The chief of the Armenian police criminal investigation department Hovik Tamamyan met with journalists and commented on the recent violence against journalists. He says that he won’t mind if journalists are allowed to have pistols with them to protect themselves. In other words, he says that if the criminals who want to punish journalists or are ordered to do so know that journalists may have pistols with them, they will not commit such crime. This is not so serious because if journalists are allowed to have weapons with them, those committing violence will not come to beat them up but kill them with weapons. For example, recently killed police deputy chief Mheryan had a pistol with him or had the right to have it but it did not stop the killers to kill him.
Surprisingly the number of violence against journalists is growing. The violence against the head of the “investigation journalists’ cooperation” was left without punishment. The violence and numerous crimes committed against photo journalist of Chorrord Ishkhanutyun and Aravot newspapers Gagik Shamshyan are a record in the history. There have been intimidation and violence against journalists of Haykakan Zhamanak newspaper Lusine Barseghyan and Haik Gevorgyan as well. Several days ago the editor of Armenia Today news agency Argishti Kiviryan was beaten up. All these crimes and other numerous cases of intimidation on journalists and their professional activities have not been investigated by the police in a duly manner and the criminals have not been punished.
It is clear that the crime of the “big” guys who attacked Shant TV reporter Nver Mnatsakanyan will not be discovered either and these big guys will not be punished. This recent incident changed the overall picture of violence against journalists because the latter was considered to be a pro-governmental journalist. Tension is growing before the upcoming mayoral election in Yerevan, parties are in tense competition, are spending a lot of money, thus somebody may not bear it any more and may think that some people are trying to get their nerves. However, there is a similarity in all crimes against journalists: the ones being subject to violence are either political reporters or have dared to investigate whether the activities of certain high rank officials are legal or no. Accordingly, the group of people where the criminals are is narrow and easy to find, it’s all about a decision and will.
Usually when a group of journalists gather in one place to discuss the level of professionalism and fairness on part of the Armenian media, the final conclusion is that the fourth power, i.e. mass media in our country fully corresponds to the spirit and picture of the first three powers, i.e. the legislative, executive and judicial powers. One deserves the other. In a word it is not fair to demand from journalists to be better than MPs, judges, high rank officials and oligarchs. Journalists should not be separated from the entire context.
It may sound weird but the role of journalists in Armenia is rather exaggerated. Especially the role of the nomenclature journalists. They have specific common characteristics such as being flexible, sleeky and brave when talking to ordinary politicians or opposition representatives. When they are doing immoral things they don’t feel shy, for example one of such journalists told the joke of his colleague female journalist to the addressee, which is a very bad thing. However it doesn’t mean that politicians will shake his hand with a great respect and show that he is respected. There is a category of journalists called as “palace journalists”, who think that they can influence on the policy by taking information from one place to another. They believe that they are great thinkers who are hiding behind the curtains and their job is to travel from one room to another and tell certain confidential information to the relevant people. Accordingly, they are becoming a part of the political group in the country despite the fair journalists who don’t lose a single opportunity to talk to needy people in buses, help them or travel to the other end of the country to interview a needy family to help them. It is not excluded that this is not the bad of the mentioned nomenclature journalists but the bad of the ones who are exaggerating their role. Maybe it is not the fault of the journalists who are trying to seem good in the presence of oligarchs and high rank officials by pretending stupid.
The problem is that the ordinary journalist is in fact more pragmatic, clever and informed on the ongoing political processes than many leaders of political parties, who repeat the same thing all the time and don’t get tired of repeating the same thing.
When a journalist, who respects his job and does not go against his professional principles, is trying to tell the truth as it has been told in squares or pictures by the above mentioned journalists, big guys in masks are waiting for them behind the wall to beat them up and close up their mouth.
P.S. The title is taken from the following idea of Julius Caesar: “It’s better to be the first one among slaves than the second one in Rome”.