"Fact" daily writes:
The atmosphere created before the elections in Armenia is becoming more dangerous and unequal day by day. In the country, where the authorities constantly talk about "democracy", "free elections" and "legality", the reality more and more often resembles a classic example of selective justice. It has been a few days since the former MP of Armenia Arman Tatoyan published a detailed recording of the alleged offense that took place in one of the educational institutions of Armavir region, where it is said about forcing people to participate in a rally.
The content of the recording raises not only political, but first of all serious legal issues. We are talking about possible pressures on the electoral processes, the use of administrative resources and the restriction of the free expression of citizens. However, the most surprising thing is not the phenomenon itself, but the silence that followed it. There is no information about any criminal proceedings. Well, at least there wasn't as of yesterday. There is no official clarification. There is no prompt response of law enforcement agencies. There are no searches, show arrests, immediate interrogations or requests for detention, as is done against the opposition. There is not even the usual activity that the public has seen many times in the case of opposition figures or circles that are not desirable for the government. And here the main question arises: does the law in Armenia work equally for everyone?
It is clear, isn't it, that in the same situation, if it were about any opposition force, especially the main rivals of the government participating in the elections, then the entire state machine would already be in action. Propaganda channels would announce the "discovery of a criminal network", law enforcement officers would make urgent announcements, and government satellites and media would discuss another "sensational discovery" for hours. Armenian society has already seen how criminal proceedings are initiated within a few hours, information campaigns and political labeling are organized when it is necessary to put pressure on the opposition.
Against this background, the current silence is not just strange. It is politically extremely eloquent. All this is especially dangerous before the elections, because it forms one simple perception: there is not an equal competition in Armenia, but a special legal regime for the government. A system where the same act can be considered a serious crime in one case, and simply ignored in another case. The same applies to other examples, in particular, when a person is arrested for tearing down the banner of the government, then commits suicide, and many reports about tearing down the banners of the opposition parties remain unanswered. When a citizen does not trust the law, but at that moment weighs the weight of the scales, that is, who is on the side of the government and who is in the opposition field, the whole system of justice is destroyed. And the saddest thing is that the government, which came to power with the slogans of "restoration of justice", today is more and more often identified with selective justice, administrative pressures and political double standards. If such a scandalous material published before the elections does not cause legal consequences, then the public has the right to ask, how do they imagine free, transparent and equally competitive elections? After all, democracy is measured not by the speeches of the government, but by the fact that the law should be applied equally, first of all, to the government itself.
