Photo: © 2013, Peace Dialogue, Fair COURT
On June 8th the Fair Court presided over by Judge Garegin Impartialyan* (lawyer Karen Tumanyan) held its first session and issued its first verdict for the sake of Peace Dialogue.
The simulated court trial, organized using the conflict modeling methodology, was presented to a number of Vanadzor citizens at the Green House Hotel. It was based on a true story. During the simulated court trial regarding the death of a soldier, the audience took on the roles of all parties and strove to achieve justice for their characters.
The court heard the details of the case, the witnesses, and the defendants. The defendants were soldiers who, under the influence of alcohol, had beaten their fellow soldier and unintentionally caused his death. The court also heard the officer on duty who, although he did not take part in the fight, did not prevent the soldiers from using alcohol on duty, either. Moreover, he also took part with great pleasure in the birthday party of one of those soldiers.
The simulated court trial organized by Peace Dialogue NGO within the framework of the Safe Soldiers for a Safe Armenia two-year project aims at drawing public attention to the problems in the Armenian armed forces.
According to the staff of the organization, a great number of cases of human rights violations in the army, and the alarming number of fatalities in the army during peacetime (13 in the first half of this year, alone) are the result of the atmosphere of impunity among the officers and soldiers, as well as weak control over the military (weak civic control, in particular).
Noting the number of recent unfortunate deaths, we can assume that criminal relationships are favored over the law in the army. Many officers close their eyes to this phenomenon. They even contribute to it in order to shirk their duties.
On top of all of this we can add the corruption in the army, the law enforcement agencies, and the justice system.The Ministry of Defense and the RA authorities are not consistent in solving the problem. Moreover, in many cases they even try to conceal the sometimes criminal shortcomings of the officers with the help of the law enforcement and judicial institutions.
The soldier, just like any citizen (who must be the highest value for any country that considers itself democratic) whose rights have been violated, is deprived of the opportunity to reach justice and to reclaim his rights with the help of the above-mentioned institutions.
After the simulated court trial the participants and the audience were given an opportunity to share their impressions. Some of them expressed that the simulated court trial gave the participants an opportunity to learn more about the judicial process and its peculiarities. It gave them an opportunity to put themselves in the shoes of those who take part in a trial.
But it is most important that, although some of the participants were previously unaware of the problems in the army, they were willing to discuss the problem after the simulation, rather than perpetuating the culture of silence. Peace Dialogue is planning to organize four more Fair Courts in various cities in Armenia. The next one is expected to be held in Alaverdi.
The event is implemented by Peace Dialogue NGO within the framework of the Safe Soldiers for a Safe Armenia project.
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* Impartialyan – an invented name, symbolizing impartiality of Justice.
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The project Safe Soldiers for a Safe Armenia is supported by Pax.
is a Dutch civil society organisation that works with its partners for peace, reconciliation and justice worldwide. The organisation supports local peace efforts in conflict areas and builds bridges, nurture mutual understanding and improve disrupted relations between groups. IKV Pax Christi‘s aim is to prevent conflict and to build a peaceful, democratic and just society.
