Mother of Newborn Baby Detained for 3 Months

Armenian National Assembly member Elinar Vardanyan stated: “This woman, a mother of three children (the youngest being eight months old), is charged under Article 470 of the Criminal Code of Armenia for assisting in illegal migration. After being interrogated as a witness for almost a year regarding the translation, she, as my legal colleagues understand, has become a defendant. The case is currently in the preliminary trial stage. The court has chosen house arrest as a measure of restraint; however, since the woman lives in a rented house, the landlord has refused to allow her to serve house arrest in the property. Instead, the court has decided to detain her for three months. Now this woman will have to be transferred to a detention center with her eight-month-old baby, as there is no one to care for the child. An important detail is that the other defendants in the case are not in custody.

Now I have a question for the judge Arshak Matevosyan, who made the detention decision: do you know what humanitarianism is? The internal conviction provided for by the Criminal Procedure Code is also designed for you to remain a little human. Justice and fairness also imply a measure of humanitarianism.”