The agreement was announced after hundreds of lawyers again went on a one-day strike and marched to the ministry headquarters in Yerevan to show support for their colleagues allegedly beaten up by police officers.
Interior Minister Vahe Ghazarian received the leaders of the Armenian Chamber of Advocates, which organized the protest. One of them, Ara Zohrabian, was satisfied with the meeting that lasted for less than an hour.
Zohrabian said they received assurances that “there will no such instances involving lawyers anymore.” Lawyers assaulted by police officers will now be able to swiftly appeal to the joint commission that will comprise three Interior Ministry officials and three lawyers, he told journalists.
Neither Ghazarian nor the ministry’s press office made any statements to that effect immediately after the meeting.
The protests began late last month after one attorney, Karen Alaverdian, claimed to have been subjected to “undue physical force” while trying to stop several policemen kicking and punching his client at a Yerevan police station.
Armenia’s Investigative Committee denied the allegations on June 13, saying that Alaverdian himself shoved and even hit the officers in a bid to free the criminal suspect. The law-enforcement agency charged him with “hooliganism” and obstruction of legitimate police actions. The Chamber of Advocates voiced support for Alaverdian and demanded a proper investigation into the incident.
Alaverdian revealed on Tuesday that two senior officers working at the police department of Yerevan’s central administrative district have been indicted by another law-enforcement body, the National Security Service (NSS), and suspended as a result. He welcomed the development.
Two other lawyers claimed to have been ill-treated at another Yerevan police station in February while representing a teenage criminal suspect. Their allegations were likewise denied by the Armenian police and the Investigative Committee.
The protesting lawyers say that the national police chief, Karlen Hovannisian, is personally responsible for the alleged violence. More than 500 of them have signed a petition demanding his dismissal.
According to Zohrabian, Hovannisian also attended the interior minister’s meeting with the Chamber of Advocates leadership. The latter insisted on Hovannisian’s resignation during and after the meeting.