Armenian opposition activists are freed

On May 26 the Armenian Parliament voted to adopt the bill “On
Amnesty.” The adoption took only a few days. Events developed rapidly.
On May 20 President Sargsyan urged the National Assembly to proclaim
an amnesty to mark the 20th anniversary of Armenian independence. The
very same day the parliamentary committee on state and legal issues
considered the proposal and answered positively. On May 24th the
parliament adopted amendments to the 35th article of the Criminal
Code. The law is directly connected with amnesty and is aimed at
extension of abilities of freeing and reducing the sentence terms for
many categories of prisoner.

The Law Minister, Grajar Tovmasyan, stated that opposition activists
Susan Mikayelyan, Ara Ovannisyan and Nikol Pashinyan will also gain
their liberty. The previous amnesty in 2009 applied to 90% of those
sentenced for the events of March 1st. In 2009 35 opposition activists
were set free, another 20 stayed behind bars. Later, several more
opposition figures were released from custody. At the moment only 6
political prisoners are in Armenian jails.

The amnesty is being widely discussed in Armenian society. The
government representatives consider this step to be an example of the
humanism and tolerance of the president. The amnesty is aimed at
relieving the tense internal political situation.

The opposition sees in the amnesty only political reasons for easing
foreign tensions in the international community.

It is difficult to say how the political processes will develop and if
dialogue between the authorities and the opposition is possible.
However, the amnesty will play a positive role. One thing is obvious,
it is another step toward overcoming the political crisis in the
country.

Susanna Petrosyan, Yerevan. Exclusively to VK.