It would seem that the Armenian authorities are pleased with the recent PACE resolution. The opposition in Armenia has already expressed its dismay regarding the same resolution. The apparent pleasure on the part of the regime can be explained by the attitude “let’s drag things out and see what happens”. The disappointment of the opposition stems from the fact that the term “political prisoners” and other issues were left out of the resolution.

Overall, neither the pleasure of the regime nor the discontent of the opposition can be substantiated. Of all the resolutions adopted by PACE since March, 2008, the latest is the only one which essentially changes the internal political situation in Armenia. If, during the past year, the situation in Armenia was described with the one word, “tense”, then PACE Resolution 1643 underscores the artificiality of that tension.

The latest PACE resolution touches on several important issues a) The investigative Fact Finding Group surrounding the March 1-2 events b) Those charged solely on the basis of police testimony c) The credibility of Articles 225 and 300 of the RoA Criminal Code An observation of this complex of points can enhance the artificiality of the situation if we also take into account the fact that concurrent with the first and third points the authorities are attempting to push through the trial of the “March 1st Seven”.

The Congress welcomes the creation of the Fact Finding Group (FFG) and the participation of the opposition in its work. The Congress also calls for all possible assistance and no impediments to the work of the FFG. In other words, there are expectations that the work of the Fact Finding Group must assist “in the clarification of the circumstances of the arrest, accusations and charges of individuals related to the events of March 1-2”. This means that carrying out a parallel trial is simply ridiculous.

The absurdity grows deeper against the backdrop of the promises given to PACE by the National Assembly president regarding reforms to Articles 225 and 300 of the Criminal Code of Armenia that the “March 1st Seven” had been charged with violating.

The Congress also welcomed this initiative and expressed the hope that the RoA National Assembly, “Would jointly, with the appropriate bodies of the European Council, draft modifications to Articles 225 and 300 of the Armenian Criminal Code to fill in exisiting legal gaps”.

The Congress also points out that, “According to the RoA Constitution, any qualitative change in the law would be retroactive”. This point proves that the promise of the National Assembly president and the expectation of PACE unambiguously relate to the cessation of the ‘politcal vendetta’ noted by Thomas Hammarberg. Even if there wasn’t the deep mistrust regarding native Armenian justice proven by experience, these parallels are fully sufficient in order that the “accused” not stand up in court given that in this situation the real preliminary investigation (Fact Finding Group) and legislative initiative (reforms) will follow the court trial. If the portion of the absurdity linked to the FFG existed as of October 28 of last year, when Serzh Sargsyan signed the decree creating the Group, then before promising to change the articles, the very least that should have been done was to change the pretrial detention measures of the “March 1st Seven”. Let’s say, sending them home after having them sign an affidavit not to flee to wait for a bona fide trial to begin. It’s still not too late today. The authorities can take steps in this direction rather than endlessly dragging out the trial so as to at least confirm that concurrent with carrying out their promised reforms they are not continuing with the practice of political vendetta. In order to forego the aforementioned practice it is necessary to also free all those accused “solely on the testimony of the police without objective corroborating evidence” without further delay given that their cases have nothing to do with either the activities of the FFG nor the articles to be modified. In the Congress resolution there is an unconcealed doubt about political vendetta in their regard, “…The charge(s) levied based solely on police testimony can possibly have political motivations”. It couldn’t have been more clearly stated that the twelve accused individuals, as per the prosecutor’s office, and the thirty-nine, as claimed by the Armenian National Congress (HAK), to this day remain in the status of hostages. For the first time in this PACE resolution, besides the suggestion of a pardon or amnesty, the option of foregoing the charges is also proposed, a move which is viewed as a method to free “those individuals now incarcerated for reasons stemming from the March 1-2 events and for the non-premeditated execution of violent acts”. By underlining the artificial nature of the tension, PACE deprives the Armenian authorities of the possibility of fabricating tall-tales about “complex processes” or  “intervening in the independence of the court” and makes it understood that in this case what is demanded is ‘will’ rather than ‘effort’, and nothing else. By way of objective reality, the “winner-looser” antagonism is also neutralized and this horribly vexes both Serzh Sargsyan and his entourage.