17:00, 25 July 2009

Imprisoned oppositionist in Armenia develops health problems

The health of Tigran Arakelian, arrested member of opposition Armenian National Congress (ANC), is exceedingly grave, he needs serious treatment, claims his lawyer Vardui Elbakian. The oppositionist has been in prison hospital for 10 days.

In particular, Elbakian notes that T. Arakelian has serious problems with his head and eye-sight. The oppositionist also claims that one of his eyes has lost sight completely. According to him, the loss of sight occurred after the incident at the beginning of July, after a hard blow on his head delivered by a plain-clothed policeman.

Elbakian reports that the investigator submitted a medical expert opinion to the court, which, however, has not been officially accessible to the defense. According to the official conclusion, Т.Arakelian received bodily injury after July 1, rather than on the day of the incident. According to the lawyer, if the information is true, "such a fact may cause a lot of additional questions ".

Author: Lylyt Ovanisyan

Source: CK correspondent