Armenia
Opposition Journalist BeatenPosted Sep 20 2007
Hovannes Galadjan, the 44-year-old editor of the Armenian opposition newspaper Iskakan Iravunk, translated into English as both True Law and Real Right, was attacked and beaten in his Yerevan office Sept. 15 and later hospitalized with head and body injuries.
Two men, who looked like “bodyguards” according to Galadjian, attacked him while he was descending the stairs of his office building to meet with a reporter. He was hit over the head and then beaten with batons.
The supposed meeting was set up after Galadjian agreed to meet a man, who described himself as a reporter from a different newspaper. That evening the reporter called Galadjian saying that he couldn't find the meeting place and Galadjian offered to meet him outside the building.
Galdjian has voiced suspicions that Hrant Khachatrian, former head of the Union of Constitiutional Rights (SIM) and his supporters are responsible for the attack.
SIM publishes Galadjian's newspaper and was also responsible for the publishing of an earlier newspaper called Irvunk.
In Sept. 2006 Khachatrian was ousted as leader by the editor in chief of Iravunk, Hayk Babukhanian. In Februaury of this year Babukhanian stopped publishing Iravunk due to death threats from unidentified sources.
Khachatrian denies any involvement with the attack, and the two assailants remain unidentified.