10 December 2008, 10:49
Activist of Armenian opposition released after two years in custody
Today, on December 10, activist of the opposition Vardan Malkhasyan, a veteran of the Karabakh War, has been released after his two years of imprisonment at the criminal corrective establishment "Vardashen". Mr Malkhasyan, one of the leaders of the organization "Rallying of Armenian Volunteers", was arrested in December 2006 and found guilty under Article 301 of the Criminal code of Armenia - "Appeals to violent overthrow of power".
At the exit of the prison Malkhasyan held in his hands a model of a wooden church, splashed with red paint. According to his version, the paint symbolizes the blood of innocent victims of March 1 events.
"The responsibility for this blood shall be born not only by the officials who had usurped the power, but also the Armenian Church headed by Garegin II, Catholicos of All Armenians, since it was on his tacit consent that the crimes on March 1 became possible," the veteran of the Karabakh War has stated. He promised to continue his political fight by all possible means.
At the gate of the corrective establishment, Vardan Malkhasyan was met by dozens of people from various organizations: Armenian National Congress, "Rallying of Armenian Volunteers" and "Resistance of Political Prisoners' Children".
Author: Lilit Ovanisyan, CK correspondent
