Georgia violates the rights of Javakhk Armenians
Haykazun Alvrtsyan, an expert on Javakhk issues, does not share the opinion that Javakhk-based “Haravayin Darpas” (Southern Gate) newspaper, which was closed down a week ago, and the company’s website lack readers and cannot justify the financial investments. Rather, the expert says the website was closed for its policy. “Recently, the website has been seriously criticizing local authorities,” Mr. Alvrtsyan said adding that the same fate awaits all Armenian media outlets operating in Javakhk. “By closing down Armenian websites and newspapers Georgian authorities violate Javakhk people’s right to information,” he stressed. For his part, publicist Merujan Ter-Gulanyan says as long as Javakhk does not have cultural autonomy, it will encounter similar problems. “If a country bans the access of newspapers of other countries in its territory, it cannot be considered a democratic country,” he said.
