Pashinyan in Court

This video was put up less than a week ago. I kept hoping it would get transcribed (and even translated), and I'd be able to post it with more info, but no luck.
Its absolutely incredible. Pashinyan uses simple language, simple allegory, satire and comedy, and simple logic, to show just how ludicrous the court system, and the entire regime, is.
I've posted it below, with some very rough transcription and translation of some segments... what I've put there are just a few of the jewels, there are a lot more, but no amount of translation does it justice.




Pashinyan starts out by giving an incredible example of the completely absurdity of the regime and justice system that stands in Armenia today, by giving an overly complicated and completely irrelevant example answer, that would be given by the regime, to the question, is this piece of paper black or white? Then he goes on…

I will do the same experiment with this piece of paper [as an analogy to his jail sentence and amnesty]

The Amnesty says, halve the portion of this paper that has nothing [written] on it
The court says, there is no portion of the paper without anything written on it, and for that reason we cannot halve it.

But in reality, this paper, in its entirety, has nothing on it. That is, the portion of the paper that has nothing on it, is the entire paper. And to halve the portion that has nothing on it is to fold it (folding it), we fold it in equal halves, and honorable court, halve it in equal portions (tearing it in half).

This primitive [concept], my numerous lawyers have been unable to make the ‘Justice System’ of Armenia comprehend this.

It’s not that they cannot make them understand. Our Armenia’s ‘Justice System’ does not understand, cannot understand and wants to act as though it is, excuse the expression, obtuse.

… there is no independent justice system in the Republic of Armenia. If there were, the Republic of Armenia would not be in the situation it is today…

… if there were a lawful government in the Republic of Armenia, honorable court, if there were a lawful government in the Republic of Armenia, if there were a lawful prosecutor’s office, if there were a lawful court [system], if laws functioned in the Republic of Armenia, this court hearing would not be happening; because I would not be at Artik penitentiary, and I wouldn’t have a problem transferring a piece of paper to my lawyer, and the Criminal and Justice Ministry of the Republic of Armenia would not be so depraved as to lie so obviously in front of the Armenian people…

.. my experience had shown me that the judges in this country have a hearing problem…

… the government of this country does not have enough morality to stand face to face and talk ... the government talks to me through its oligarchs, through its courts…

Awww, how cute, they're working together... Group Hug!!!

Addendum: A little late on my part, but here is HAK's official statement on the court cases being brought up against not only Haykakan Zhamanak (Armenian Times) and Zhamanak, but Aravot as well.

Addendum2: Late again, but here's a Hetq article on the issue: MP Oligarchs take aim at Haykakan Zhamanak

I couldn't pass up this article from the Armenian Times (Haykakan Zhamanak), via Google Translate, with some quick/rough editing:

Trial of the Oligarch's Case
Monday at 15:00 pm, at the Center and Nork-Marash districts Court of First Instance (near the Tbilisi highway, near the Lamp Factory), Judge Marine Petrosyan is scheduled to preside over the resumption of the lawsuit against the publisher of Armenian Times (Haykakan Zhamanak) newspaper, "Dareskizb Ltd." The suit is brought forward by MP-tycoons Samvel Alexanyan (Lfik Samo), Levon Sargsyan (Alraghatsy Lyovik) and Ruben Hayrapetyan (Nemets Rubo). The oligarchs demand that "HZH" pay 7.5 million drams, basically 2.5 million to each of them.

Օլիգարխների գործով դատը` երկուշաբթի
Երկուշաբթի ժամը 15.00-ին Կենտրոն եւ Նորք-Մարաշ վարչական շրջանների ընդհանուր իրավասության դատարանում (Թբիլիսյան խճուղու նստավայրում, Լամպերի գործարանի հարեւանությամբ) դատավոր Կարինե Պետրոսյանի նախագահությամբ պետք է վերսկսվի «Հայկական ժամանակ» օրաթերթի հրատարակիչ «Դարեսկիզբ» ՍՊԸ-ի դեմ պատգամավոր-օլիգարխներ Սամվել Ալեքսանյանի (Լֆիկ Սամո), Լեւոն Սարգսյանի (Ալրաղացի Լյովիկ) եւ Ռուբեն Հայրապետյանի (Նեմեց Ռուբո) ներկայացրած հայցի քննարկումը: Օլիգարխները դատավորից պահանջել են «ՀԺ»-ից իրենց օգտին բռնագանձել յոթուկես միլիոն դրամ` յուրաքանչյուրին երկուսուկեսական միլիոն:

Really, this is just a way to try to take HZH down. Too bad the oligarch's can't but this much cooperation and effort into actually creating something good, rather trying to destroy something good.

[My apologies to the koalas, who, to my knowledge, have not done anything to deserve being compared to oligarchs, and are without doubt, much cuter]

P.S. I noticed after posting the picture that there seems to be a fourth Koala hiding his face, with only his/her butt showing, in the back. I will leave who that could be to our collective imaginations ;)

Armenia's Oligarchs - New Pokemon Characters, or, Agents of Insanity?

Haykakan Zhamanak (Armenian Times) recently had an article called "They tried to fabricate a criminal case against Levon Ter-Petrossian." The picture that went with it is the one I've posted here.

What is notable here, aside from the article itself, is the immediate reaction to the photograph itself. The armenian version of the article had the following as the first comment (which is echoed in a later one as well):

Հարգելի խմբագրություն.....սրա նկարը մի տպեք... ՄԵՂՔ ԵՆՔ։ Նորմալ մարդիք եք...սադիստությաուն մի արեք, այս ԱՆԱՍՈՒՆԻՆ քիչ տպագրեք, միայն սրա լկտի տեսքից մարդ հոգեկան խանգարում կստանա։

Which translates roughly into:

Dear editors... don't post this guy's picture... HAVE SOME PITY (ON US). You're normal people... don't be sadistic, print few [pictures] of this dumb brute, just the sight of his depraved look is enough to cause psychiatric problems

Blogger Svejk notes in the article comments and on his blog that the picture reminds him of some cartoon he can't quite remember, and later realizes that it reminds him of Pokemon characters. It does kind of look like this one, which I found on the web:


So, for anyone who was considering doing an informal survey of what people think of these guys... you've got a good place to start right here:

These guys may be shoo-ins for the next, newest, and bestest ever Pokemon characters, now from the Caucasus...

So powerfully crazy and crazily powerfuly that just a look drives you insane!

Cosmonauts wear pink

I was about to comment on today's Dodi Gago Cosmonaut article in HZH - it seems others made the connection as well...
Someone please tell why and how on earth (no pun intended) an oligarchic party leader who is part of the ruling coalition of what is basically a police state got a medal named for a cosmonaut, and that for:

"making large personal contributions to help keep the reputation and fame of cosmonautics high in CIS countries"

The best part in the article is:

"According to some unspecified information, Gagik Tsarukyan is building a spacecraft in the basement of his palace in Arinj which he will present to “NASA” (USA) for free, and thus will be the first man to go to Mars. Quite seriously."

As GoldenTent noted on Twitter, "Now we know where he buys shirts!"

And as Nazarian pointed out in the comment in the prior post:
"It's the distinctive color pattern of the outfits that the Armenian cosmonauts wear.
Հայ կոսմոնավտները վարդագույն են հագնում:"

Hey, maybe he didn't want to be a Human Rights lawyer when he was younger. Maybe he wanted to be a cosmonaut, and still does!

Really... what is going on here???