Armenia’s Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) calls the charges levied against former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan in conjunction with the March 1, 2008 public protests as “deeply troubling” and “legally ridiculous”.

Kocharyan, Armenia’s second president, has been charged with “usurping state power” in an attempt top quash public protests following the contested February 2008 presidential election.

The RPA, in a statement released today, says the charge leads one to believe that Kocharyan is being politically persecuted by the new Armenian government.

“We regard the situation as a threat to the development of democracy in Armenia and a blow to the processes of building a true legal state. The politically motivated criminal case that has been launched  and the charge levied threaten the constitutionality of the Republic of Armenia,” reads the RPA statement.