Yerevan: advocates in "Million Mask March" case demand acquittal of their clients

In Yerevan, advocates spoke at the trial in the case against participants of the "Millions Mask March". The defenders argued for the innocence of the activists in the incriminated articles of the Penal Code and requested the court to acquit the defendants.

"Some officials have even managed to mislead the Armenian President, and this fact is proven by the assessment of the activists' action voiced by Serzh Sargsyan," noted Ara Zakaryian, an advocate of two activists Tigran Petrosyan and Armen Ovannisyan.

According to the advocate, all this is done to persuade the public to treat activists as criminals.

"The President should change his assessment of the activists' actions to enable the court to administer a fair trial, unless, of course, the case is not considered as political," Ara Zakaryan has emphasized.

The advocate has also referred to the Armenian Constitution and the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights, according to which every person has the right to take part in protest actions.

Ara Zakaryan has mentioned a number of arguments that, according to him, refute the testimonies given by policemen on unsanctioned and illegal actions of the activists.

The advocate has appealed to Judge Mnatsakan Martirosyan and called him "not to allow punishing the activists for the crime they never committed."

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on November 5, 2013, Yerevan hosted the "Million Mask March". After the protesters entered into a confrontation with the police, Shant Arutyunyan, the leader of the "Tsegakron" Party, and 19 other protesters were detained. Of them, 14 persons were then charged with resisting law enforcers with use of violence. On March 31, the charge was changed to the article on disorderly conduct.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.