Ani Samsonyan Files a Report on Criminal Activity

Ana Samsonyan, a member of the 'Enlightened Armenia' parliamentary faction, has announced on her Facebook page that she has filed a report regarding a criminal incident with the Prosecutor's Office.

"REPORT ON CRIMINAL ACTIVITY The Honorable Mr. Davtyan,

On March 11 of this year, a group of individuals known as the 'Guardians of the Revolution' visited a citizen’s workplace and threatened him for insulting the Prime Minister of Armenia (link: https://www.youtube.com/watch). They specifically demanded that the citizen "answer for his statements" and threatened that they would record the encounter. In the video, members of the group also state: 'The Prime Minister of Armenia has never given any instruction to anyone to carry out vendettas, but we, as citizens of Armenia and respecting our Prime Minister, believe that we should respond to such expressions.' At the end, they add that 'this moment should serve as a lesson for everyone' and insist that 'the matter will not end calmly' if the citizen does not comply.

The actions of the aforementioned group contain several offenses prohibited by the Criminal Code of Armenia. Notably, documenting their behavior indicates that the 'Guardians of the Revolution' group has formed based on the convictions and customs of its members, which also dictate their actions. Members of this group, using their unlawful influence, threaten the citizen to perform actions consistent with their proclaimed beliefs.

Moreover, the group members violate Article 162 of the Constitution of Armenia, which states that 'Justice in the Republic of Armenia is administered solely by courts in accordance with the Constitution and laws.' They are attempting to implement 'justice' through their own methods and impose liability.

The 'Guardians of the Revolution' group reserves the right to punish anyone whose behavior does not align with their views. Thus, group members are unilaterally exercising their alleged rights, which overtly contains elements of the crime described in Article 322 of the Criminal Code of Armenia (Self-justice).

Furthermore, such actions apparently also contain elements of the offenses defined by Articles 223.2 and 223.3 of the Criminal Code of Armenia.

Considering the above and based on Point 11 of Part 1 of Article 3 of the 'Regulations of the National Assembly' of the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Armenia, I request that appropriate measures be taken to initiate a criminal case in relation to this incident within the framework of the declared fight against criminal subculture in Armenia.

Respectfully,

Ani Samsonyan, Deputy Chair of the Standing Committee on Human Rights Protection and Public Affairs of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia.