Elections of 2008 like presidential elections in 1996, 1998, 2003 and the constitutional referendum in 2005 were distorted by official competent bodies by using the governmental machine of repressive measures and criminal mechanisms. The data given by NGO observing missions and monitoring, evaluations by the political parties put their candidacy for the presidential elections, and the society itself, that expresses its outburst in the Square of Freedom are the evidence of those distortions. Nevertheless, all these did not get their evaluation by European structures. The evaluation on February 20 given by OSCE/ ODIHR says that "Armenian presidential elections were mostly in line with international commitments" became a card blanch by the governmental authorities for further crimes and for taking actions against the citizens struggling for their rights. So, with such an assessment, the consecutive process of violation of the law by Armenian authorities gets to its logical victory with the assistance of European structures, i.e. "democratic" state with distorted elections. We consider that in this situation the democratic processes are getting to its end in Armenia. Citizens finally are deprived from the most important right of being a citizen, freely expressing his/her thoughts and will. One of the fundamental rights of the citizen to elect the authorities of his/her country has an exclusively declarative character in Armenia. This will is defined and dictated by the government with repressive measures to the society including criminal processes such as taking bribes, blackmail, distortion of votes, misuse of administrative resources, terrorizing, beating etc., which resulted in an unhealthy situation, to which the absence of free media is even more contributing. Moreover, authorities are already justify their repressions against the citizens fighting for their rights. The situation was flowing in the same way as it was in the night of April 13, 2003, when the authorities cruelly broke down the peaceful meeting by beating defenseless people, journalists, members of parliament. In the future the governmental bodies didn't implement their commitment taken against the European council- no one was punished. In this circumstances any public action, efforts directed to the human rights protection become nonsense, meaningless. The letters to law protection bodies are just funny. The only way for the citizen remains civic recalcitrance and complaints, the vivid example of this are rallies in Liberty Square. We under signed, with all responsibility declare that the process of Presidential elections in Armenia went through the way of criminal in all its stages. This is for the benefit of the Armenian society to implement the right to express its freely will by the process of election, independently from the political orientation. Today's public complaints could not be considered as a pure political struggle or coup de tate, that is civil action against violated rights, for the establishment of the real democracy. From now on RA Citizen does not have any alternative but struggling. In the means of protesting the citizens are free but the responsibility for its consequences lays on the provoking the situation authorities of the RA and their supporters, including European structures. We demand from the mission:

  • Thoroughly investigate facts of infringements with the participation of NGOs and political parties, to reconsider the assessment;
  • To use all possible tools to keep the authorities of the RA away from the implementing repressive mechanisms of the army and police.

Huys NGO
Helsinki Citizens' Assembly of Vanadzor
Mijnaberd NGO
Transparency International, Armenia
Asparez Journalists' Club
Lawyers for human rights
Lala Aslikyan, citizen
Gayane Shagoyan, citizen
Zhanna Alexanyan, journalist
Harutyun Simonyan, citizen