(Saturday, November 28)
“In all likelihood, it’s a very serious case indeed, and that group or some of its members could have committed grave crimes,” “Chorrord Ishkhanutyun” writes in connection with the arrests of about two dozen people accused of being part of an armed group that plotted assassinations in Armenia. The paper says the fact that many Armenians think otherwise shows that “the society does not trust the law-enforcement bodies at all and believes that they are always quick to fabricate charges.” It says that the heads of those bodies must draw the right conclusions from this perception.
“Asparez” also looks at the popular distrust in the official theory about the arrests. The paper says this sentiment reflects “widespread distrust in the government and its actions.” “Many think that the security bodies serve not so much the state and the people as the ruling regime and its political objectives,” it adds.
“People do not believe [in the official theory] because this same [law-enforcement] structure has for years been busy eavesdropping on the government’s opponents, sponsoring one or another entrepreneur or meddling in business, instead of performing its duties,” editorializes “168 Zham.” The paper too sees similar distrust in other state bodies and leaders, including President Serzh Sarkisian. “The people have stopped trusting the state because the regime often identifies the state with itself,” it goes on.
As “Aravot” points out, many of those skeptics wonder why the authorities do not “disarm” their thuggish loyalists like Syunik Governor Suren Khachatrian and their loyal clans. Others, the paper says, believe that the National Security Service (NSS) and the police did not find an arms cache in the Yerevan house raided by them. The paper disagrees with the argument that just because government-linked clans are armed the authorities should also allow other groups of individuals to possess firearms.
(Tigran Avetisian)