During a protest outside the Yerevan office of the Investigative Committee, Kristine Vardanyan, Member of Parliament from the Hayastan faction and a member of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), told reporters that statements by Civil Contract (ruling party) members about banning the ARF indicate that the arrests are politically motivated.
"The authorities are using these arrests to create a backdrop for accusing the organization of terrorism and to echo the statement made by Civil Contract MP Hasmik Hakobyan that the ARF should be shut down," she said, as reported by Panorama.am.
According to Vardanyan, such declarations from high-ranking members of the ruling party are being made in parallel with these actions to suggest a political rationale behind them.
"This is a campaign against the ARF, similar to the one being waged against the church. The question is, why do they need such campaigns now—what are they planning that requires this kind of groundwork?
Statements about banning the ARF go hand in hand with the ongoing operations, which clearly shows these actions are not part of a legal process but serve political purposes and motivations," she added.
Vardanyan also firmly denied any link between the ARF and terrorism.
"You will not find a single case where the ARF has directed its weapons or fists inward, against Armenians. Our struggle has always been aimed at the enemies of the Armenian nation," she emphasized.
On the morning of July 10, searches were carried out at the homes of ARF members, leading to the arrest of seven individuals who were taken to the Investigative Committee of Armenia.
