Ladies and Gentlemen,
I appeal to you as the representatives of the leading countries in the field of human rights and freedoms, as well as the safeguards of democracy worldwide. This letter is an attempt to draw your attention to the illegal and criminal situation prevailing in the law enforcement and the judicial system in the Republic of Armenia, as well as to the evident violations and the unprotected status of human rights organizations, defenders and individuals.
Emerging as an initiative group since the beginning of the last year and eventually attaining a legal status as a non-governmental organization,VELES has unfold an active struggle in such dangerous areas, nearly unaddressed by law enforcement, the judiciary and non-profit organizations in our country as the usury, fraud and financial pyramids. While the NGO was registered on Feb. 13 2014, it can already be stated that we have achieved explicit success in our activities winning lawsuits, advocating the pending cases and so on. The organization currently has an active participation in the promotion of dozens of lawsuits of citizens affected by fraud, providing advocacy, psychological support and media coverage.
Since the first years of independence usury and financial fraud have become a constant realm in the socio-economic life Armenia and it can be affirmed, one of the main driving forces of shadow economy, immigration and criminal atmosphere. Our research on current situation resulted in a conviction that these criminal acts are mostly carried out by former and current senior government officials, that, together with criminal elements, abuse their power and connections and have now targeted the numerous citizens of Armenia in an attempt to launder the financial means looted from the state throughout their career and to legalize them by the means of usury.
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One of the most characterizing and alarming cases that includes all the elements of an organized criminal system like usury, fraud, corruption and the legalization of financial means generated through corruption is the group organized by the former Head of Civil Aviation Department of the Republic of Armenia Hovhannes Yeritsyan. It has been operating for about 10 years, but the first complaints were filed in 2008.
The Members of the group are Lusine Ayvazyan (the daughter of Norik A. Ayvazyan, Doctor of Law, Professor, Chair of Constitutional Law of the Faculty of Law of the Yerevan State University), Armenak Dalibaltyan (N. A. Ayvazyan’s son-in-law), Artavazd Ayvazyan (N. A. Ayvazyan’s son, a member of the Chamber of Advocates of Republic of Armenia) the intermediaries, Artak Martirosyan and Vahe Vardanyan (Hovhannes Yeritsyan’s godson), Gagik Galstyan (V. Vardanyan’s uncle), Vardan Ginosyan (a large loan specialist at Converse Bank). The collaborators of the group are the notary of Avan administrative area Nona Gasparyan and several officials at the Compulsory Enforcement Service of Judicial Acts of the Republic of Armenia. Meanwhile, the whole group is under the auspices of several authorities of Police of the Republic of Armenia.
The fraud scheme is always the same: the intermediaries and brokers of the money-lenders find citizens with financial difficulties, who are offered a usury on the conditions of high monthly interest rates (5-10% per month), brokerage (10%), and (as a result of the lack of juridical knowledge) a fictive signing of a sale contract of the real estate and/or small or medium-sized enterprises owned by the victims.
Often it happens that the citizens that apply for a credit at the bank are “skillfully guided” to deal with the criminal group instead, in order to rapidly attain financial means without bureaucratic obstacles.A few months later, the “debtors” are being demanded to repay the principal amount and, in most cases, the overgrown interest rates. In the conditions of insolvency of the “debtor”, the amortization of property occurs seized by the Compulsory Enforcement Service of Judicial Acts.
VELES NGO is committed to providing support to the victims of these manipulations, to raising their legitimate complaints to law enforcement agencies, as well as to vocalizing their causes in high courts and mass media. Therefore its operation is a hindrance to the activities of the above-mentioned criminal group. The organization inputs its all resources to effectively struggle against this type of criminal activity; also, it strives to safeguard the victims from criminal threats, manipulations and deprivation of their property.
As a reaction, the criminal group started to put pressure and file fabricated charges against the head of the NGO in collaboration with the law enforcement and judicial bodies, striving to negatively affect the organization’s activities and it’s authority in the society (on the evidence of this was the fact that drugs were thrown into my car in the spring of this year). Later on, based on a fabricated report made against me by H. Yeritsyan and his affiliates, criminal proceedings were instituted on the attributes of the Part 4 of the Article 182 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia.
Being unable to substantiate and press the fabricated charges, therefore, eventually to institute a criminal case against me, the investigators have arrived into a dead end. I have indirectly been suggested to agree to the dismissal of the criminal case but I have categorically refused to accept such an expression of “good will”. I have demanded for the procedure of the case so that those guilty in false reporting and testimony against me as well as causing moral damage were punished by the virtue of law.
Distrusting the corrupt judicial system and having serious concerns about my physical and legal safety and that of my colleagues, I appeal to you, hoping that after the examination of these facts, you will reach an appropriate conclusion and that you will hedge the impunity of law enforcement agencies through your official position.
I would like to stress that usury, fraud and corruption pose a serious threat not only to the socio-economic development, but also to the democratization and the modernization of our economy, as it contributes to the development of shadow economy, corruption, money laundering and as a result, the growth of pro-poor, suicide and salto immigration rate.
P. S. More information on our activities, the citizens addressing our assistance, criminal charges, lawsuits and their procedures (a report on our activities, applications, court documents, records of conversations, press publications) can be provided upon request.
Marina Poghosyan
President
Veles NGO
