YEREVAN, Armenia — 25 September 2001 was always going to be a night to remember because the year-long celebrations to commemorate the 1,700th anniversary of Christianity in Armenia were at their peak. President Robert Kocharian and an entourage that included the internationally renowned French-Armenian singer, Charles Aznavour, were enjoying themselves at Poplavok, a popular cafe in Yerevan, the Armenian capital.
The musical bill that night included the Armenian duduk player, Djivan Gasparian, whose traditional Armenian woodwind instrument is heard on the soundtrack to the Oscar-winning film, ‘Gladiator.’
“It was simply an electric night with so many greats of Armenian music there, mostly performing,” recalls an Armenian guest at the September 2001 event. “We were sitting almost exactly in the centre of the room, a few meters from where Kocharian and Aznavour sat, next to three security men who occupied the table immediately to our left. They were all wired but otherwise very smartly dressed. They drank only coke all evening.”
A short while later a man was found dead in the café’s washroom. First reports indicated that Poghos Poghosian, an ethnic Armenian from Georgia, died of a heart attack. By morning the story was that he had been killed by presidential bodyguards. Poghosian is reported to have greeted Kocharian in an overly familiar fashion, perhaps even derogatorily referring to his origins.
When few accepted the initial theory of a heart attack, two presidential bodyguards were suspended and a murder inquiry launched. After a two-month investigation, presidential bodyguard Aghamal Harutiunian was charged with involuntary manslaughter.
The indictment said that Poghosian “fell over on his back, and hit his head against the ceramic restroom floor, which caused him a serious cranial-brain injury, from which he died.”
But the Caucasus Office of the New York-based organization Human Rights Watch says Poghosian was beaten and kicked to death by security personnel who also assaulted two of Poghosian’s acquaintances when they tried to help him.
Witnesses present that evening, speaking to Human Rights Watch on the promise of anonymity, alleged that several other presidential bodyguards and plainclothes security personnel followed Poghosian and Harutiunian into the café washroom. Minutes later, Poghosian was found dead.
“The charge in this case does not reflect the seriousness of the crime, nor does it take into account that there was more than one perpetrator,” says Alex Anderson, Human Rights Watch’s south Caucasus director. “It is a nominal charge that sends a chilling message to the Armenian people that state security personnel can kill with virtual impunity in front of a significant portion of Armenia’s political and cultural elite.”
The trial should have restored faith in the Armenian judicial system. Instead it raised questions about the rule of law in a country that regained full independence from the disintegrating Soviet Union in 1991.
For instance, the testimony from one British witness delivered in absentia was dismissed by the prosecutor, Eduard Sarikian, because it was not prepared “according to Armenian law.”
According to the witness, Stephen J. Newton, between five and seven of the president’s bodyguards accompanied Poghosian into the café’s washroom.
Newton was working at the time with a European Union programme that supports transition to a market economy and a democratic society in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
Citing safety concerns, his statement was released only after he had returned to England.
“It was clear to me that Poghosian had been very badly beaten around the head, probably kicked, and a large lump on his left temple, about the size of a thumb, indicated a possible blow from a pistol or similar blunt instrument,” says his sworn evidence.
“I spoke to two policemen standing outside and asked them to arrest those responsible. My request was ignored and the two men simply mounted guard at the entrance to the toilet and prevented anyone from entering.”
Newton’s statement tallies with accounts given to Human Rights Watch by several witnesses who refused to testify for fear of retribution. Though his statement provided compelling evidence, there were doubts whether it would be introduced in court.
“The judge placed responsibility on the victim’s side to provide a translation to the court, and gave them 24 hours to do so even though the defence lawyer reportedly asked why the court did not take on this responsibility,” explains Anderson. Unfortunately, the defence forgot to have the translation signed by a lawyer.
Defence Counsel Ruben Sahakian’s handling of the case has also come under question. Sahakian had informed Human Rights Watch that he intended to use the statement to demand that the case be further investigated. But he did not, leading to allegations that the Armenian president might have exerted pressure on the court to protect the bodyguards.
In February, Harutiunian received a two year suspended sentence for manslaughter. He is unlikely to serve any time in jail. In mid-March, the victim’s family was told that it could not appeal.
Access to the European Court of Human Rights remains closed. Despite joining the Council of Europe in January 2001, Armenia has not ratified the European Convention on Human Rights, though it is obliged to do so within one year of membership.
“Should all domestic remedies be exhausted there is the optional protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which Armenia has ratified, which allows individual complaints of breaches of the Convention to be brought before the United Nations Human Rights Committee for adjudication,” explains Anderson.
But the Committee’s decision is not legally binding on the country concerned.
“The whole republic knows the truth. You know it, we know it, and all the people know it,” comments Andranik Poghosian, the victim’s brother.
“The trial reflects our reality, our society and our state authorities.”
