Armenian Justice Ministry: 197 detained after March 2008 events were amnestiedMay 27, 2011 - 20:54 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - As of 9:30 p.m. Yerevan time, 197 persons detained after March 2008 events were amnestied, Ministry of Justice Penitentiary Department press service reported. Earlier, editor-in-chief of Haykakan Zhamanak paper Nikol Pashinyan and former member of the Armenian parliament Sasun Mikaelyan, convicted in March 1, 2008 case were released. President Sargsyan offered the National Assembly to declare amnesty on occasion of the 20th anniversary of Armenia’s independence, the proposal being based on article 81.1.1 of the RA Constitution and article 90 of the law on National Assembly regulations. With a vote 91-0, the Armenian parliament approved Thursday, May 26, President Serzh Sargsyan’s proposal for declaration of amnesty for 396 people to be released and 379 to have their sentence cut. From February 20, 2008, the Armenian opposition led by first president Levon Ter-Petrossian, who ran for presidency in 2008, but was not elected, held rallies in the central part of Yerevan, protesting against the election results. The protest actions resulted in unrest and clashes between the police and rally participants on March 1-2. According to the Office of RA Prosecutor General, around 200 people were injured, 10 people were killed, and over 100 people were arrested. Top stories Achieving stable peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan remains a priority of the OSCE, said Ian Borg. The Cabinet of Ministers decided on Thursday, November 9 to allocated AMD 120 million to arrange the gathering. Michael Roth believes sanctions must be put on the table after Baku‘s ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh. The Yerevan City Council has elected Tigran Avniyan from the ruling Civil Contract as the mayor of the Armenian capital. Partner news | Get Started: An educational platform for young startuppers The Get Started program which operates in two phases is an important platform for young startuppers. Byblos Bank Armenia celebrates Students' Day with scholarship recipients YSU students who received scholarships from Byblos Bank Armenia gathered in a casual setting to meet with the Bank's CEO, Hayk Stepanyan. Azerbaijan extends Rune Vardanyan’s arrest by 5 months A court in Azerbaijan has extended the arrest of former Nagorno-Karabakh leader Ruben Vardanyan by five months. Armenia border residents dissatisfied with delimitation Residents Kirants are dissatisfied with the results of the delimitation of the border between Armenia and Azerbaijan. |