YEREVAN, JANUARY 26, NOYAN TAPAN. The Committee for Protection of Political Prisoners and Persecuted Persons in Armenia has called on the PACE to deprive the Armenian delegation of voting rights during the January plenary session. "In Armenia, there is no parliament elected through implementation of the people's free will, and this delegation does not represent the interests of our people. The Armenian parliament today is only a body expressing the interests and acting as an appendage of the executive power that fires at its own people and has filled prisons with its political opponents," is said in the Committee's application to the PACE. It is noted that despite Resolutions 1609 and 1620 passed by the PACE, in the past ten months the Armenian authorities have not taken any real steps to release political prisoners and create an atmosphere of tolerance in the country. "We are convinced that only your principled approches and opinions, including the deprivation of the Armenian delegation of voting rights, will sober the Armenian authorities and contribute to a less strained atmosphere in Armenia and the rapid release of the political prisoners," the statement reads.

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