US embassy cable - 04YEREVAN1190

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 001190 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/CACEN, DRL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PHUM, PREL, AM 
SUBJECT:  PREVENTIVE DETENTIONS A MAJOR SETBACK ON THE 
EVE OF THE MAY 21 OPPOSITION RALLY 
 
 
1. (U) Sensitive but unclassified, protect accordingly. 
 
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SUMMARY 
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2. (SBU) Armenian police rounded up and questioned more 
than 25 opposition activists around the country on the 
eve of the planned May 21 opposition rally in Yerevan. 
According to opposition sources and media reports, some 
of them were sentenced to administrative detention 
varying from three to ten days of imprisonment.  Most 
of the detainees were charged with "insulting 
authorities" and the "use of foul language."  Court 
verdicts were delivered late in the morning May 20, 
during closed hearings and in the absence of legal 
counsel.  Some of the press reports call recent 
detentions "preventive" and explain them by the fact 
that a Collective Security Treaty reception attended by 
visiting CIS ministers and military brass is scheduled 
for the vicinity of the planned opposition rally.  End 
Summary. 
 
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OPPOSITION ACTIVISTS DETAINED, "SENTENCES" PRE-COOKED 
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3. (SBU) Armenian police rounded up and questioned more 
that 25 opposition activists around the country May 20 
ahead of the May 21 opposition rally in Yerevan.  Most 
of detained activists are from the People's Party of 
Armenia and the Republic Party.  The police appear to 
have been especially zealous in the cities of 
Charentsavan, Artashat and Echmiadzin; the press and 
opposition sources describe the police ambushing 
opposition activists near their homes.  A Republic 
Party representative told us that one of his own police 
contacts admitted they had received lists of people to 
be detained in advance.  The police contact also said 
that some policemen are telling the detainees that they 
have "an order from above" to keep people in detention 
for at least three days and urging the opposition 
activists to be "reasonable." 
 
4. (SBU) Some of the opposition activists were fined 
and released in the morning; more than a dozen, 
however, were sentenced to from three to ten days of 
imprisonment under the Soviet-era Code of 
Administrative detention on a vague charge of "use of 
foul language."  A well-known lawyer and chairman of 
International Union of Armenian Lawyers Tigran Ter- 
Yesayan informed the press that the Union formed a 
special "rapid response" group of defense counsels to 
provide legal advice to the detainees.   According to 
Ter-Yesayan, in most cases, however, defense counsel 
were unable to see their clients because by the time 
they arrived at prison the court hearings were already 
finished.  Ter-Yesayan alleged that some court hearings 
were held in jails -- and referred to that as an 
obvious violation of the law. 
 
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MAY 21 RALLY AND CIS MINISTERS--SAME TIME, SAME PLACE 
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5. (SBU) Although the opposition press is speculating 
that the recent police crackdown on the planned 
opposition May 21 rally could end in another march to 
Kocharian's office, leaders of the Republic Party told 
us that the May 21 rally will not be followed by a 
march because opposition leaders Stepan Demirchian and 
Artashes Geghamian strongly oppose the idea.  A GOAM 
reception for the annual meeting of CIS defense 
ministers in Yerevan is scheduled for the same time in 
the vicinity of the rally, at the Government Guest 
House.  Russian Defense Minister Sergey Ivanov arrived 
in Yerevan on Thursday to hold talks with Armenian 
leaders and attend the annual meeting, and the GOAM is 
clearly unwilling to risk being embarrassed by an 
opposition rally right in front of their CIS 
colleagues. 
 
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COMMENT:  PREVENTIVE DETENTIONS A MAJOR STEP BACKWARD 
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6. (SBU) We had been encouraged by ongoing discussions 
between the opposition and governing coalition within 
the National Assembly and by the calm atmosphere both 
during and following recent opposition rallies; the 
current wave of preventive detentions, however, is 
clearly a major step backward and a profound misuse of 
police authority.  We anticipate that this government 
move will close any opportunities for political 
dialogue in the short term. 
ORDWAY