Estimation by human rights defender Arthur Sakunts on the crime committed in Gyumri
“No need to divert public attention from original matter to ethnic affiliation of the one performing atrocities,” said the Head of Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor office, also human rights defender Arthur Sakunts in the interview with “Aravot”. The matter is about the crime committed yesterday in Gyumri, where the Avetisyan family members were severely killed. The crime suspected is a Russian military base servant, Russian by nationality Valery Permyakov.
The qualities around the suspect in Armenian public estimates are more concentrated on his nationality of being a Russian. “Frankly speaking, there are always some groups in our society, who quality this type of crimes as ethnic affiliation. I imagine if the criminal were a Turk by ethnic affiliation, what shades they would have given to it, – says Arthur Sakunts and adds, – It is wrong to evaluate the perpetrator by national, ethnic or religious affiliation, it pursues the goal of manipulation.”
Mr. Sakunts emphasizes that the problem should be looked for in somewhere else. “We have a Russian base with which many crimes are associated: removal of Armenian citizens’ property through the Armenian-Turkish border, removal of fifty big cattle that were taken to Turkey and lost from there. This case was not properly investigated. When the soldiers of the Russian base have come out, there were shots and people were killed, this incident has not yet been disclosed. There is also a hypothesis that perpetrator killing the Lori Marz Prosecutor, according to the description, was blonde and so on and so forth and can be from the Russian base. Also, the death of the minor children from the mines left after the exercises… there was no proper investigation at that time too. The behavior of Russian border guards against the same Zaruhi Postanjyan, which also failed to become a subject for investigation… These are crimes whose perpetrators are not disclosed, and have direct connection with the Russian base. Or, pertaining to today’s incident; I learned that the soldiers of the Russian military base participate in Gyumri operative investigation works. It’s unheard of. By what status do they participate in it? Who has given the right for the Russian Army armed soldier leave the base and participate in investigation of the other country?” says Arthur Sakunts.
Read also
He is convinced that these problems are caused by lack of proper control by the Armenian government authorities over the Russian army. “Monitoring and control over the Russian Army by the authorities of Armenia, I can tell, is very weak. We have very little information on Russian base. What statutory relations do they have? What provisions? This means that the control over them is very weak. Armenian authorities should so intensify their claims against the Russian base that they will also intensify their claims for their subordinates. But now, I see that the same Russian military base soldiers participate in search and rescue works with Kalashnikov submachine. What is the guarantee that one of them would not fire? – says Arthur Sakunts and re-emphasizes that the perpetrator’s ethnic affiliation has nothing to do with the crime, and there is no need to divert people’s attention from the major task. – The Russian base perpetrator could be not an ethnic Russian, but a Bashkir, Chechen, or even an Armenian.”
HRIPSIME HOVHANNISYAN
