Zhanna Alexanyan, an Armenian human rights defender, has drawn parallels between the recent arrests of relatives of Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II and the religious persecutions of authoritarian Uzbekistan in the mid-2000s.
In a post on her Facebook page, Alexanyan recalled her work with Human Rights Watch during that period, when she defended peaceful Muslims targeted by the Uzbek regime for their religious beliefs.
"The arrests of the Catholicos’s relatives and the increasing harassment of clergy reminded me of authoritarian Uzbekistan in the 2000s. Back then, spiritual leaders with high public respect were seen as threats by the state. Their family members and even acquaintances ended up in prison. I used to believe this phenomenon was unique to that regime’s culture, but I was wrong," she wrote.
Her comments come after the arrest of Garegin II’s brother, 68-year-old Gevorg Nersisyan, and his son Hambardzum Nersisyan, both detained for one month following a complaint by Harutyun Mkrtchyan, a candidate from the Republic Party. He alleged that the two tried to obstruct his campaign in Vagharshapat. However, their lawyer Ara Zohrabyan dismissed the claim as a false accusation.
According to the Investigative Committee, public criminal prosecution was initiated under Article 211 of Armenia’s Criminal Code, which concerns coercion to participate in or abstain from campaigning.
