Committee to Protect Journalists - Armenia

International reporters denied entry to Armenia

2011-03-15T21:19:41Z

New York, March 15, 2011--The Committee to Protect Journalists is alarmed by Armenia's refusal to allow four reporters with the Finnish public broadcaster YLE to enter the country, and called on the authorities today to allow the journalists to resume their work in Armenia.

Attacks on the Press 2010: Europe and Central Asia Analysis

2011-02-15T05:52:00Z

On the Runet, Old-School Repression Meets New

By Nina Ognianova and Danny O'Brien

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has often talked about the importance of a free press and free Internet, telling reporters before his election that the Web "guarantees the independence of mass media." He explicitly tied the two together in his first State of the Union address in November 2008, declaring that "freedom of speech should be backed up by technological innovation" and that no government official "can obstruct discussion on the Internet."

Attacks on the Press 2010: Armenia

2011-02-15T05:47:00Z

Top Developments
• New broadcast law gives regulators broad powers to revoke TV licenses.
• Gala TV, a rare critical broadcaster, faces array of government pressures.

Key Statistic
1: Number of digital television licenses the government will grant per region. The plan will cut diversity.

As his government strengthened ties with Russia, President Serzh Sargsyan had to quell lingering domestic discontent over electoral fraud and economic woes, particularly in the construction and mining industries. New legislation granted regulators broad new powers to award and revoke licenses, while putting severe limits on the number of provincial broadcast licenses. Self-censorship remained widespread in the media, as lawlessness curbed the activities of journalists, human rights defenders, and opposition leaders.

Armenian activist and editor attacked, placed in strict jail

2010-12-02T21:42:13Z

New York, December 2, 2010--The Committee to Protect Journalists is concerned about reports that Nikol Pashinian, an opposition activist and editor-in-chief of the independent daily Haykakan Zhamanak, was beaten in custody and moved into solitary confinement.

Police in Armenia detain pro-opposition journalist

2010-06-02T21:49:32Z

New York, June 2, 2010—The Committee to Protect Journalists is very concerned that Armenian authorities are detaining Ani Gevorgian, a journalist for the pro-opposition daily Haykakan Zhanamak, after she was arrested on assignment on Monday. Police in the capital, Yerevan, arrested Gevorgian, left, as she was covering a sit-in at Liberty Square being staged by activists with the Armenian National Congress, Anna Akopyan, Haykakan Zhanamak’s director, told CPJ.

CPJ welcomes Armenian vote to decriminalize defamation

2010-05-19T16:16:14Z

We issued the following statement today after the National Assembly of Armenia approved on a second reading the decriminalization of defamation, including libel and insult. If signed into law, the amendments to Armenia’s penal and administrative code will remove imprisonment from the list of penalties for defamation; individuals found guilty of the offense would face a monetary fine as maximum punishment.

Attacks on the Press 2009: Armenia

2010-02-16T05:50:00Z

Top Developments
• Broadcast media controlled by government or its allies.
• Numerous assaults reported, but police do little.

Key Statistic
12: Broadcast license applications filed by independent outlet A1+. None approved.

The nation remained polarized by the fraud-marred 2008 presidential election won by Serzh Sargsyan, with large public protests and violent government reprisals continuing well into 2009. The global economic crisis caused layoffs in the mining industry and a decline in remittances from Russia, heightening public frustrations. The government sought to suppress critical debate over these issues, and journalists faced intolerance, hostility, and violence.

Armenian online editor beaten, hospitalized

2009-04-30T19:57:08Z

New York, April 30, 2009--The Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Armenian authorities to apprehend three assailants who attacked Argishti Kivirian, editor of the independent news Web site Armenia Today. The unidentified men beat Kivirian early this morning, leaving him hospitalized in serious condition, Zhanna Alexanian, president of the Yerevan-based organization Journalists for Human Rights, told CPJ.

Attacks on the Press in 2008: Armenia

2009-02-10T05:50:00Z

Harassment of journalists and self-censorship among the news media intensified before and after a flawed February 2008 presidential election. The countryís authoritarian president, Robert Kocharian, imposed a state of emergency after the balloting to suppress demonstrations and block independent news reporting, a move that allowed him to deliver the presidency to a hand-picked successor, Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan.

Investigative journalist severely beaten

2008-11-19T22:34:56Z

New York, November 19, 2008--The Committee to Protect Journalists condemns the brazen attack on Edik Baghdasarian, the editor of the Yerevan-based online newsmagazine Hetq. Three unidentified men ambushed Baghdasarian on Monday outside his office and badly beat him.

European Court rules in favor of embattled television station

2008-06-19T16:00:00Z

New York, June 19, 2008—The European Court of Human Rights ruled Tuesday that Armenia’s repeated denials of a broadcasting license to the independent A1+ television station violated Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. According to the verdict, the Armenian government must pay the station 20,000 euros (US$31,000) in damages.

Famous for its criticism of Armenian authorities, A1+ was forced off the air in 2002 when the National Committee on Television and Radio—a regulatory body whose members are directly appointed by the president—awarded the station’s frequency to another company. Since then, the agency has repeatedly rejected A1+ applications for a broadcasting license—moves widely viewed as retaliation for the station’s journalism. When local courts dismissed A1+ appeals as unfounded, station owner Mesrop Movsesyan filed an appeal with the Strasbourg-based court in 2004.

Restrictions imposed as president declares emergency

2008-03-03T17:00:00Z

Restrictions imposed as president declares emergency

New York, March 3, 2008—Armenian authorities should immediately lift restrictions on independent news reporting and the censorship of independent news Web sites, steps imposed when President Robert Kocharian declared a state of emergency on Saturday, the Committee to Protect Journalists said today.

Kocharian declared a 20-day state of emergency after clashes between government troops and opposition supporters in the capital, Yereven, resulted in eight deaths and more than 100 injuries, according to international press reports. Protesters claimed that vote-rigging marred the February 19 presidential election that ended in victory for Kocharian’s hand-picked successor, Serzh Sarkisian. Hundreds of troops were deployed in Yerevan to clamp down on the demonstrations. The state of emergency also banned public gatherings, set travel restrictions, and gave police expanded search powers, according to international news accounts.

Editor attacked, beaten

2007-09-15T16:00:00Z

SEPTEMBER 15, 2007Posted October 3, 2007
Ovannes Galagzhian, Iskakan IravunkATTACKED

Two unidentified assailants attacked and severely beat Ovannes Galadzhian, editor of the Yerevan-based newspaper Iskakan Iravunk on September 15 as he was leaving his newsroom at around 7 p.m. The two used metal rods to hit Galadzhian mainly on the head; he was hospitalized.

Attacks on the Press 2006: Countries That Have Jailed Journalists

2007-02-05T16:57:00Z

ALGERIA: 2

Djamel Eddine Fahassi, Alger Chaîne III
IMPRISONED: May 6, 1995

Fahassi, a reporter for the state-run radio station Alger Chaîne III and a contributor to several Algerian newspapers, including the now-banned weekly of the Islamic Salvation Front, Al-Forqane, was abducted near his home in the al-Harrache suburb of the capital, Algiers, by four well-dressed men carrying walkie-talkies. According to eyewitnesses who later spoke with his wife, the men called out Fahassi's name and then pushed him into a waiting car. He has not been seen since, and Algerian authorities have denied any knowledge of his arrest.

Attacks on the Press 2006: Europe Snapshots

2007-02-05T16:33:58Z

Attacks & Developments Throughout the Region