Journalists Should Wear Badges to Avoid Such Incidents, Says CP Deputy

The operator was without a badge, and the police practically have no means of identification. This was stated today, April 30, during a conversation with journalists in the National Assembly by Arthur Hovhannisyan, the secretary of the "Civil Contract" faction, regarding the incident of violence against an operator by police in Tavush.

In response to a comment that the operator claimed to be a journalist, the CP deputy replied, "Saying does not equal proof; many people can make many claims. Should the police identify a person without a badge just based on their word? This means that when conducting operations, the police should ask everyone, 'Who are you, excuse me, can I take you into custody?' Of course not. Journalists and operators conducting activities in a given area should wear badges to avoid such incidents. If there is an exceeding of service authority, then there is a legal process; let a service investigation be initiated."

When asked what he would do if he saw a journalist declaring, without any evidence, that they are an agent of a certain country receiving millions of dollars to engage in some processes, he responded, "I definitely will not hit the journalist in the jaw. If I understand that you are slandering or insulting me, I will go to court. I will not hit anyone in the jaw," he said.

It is noteworthy that on April 27, masked police stopped a vehicle transporting media workers on the Ijevan-Kirants highway in Tavush, took them out, knocked NewDay.am operator Janibek Khachatryan to the ground, handcuffed him, and attempted to take him into custody.

In a conversation with journalists, he also stated that the processes involving clergymen are considered actions against Armenia’s statehood. "There are attempts to drag Armenia into war, to invite saviors in, turning Armenia into a service area for third countries again. The four Azerbaijani villages are the last arguments for Azerbaijan to conduct a legitimate attack against Armenia, and everyone knows very well about this. This process aims to draw Armenia into military operations in the context of these four villages, after which we all know what consequences could arise," said Hovhannisyan.

In response to a comment that after the processes of delimitation and demarcation, there is no guarantee that there will be no war, Hovhannisyan replied, "There is no guarantee that will assure us 100 percent. We are talking about reducing escalation risks, fixing the state borders of Armenia, and not giving anyone the legitimate right to attack us."