08 May 2013, 22:30
Armenian MP withdraws his lawsuit against blogger
Tigran Urikhanyan, an Armenian MP from the "Prosperous Armenia", withdrew his lawsuit from the court on the case of insulting filed against Armenian blogger Edgar Barsegyan.
In December 2012, the MP filed a lawsuit against the blogger, since the latter had made a demotivator (a popular format of humorous and satirical images, consisting of a picture in a black frame and a commenting inscription-slogan, note of the "Caucasian Knot").
The reason for making the demotivator was the fact that the MP "had earlier won the contest for the most stylish politician," writes Kornelij, the author of the blog "Armenian Chronicles" on the "Caucasian Knot".
The demotivator, which became the reason for filing the lawsuit, represented a caricature, showing a photo of a fashion model on a podium, whose face with the use of graphics software had been replaced by "an MP's portrait". The MP demanded 1 million drams (1000 drams are equal to about 75 roubles) as compensation.
"Most likely, Tigran Urikhanyan has realized that if the blogger loses the lawsuit then the case will be brought further to the European Court, and there, the blogger will certainly win, since the European position is very clear anyone can make fun of a politician, since he is a public figure and is not protected as an ordinary citizen," Kornelij writes.
The MP himself has explained his decision to withdraw the lawsuit by his heavy work.
It should be noted that the blogger Edgar Barsegyan expressed his surprise about the lawsuit filed against him and stressed that he did not insult the MP.
