Armenian authorities are cracking down on opposition activists in what international human rights advocates call a "clumsy attempt" to secure President Robert Kocharian's reelection in a March 5 run-off. The arrests of over 150 opposition supporters have come amid growing complaints about governmental vote-rigging during the initial stage of the presidential election.
Most of those taken into custody are campaign aides of Stepan Demirchian, Kocharian's opponent in the March 5 vote. Officials charged the opposition activists, many of whom were arrested in their homes, under Article 180 of the country's Code of Administrative Violations. The article outlines punishment for those who organize unauthorized public rallies and demonstrations.
Since the first round of voting February 19, Demirchian supporters have staged four largely peaceful demonstrations against what they say was Kocharian's failed attempt to rig the balloting. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archives]. The rallies have attracted tens of thousands of Armenians. Both international and local vote monitors have confirmed that the February 19 voting was marked by widespread ballot-stuffing and other election law violations. [For background see the Eurasia Insight archives].
As of February 28, government sources say at least 89 individuals were sentenced to up to 15 days in jail for committing "hooligan acts" during the rallies. Sixty-nine others have been fined and released. The authorities are refusing to provide details of the alleged crimes, with the Armenian police refusing any comment on the issue. The Justice Ministry stresses only that some of the detainees have a past criminal record.
Addressing a February 26 rally in Yerevan, Demirchian charged that the embattled incumbent is himself "sponsoring criminals" involved in vote rigging. Speaking to journalists earlier in the day, Kocharian insisted that all detainees were guilty of unspecified "criminal acts." The controversy over the arrests prompted Demirchian to decline an offer to hold a live, televised debate with Kocharian before the run-off.
Some opposition activists are reportedly unaccounted for. Two women from the southern town of Armavir told RFE/RL on February 27 that they still do not know the whereabouts of their husbands arrested a week ago. They said police in Armavir and the capital Yerevan ignore their inquiries. Like many of the other detainees, the two missing men Azat Grigorian and Karlos Harutiunian helped direct the operations of Demirchian's local campaign offices across the country.
Opposition leaders say the government's action is aimed at intimidating and paralyzing the Demirchian campaign ahead of the second round. Human Rights Watch (HRW), in a February 27 statement, concurred that the arrests were politically motivated.
"These arrests appear to be a clumsy attempt to disable the opposition in the week before the run-off," said Elizabeth Andersen, HRW's executive director for Europe and Central Asia.
The HRW statement said most of those sentenced to jail terms did not have access to legal representation during their hearings. "Reports suggest police are overstepping all legal boundaries in their hunt for opposition activists," Andersen said in the statement.
Meanwhile, Avetik Ishkhanian of the Armenian Helsinki Committee characterized the arrests as a "blatant violation of the due process of law." Another local rights group, the Armenian Helsinki Association, accused the authorities of pursuing a "policy of terror."
International organizations have also joined in the condemnation of Armenian authorities' conduct, calling for the immediate release of all those in custody. "It is the duty of the authorities to do their best to overcome tensions without resorting to disproportionate means to maintain public order," Peter Schieder, president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), said in a statement in Strasbourg. In addition, the head of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) observers, Peter Eicher, challenged authorities to present evidence of "hooliganism," saying that the opposition rallies have been "essentially peaceful."
The arrests have heightened tension in Armenia, prompting some political commentators to express concern about the possibility of violent confrontations. The pro-Demirchian rally on February 26 in Yerevan threatened to turn violent when riot police, beefed up by barbed wire and water cannons, stopped the protesters from approaching Kocharian's official residence.
Though the stand-off ended peacefully, it rekindled memories of the violent aftermath of the September 1996 Armenian presidential election, when supporters of the then opposition leader, Vazgen Manukian, rioted in protest against vote rigging. The then incumbent, Levon Ter-Petrosian, responded by sending tanks into Yerevan's streets and arresting dozens of opposition activists. Some of Ter-Petrosian's close associates acknowledged afterwards that the vote was falsified.
The Demirchian camp seeks to prevent a repeat of the fraud allegedly committed during the February 19 round of voting. Their chief strategy is to mobilize mass protests against ballot-box stuffing. The leaders of other opposition parties have indirectly aided Demirchian by attacking the legitimacy of the first-round results. Kocharian, in his February 26 television interview, predicted that he would achieve a "convincing victory" in the second round. But some analysts suggest that in winning reelection, Kocharian might well end up presiding over a loss of stability in Armenia.
The ballot-rigging controversy has convinced opposition leaders and their supporters that Kocharian seeks to retain power regardless of the cost, and thus have little faith that the March 5 voting will be free and fair.
Emil Danielyan is a Yerevan-based journalist and political analyst.
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