On October 27 in Tsaghkahovit village (Aragatsotn region) the head of Aragats
fire prevention department Gagik Barseghian and his deputy Nraz Aloyan visited
the editorial office of regional “Aragats Ashkhar” newspaper to have a “heart-to-heart
talk” with the Chief Editor Vardevan Grigorian. As a result of a fight that
ensued Vardevan Grigorian was injured, the editorial property was damaged. The
incident was reported to Aragats Department of RA Police.
In the opinion of the edition, the reason for the incident was “The Poor Firemen
Have Nothing” article published in “Aragats Ashkhar”, in which the actions of
the fire force during a fire at a villager’s house were criticized.
As YPC was told by the Chief Editor of the newspaper, the reason for the incident
was “The Poor Firemen Have Nothing” article (“Aragats Ashkhar”, October 1-15,
2004), in which the actions of the fire force during a fire at a villager’s
house were criticized. Vardevan Grigorian also stressed that this was not the
first attack on the editorial office by Gagik Barseghian: it also happened in
July, 1999, after a similarly critical publication on the local fire force.
“Then we displayed generosity and did not get the case to the police, even though
we know that the head of the fire prevention department received an administrative
punishment”, the Chief Editor said.
