European Court: Armenia violated rights in 'Electric Yerevan' case

PanARMENIAN.Net - The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled that the 2015 crackdown on the Electric Yerevan protest and the detention of activist Hovhannes Ishkhanyan were illegal.

According to the ruling, Armenia must compensate Ishkhanyan with €4,600 for non-material damages and €1,500 for legal expenses, Sputnik Armenia reports.

In the case Ishkhanyan v. Armenia, the ECHR stated that Ishkhanyan was held at a police station for seven hours in wet clothes and without rest, which amounted to deprivation of liberty.

The court also found that there were no legal grounds for his arrest.

The ruling further highlighted that arrests during the Electric Yerevan protest were carried out en masse, without individual legal assessment or reasonable suspicion.

On May 8, 2015, the Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) applied to the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) to increase electricity tariffs by 17 drams per kWh. On June 17, the commission approved a rate increase of 6.93 drams per kWh, effective August 1.

Starting June 19, the "No to Plunder" civic initiative launched protests in Yerevan’s Freedom Square, demanding the annulment of the PSRC decision. Protesters gave authorities 72 hours to suspend the decision.