OSCE, Vienna, 19 Nov 2008 – The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Miklos Haraszti, expressed his concern today over a violent attack this week against an independent journalist in Armenia.
Edik Bagdasaryan, the President of Investigative Journalists’ Association and Chief Editor of Hetq Online, known for his investigative reporting on Armenian politics and business, was attacked on 17 November in Yerevan by three assailants. He sustained serious head injuries.
“Violence against journalists is not ‘crime as usual’, because it undermines a basic institution of democracy – the free press,” Haraszti wrote to Foreign Minister Edward Nalbandian.
Haraszti also referred in the letter to earlier cases of violence against journalists in Armenia, including Lusine Barseghyan from the opposition newspaper Haykakan Zhamanak, and Hrach Melkumyan, the acting Chief of the Yerevan bureau of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Their cases are still unsolved.
“The aim of such crimes is to intimidate media workers in the country and obstruct investigative reporting. The lack of progress in resolving these cases could provoke further cases of violence against journalists,” said Haraszti.
The OSCE media freedom representative urged the Armenian authorities to thoroughly and swiftly investigate all attacks against journalists, and to bring those responsible to justice.
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