On March 20, “Media Advocate” Initiative monitored the work of the Commandant’s office in emergency situation. According to press publications, a number of media outlets and Facebook users were instructed to remove the published material.
According to the editor-in-chief of Tert.am, Aram Antinyan, they were forced to delete a publication, where Hollywood actor Idris Elba did not exclude the fact that he had been infected with “coronavirus” by Canada’s first lady. He also added: “The police applied to us because of four publications since the state of emergency was declared. In every single case they have contacted me directly, but I asked them to send a written notice from now on, as to put it mildly, I do not agree with the claim that the materials they are applying for are promoting panic.”
The police applied to Artur Sakunts, the head of the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor office in order him to delete his Facebook post. Touching upon the topic, Artur Sakunts noted: “This information has absolutely nothing to do with the Armenian reality, and it is not information that should be confirmed by a Commandant’s Office in the state of emergency. This may not be considered as official information. Confirmation, authorization or publishing of such information by the official body does not fit into logic. I find that this post may not be considered among the information that causes panic in a state of emergency.”
According to Aravot.am news agency, Satik Seyranyan, the editor-in-chief of 168.am news outlet was called by General Department of Criminal Investigation of the RA Police, and demanded to remove Hrant Bagratyan’s Facebook post. Satik Seyranyan stated in her speech: “Yesterday they called me from the General Department of Criminal Investigation, first, they tried to delete the post (the publication of Hrant Bagratyan’s Facebook post) from our website by means of our employee. I have demanded that they send us a written notice, because tomorrow, the next day, we must have a basis, they must justify, explain why they demand us to remove this publication. Websites are already in a messy situation, one news outlet is being forced to remove the publication, and another one meanwhile posts the same information. They called me from the General Department of Criminal Investigation, I responded them, it’s a state of emergency, we work at home, we are quarantined and I don’t always work in the same place.
According to Hraparak.am news agency, they were also forced to remove the Facebook post of former Prime Minister Hrant Bagratyan.
Paylak Fahradyan, editor of Irakanum.am, said they had not received a call from the Commandant’s Office to remove the material yet, but Armday.am, for example, had to remove the material including Hrant Bagratyan’s Facebook post.
Journalist Marine Kharatyan wrote on her Facebook page that police officers visited their home and on behalf of the Commandant Tigran Avinyan, urged her to delete her Facebook post on the occasion of a quarantine violation as it had caused panic in the country.
According to Araratnews.am news agency, they were forced to remove the journalist Marine Kharatyan’s Facebook post. Araratnews.am deleted the post and wrote: “The Facebook post of journalist Marine Kharatyan was posted here, and was removed at the request of the Commandant’s Office in accordance with the state of emergency regulations. However, we would like to draw the attention of the relevant bodies to the fact that it would have been more effective if they had been more consistent with the actual issue rather than demanding removal of this or that information.”
