10 September 2011, 13:00
PACE closes the case on March 1, 2008, events in Armenia
The announcement of the universal amnesty in spring this year, and the investigation by Armenian authorities of the deaths of 10 civilians in the course of the anti-government demonstrations on March 1-2, 2008, have allowed the PACE to state the termination of the case related to the March events.
In Paris, on September 8, a draft resolution on functioning of democratic institutions in Armenia was adopted, which will be discussed at the autumn session of the PACE.
The co-rapporteurs of PACE's monitoring commission for Armenia John Prescott and Axel Fischer presented an 18-page document, which welcomes the political will of the authorities and all political forces, aimed at solving problems in accordance with the standards and instructions of the European Union (EU), the "News-Armenia" reports.
The commission believes that the events of 2008 and their aftermath have revealed the priorities of the democratic development of the country, among them: holding of genuinely democratic parliamentary elections; creation of a robust democratic and pluralistic political environment, to be fully trusted to by the Armenian society; creation of an open and pluralistic media environment; and reforms of the police and judiciary systems to ensure a real independence of these bodies.
