Statement

On August 27, 2009, the employees of the service of Compulsory Enforcement of Court Decrees and the employees of Police and the municipality performed unlawful actions while operating their functions in Vardanants and Spandaryan streets of Vanadzor.

In particular:

• The employees of the service of Compulsory Enforcement of Court Decrees hindered the work of the representative of HCA Vanadzor and the journalist of “Aravot “ daily Larisa Paremuzyan. They threatened the employee of HCA Vanadzor to take the camera. They pulled Larisa Paremuzyan by the hand, took her camera and deleted all the photos in it.

• The employees of the service of Compulsory Enforcement of Court Decrees of Yerevan performed violence against the citizens: they have beaten a young woman and knocked her down with her 5-month child.

• The employees of the service of Compulsory Enforcement of Court Decrees have forcedly taken an elderly woman out of her flat, then have taken her to the police department and only after the talk with the chief of police they have let her go

• The inventory of the things in the houses that were being demolished was done without the presence of the owners: they have not been allowed to enter their houses

• The workers of the municipality have taken out the belongings of the citizens carelessly and removed them to Leningradyan area of temporary dwelling places against the residents’ will.

On the same day three residents of the area of temporary dwelling places informed the prosecutor of Lori region about the illegal actions.

We assess this kind of actions as illegal, as abuse of position accompanied by violence, and a fact of inhibiting the work of journalists, we demand that RA prosecutor general should examine the above mentioned illegal actions of the special group of the service of Compulsory Enforcement of Court Decrees and call them to liability.

HCA Vanadzor
27.08.2009