Head of the Special Investigative Service and the Prosecutor General Must Resign: Arpine Hovhannisyan

In an interview with NEWS.am regarding the trial of former President Robert Kocharyan and other former officials, former Deputy Speaker of Parliament and lawyer Arpine Hovhannisyan shared her views.

As a lawyer, how do you evaluate the trial of former President Robert Kocharyan?

It is very important to note one aspect when discussing this trial. The political nature of the case, its subtext, and its foundations are evident, but there is a very important 'but.' Even from a legal standpoint, we must address a crucial question concerning the absence of legal grounds. Do we want to close the page on March 1, or do we want any subsequent government to raise this issue and continue the cheap process of gaining political dividends? Do we want definitive answers to these questions, or do we want a process that satisfies the current political authority's whims or the public's desires? Is it not possible that the decision made today may not satisfy public demands in the future, and will we again seek scapegoats in a new vicious cycle? This question can only be resolved if the element of law is purely present in this case and not politics. Unfortunately, what we see now is purely political, and the existing legal part is being implemented in a way that raises minimum astonishment, leading one to think that the legal system in the country is in a state of crisis.

Have you followed the trial today?

Yes. The trial has just begun, but one after another, grave mistakes are being made by the preliminary investigation bodies regarding the outcome of the case. Today, Hayk Alumyann announced that aside from Arshak Karapetyan, who, by the way, is a consultant to the Prime Minister, no other testimonies have been submitted to the court. Or the investigator and prosecutor are hiding from the case materials a letter from the NSS addressed to the police, which is crucial for resolving the case. This letter itself contains signs of an apparent crime. It was not discussed during the consideration of the detention motion or the extension of the detention period. The question arises: why? What are you not confident about? If the case is so sound, the detention as well, why are you hiding most of the testimonies or important documents? After all this, the head of the Special Investigative Service and the Prosecutor General should perhaps resign because they fail to fulfill the political agenda and mandate number one, thereby harming both Nikol Pashinyan and the country. How can we speak of a comprehensive and fully objective investigation if only part of the necessary documents is submitted to court? The question arises: what do the head of the Special Investigative Service or the Prosecutor General fear, that only part of the documents is presented in court, or are they not ensuring that they are presented at all? Perhaps it is because most of the testimonies do not stem from Nikol Pashinyan’s political vendetta, or is it because the Prime Minister has been presented with one situation, but the actual situation is different? It is time for the Prosecutor General and the head of the Special Investigative Service to explain to Nikol Pashinyan why they are failing the case due to their legal errors. By the way, regardless of the opinions of myself or other lawyers regarding the presence or absence of the professional capabilities of the head of the Special Investigative Service and the Prosecutor General, this is a government, and they are responsible officials. By the way, to those who are most honest, there is a question: what exists regarding the criminal case initiated about wiretaps? What have the heads of the NSS and the Special Investigative Service said? Have you interrogated them?

Furthermore, it would have been better if, before issuing the announcement for the 'trial of the century,' the Prosecutor General had responded to allegations against him made years ago by Nikol Pashinyan when he was still an opposition MP.

Yesterday, minors participated in a protest outside the Yerevan Court of General Jurisdiction, effectively becoming embroiled in hate speech (they were holding placards with phrases such as 'Life Sentence,' 'Rob is a Murderer,' 'Rob Killer,' 'Dukhov,' and others).

The assessment of this is one: it is unacceptable to involve children in such processes. I do not want to discuss the maturity of these teenagers, but a healthy environment cannot exist in the country if 14-15-year-old children are involved in protests related to political trials. This case requires not a piecemeal reaction from certain MPs but a response from the highest political leadership of the country and the responsible officials in the sector.

Former and current presidents of Artsakh Arkadi Ghukasian and Bako Sahakyan have submitted personal guarantees to the court regarding the release of Armenia's second president, Robert Kocharyan. What course do you think this will take?

It is noteworthy that it is precisely the President of Artsakh, Bako Sahakyan, and Arkadi Ghukasian who have provided the guarantee. This guarantee once again assures that Robert Kocharyan will not evade the investigation and that even without being in detention, he will fully participate in the trial. I hope that the court, considering the busy schedules of Presidents Sahakyan and Ghukasian, will find a more flexible way to present these guarantees in court, for example, via video conference, so that the examination of the guarantee does not depend on their presence or absence in court. By the way, the prosecution again faltered in providing justifications for the detention, as there was no factual data or evidence other than the legal definitions from the Criminal Procedure Code.

Your assessment of the missing documents from the NSS? Do you think it is possible to uncover the actual events through an internal investigation?

We will live and see. It is obvious that Pashinyan did not announce this matter randomly and precisely at this stage. We will soon know whom he wants to blame or what he wants to clean up.