“Russian television channels that are broadcasted in Armenia spread propaganda against Armenia, Armenian authorities, and against the changes that took place here. We don’t have any levers or tools to have an affect on this issue. Armenians also form opinions on Russian world politics due to these channels, which results in Armenians having more positive feelings towards the European Union and the USA. This perspective has nothing to do with us, but our citizens have those opinions,” Bright Armenia deputy Arman Babajanyan said in parliament after being invited to speak by the chair of the Commission on TV and Radio, Tigran Hakobyan.
Tigran Hakobyan expressed his agreement with Babajanyan’s worries. “This can only have a legal solution. There is no country in the world that allows foreign television channels to be broadcasted in a foreign language and with political propaganda. Parliament has one year to resolve this. It needs to be recorded that public television channels cannot be broadcasted in Armenia if their content is not translated into Armenian. Children’s educational programs can be translated into Armenian. This problem needs to have a legal resolution in order to prevent any political tensions. Even Russia, a country where many different ethnic groups live, does not have a Belarusian channel, for example. We also have the right to do this without limiting freedom of speech.”
Luiza Sukiasyan
