Media Organizations' Statement on Restrictions and Violence Against Journalists in Parliament

We, the undersigned journalistic organizations, express our deep concern and outrage over the unacceptable situation and processes occurring in the National Assembly in the past two days, particularly regarding the obstruction or illegal termination of work for journalists and operators covering these events.

On August 24, during the session when heated debates among NA deputies turned into a brawl, security personnel forcibly removed media representatives from the designated press area, preventing them from continuing their filming. Journalists and operators faced restrictions even at the entrance to the session hall. Among numerous baseless prohibitions, security personnel threatened operator Hayk Tonoyan of the News.am news site with revocation of his NA accreditation if he continued filming, reportedly deleting footage of the brawl.

Today, on August 25, the same situation repeated: to prevent the recording of the parliamentary brawl, media representatives were again removed from the press area, including through the use of physical force. Their professional activities were unjustifiably prohibited even at the entrance to the session hall.

We assert that the actions being carried out against accredited journalists and operators in the National Assembly are nothing but violations directed against freedom of speech and the public's right to information. They contradict the content and essence of the discussions held between the leadership of the three journalistic organizations—the Committee to Protect Freedom of Speech, the Media Initiatives Center, the Journalists' Club Asparez—and NA President Alen Simonyan on August 23 of this year.

It is undeniable that all citizens of the Republic of Armenia have the right to know how each deputy works and what behavior they display. Moreover, any information regarding the parliament that does not contain state or other secrets should become the property of the public. This can primarily be ensured through the unconstrained activities of the media.

Based on the above, we demand:

1. From the NA leadership: immediately cease the application of violence, pressure, and illegal restrictions against accredited journalists and operators in the parliament, regardless of the events they are covering within their professional obligations.
2. From the NA President: necessarily participate in the discussion of the Standing Committee on Human Rights Protection and Public Affairs set to take place on August 30, which will be dedicated to the aforementioned issues, and accommodate journalists' reasonable expectations as much as possible.
3. From security service employees: do not exceed their authority; refrain from applying unjustified restrictions against journalists and operators working in the parliament, do not present illegal demands, and do not obstruct their professional activities.

INSTITUTE FOR INFORMATION FREEDOM AND SECURITY

COMMITTEE TO PROTECT FREEDOM OF SPEECH

MEDIA INITIATIVES CENTER

JOURNALISTS’ CLUB ASPAREZ

“JOURNALISTS FOR THE FUTURE” NGO

“JOURNALISTS FOR HUMAN RIGHTS” NGO

Goris Media Club

“FEMIDA” NGO.