Current Issues in the RA Armed Forces Require Serious Solutions
According to the president of Peace Dialogue NGO, the resolution of these issues requires a compound approach.
According to the president of Peace Dialogue NGO Edgar Khachatryan, the current issues in the RA armed forces require serious treatment. The researches carried out by the NGO within its project Safe Soldiers for a Safe Armenia show that such issues are numerous and require urgent solutions.
“The current issues in the army are numerous. It is a serious issue when in most cases a soldier’s murder is presented as a suicide. The conclusions and the reports by our specialist show that the investigative body does not take proper and accurate actions and the cases are being closed. In some cases the fingerprints on the weapon disappear no matter it was a murder or a suicide”, said Edgar Khachatryan to “Aravot”. He also added that similar issues occurred both in the actions of the investigative body and in the judicial system.
In addition, the NGO president mentions that there are also issues connected with corruption and the implementation of the disciplinary statute.
“Now in the army we have issues with corruption and with the implementation of the statute. It is a major problem when a random person can become a high-rank officer and do whatever he wants only by paying money to some people”, says the president.
According to him, the problem of establishing order in the army, however, should not rely only on the soldier’s self-consciousness: the state plays a serious role in here. “The responsibility of the state is to establish order in the army not just leave it on the soldier’s self-consciousness; the soldier’s self-consciousness plays a little role in this issue. A compound approach is required”, says Edgar Khachatryan. However, he also mentions that it is again the society that should make the state work. “There is both lack of political will from the authorities to resolve the current issues and lack of civil demand when the citizen himself demands from the authorities solutions to the issue of establishing order in the army”.
To bring a change to this situation the project Safe Soldiers for a Safe Armenia initiated by Peace Dialogue NGO last year also aims at raising the level of demands in the society. Within the project an internet website has been made related to the RA armed forces. Moreover, activities are carried out with future conscripts in order to make them aware of their rights in the army. “Although the current situation in the army is not only the result of the lack of awareness, nevertheless, a conscious person is more likely to protect his/her rights, be a claimer and form that civil demand. If you shape a demanding citizen, he/ she can present his/her demand on his own”, summarizes Edgar Khachatryan.
Author: www.aravot.am
Posted 14 March, 2014
