Vardan Oskanian, the Prosperous Party MP facing charges of embezzlement, rose in parliament today and charged Prosecutor General Aghvan Hovsepyan with fabricating evidence against him based purely on political motivations.
Several hundred protestors showed up at a demonstration today outside the parliament building in support of former Armenian foreign minister Vardan Oskanian.
ANC MP Nikol Pashinyan stated that Hovsepyan’s motion doesn’t include any information that would back charges that Oskanian has embezzled the funds of another. Furthermore, Pashinyan has charged the Prosecutor General of embezzlement.
The persecution of Vartan Oskanian, former foreign minister of Armenia, is clearly politically motivated.
I have watched as this vital organization has helped shape the course of open discussion and debate within a country I cherish and so proud of. This is why I am so shocked and upset by the current charges that have been brought against Mr. Oskanian.
There will be a demonstration in support of embattled former RA Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian on Monday, October 1 at 11 am outside the Armenian Parliament.
The campaign against Western-backed NGOs is spreading to Armenia, where a former foreign minister is accused of “money laundering” because he accepted contributions from the father of former U.S. presidential candidate Jon Huntsman to support civil-society projects.
The Yerevan Court of First Instance, with Judge Mkhitar Baboyan presiding, rejected the Civilitas Foundation’s complaint requesting that the court require the National Security Service to remove the decision based on which it had initiated a Criminal Case involving the Civilitas Foundation, and its founder, Vartan Oskanian.
Representatives of the National Revenue Service today visited the Civilitas Foundation to present their request for Civilitas’s financial documentation since the Foundation’s establishment in May 2008. This request came on the heels of summons presented by the National Security Service calling members of the Civilitas Board for questioning during the next week.