On September 5 “Asparez” Journalist’s Club of Gyumri released a statement saying that the investigation division of Shirak region of the Chief Investigation Department of the RA Police is unable to disclose the crimes against the journalistic association. As it has been reported, in the morning of January 19, 2008 an attempted arson of “Asparez” office was made (see YPC Weekly Newsletter, January 25-31, 2008). Two months later, in the morning of March 21, 2008 the Opel Vectra car, owned by the President of “Asparez” Nadezhda Hakobian and used at the moment by the Chairman of the Club Council Levon Barseghian, was set on fire (see YPC Weekly Newsletter, March 21-27, 2008).
After the car arson, the statement of “Asparez” says, the police jointed the two incidents into one case and “for about 6-8 months is unsuccessful in trying to identify the offenders”. Meanwhile, the statement goes on to stress, the journalistic association conducted its own investigation and, having compared the information from various sources, all the circumstances, concluded that the two crimes “were committed upon the order (wish) of the same person”. Besides, the Chairman of “Asparez” Council Levon Barseghian knows who the initiators and other accomplices are, at least 4 people. Yet from now on Levon Barseghian refuses to impart any information to the law enforcement bodies, since neither they nor the judicial system in the country “act and in reality protect the interests of the society and citizens”. “For example, in Armenia none of the three dozens of similar crimes against journalists and media are disclosed”, the statement of “Asparez” Journalist’s Club of Gyumri stresses.
