexanyan

Source: www.hra.am