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A few days ago, ex-president Robert Kocharyan gave his second interview to the member of ARF Dashnaktsutyun Party Guegham Manukyan. Kocharyan expressed his complaint related to the confidentiality of preliminary inquiry: ”If you, reporters, manage to achieve removal of the pre-inquiry confidentiality, we can freely speak on all the episodes, on the subject matter. It will also give freedom to the lawyers. We will be able to publish the recording of the whole trial process.”
In response to this, the interviewer proposed to Kocharyan to “unofficially” publish that recording.
It should be noted that the confidentiality of the inquiry is not an end in itself. If the pre-inquiry confidentiality is not kept, the legislative requirement of the comprehensive and objective inquiry into the criminal case cannot be fulfilled efficiently, and the issues related to the preliminary inquiry cannot receive an efficient solution. In other words, confidentiality is required for the comprehensive and objective inquiry.
The inadmissibility of disclosing the preliminary inquiry information is also fixed in the Criminal Procedure Code and the Criminal Code.
Thus, Article 342 of the Criminal Code stipulates that ”Divulging the data of inquiry or investigation without permission of the prosecutor, investigator or the person in charge of inquiry, is punished with a fine in the amount of 100-300 minimal salaries, or arrest for up to 1 month.”
Thus, Guegham Manukyan is calling for committing a crime. Besides, Manukyan has made some manipulative statements related to the March 1 case.
“There is a public opinion that if the state did not proclaim a state of martial law, there would be no March 1”, Manukyan said, adding, “After all, what prompted President Kocharyan to proclaim a state of martial law?”
The proclamation of state of martial law was not related to the tragic events as it was proclaimed after the events or at the best during those events.
“After cleaning the Theatre Square”, as Kocharyan put it, the protestors started to gather in the area adjacent to Myasnikyan’s statue. Later clashes started as a result of which 10 people died and more than 300 people were injured. Only then was the decree on proclaiming a state of martial law signed. In other words, Guegham Manukyan’s claim that “if a state of martial law was not proclaimed, there would be no March 1” is not accurate and distorts public opinion.
Rafael Afrikyan
