Gagik Khachatryan—Armenia’s former Minister of Finance and ex-chairman of the State Revenue Committee—was deprived of the constitutional right to healthcare, and a report was filed about the crime. His attorneys noted this in a statement which reads as follows:

Khachatryans' Legal Team claims that an entire state apparatus, with all its might, illegally transferred Gagik Khachatryan from Astghik Medical Center to the Yerevan-Kentron penitentiary, depriving him of his constitutional right to healthcare. After that, as usual, the manipulative excuses of state officials began.

1. The facts aren’t presented completely

The legal team specifies, "The RA Ministry of Justice and the RA Minister of Justice Rustam Badasyan, without checking the facts, were quick to announce that Gagik Khachatryan was allegedly discharged from Astghik Medical Center by the decision of the center, but we consider it necessary to note that, unfortunately, the latter do not fully present the facts and manipulate the reality of the situation, the evidence of which we will present if necessary. This is for the beneficiary authorities’ information.

For now, we will leave you with this—according to the document of "Astghik" Medical Center, referred to by the Ministry of Justice, Gagik Khachatryan is discharged on the basis of the decision No. E-863 of the Director of the "Penitentiary Medicine" SNCO of the RA Ministry of Justice. We repeat, not by the decision of "Astghik" Medical Center was he discharged based on improvement of condition, but on the basis of the decision of the director of the SNCO.

By the way, according to the Minister's announcement, the discharge took place at 16:00, but the employees of the penitentiary service of the RA Ministry of Justice and the doctor of "Penitentiary Medicine Center" SNCO arrived at the "Astghik" MC at 14:00 to forcibly transfer Gagik Khachatryan. State officials may have possibly anticipated the discharge.

2. Officials say Gagik Khachatryan has been transferred to continue his treatment

In fact, the above-mentioned officials told the hospital staff that Gagik Khachatryan was being transferred to another place to continue the necessary treatment, but in reality he had to be transferred and was transferred to the penitentiary institution, the circumstances of which were revealed after the intervention of the legal team.

Therefore, it should be noted that the detained patient can be discharged from the hospital in 3 cases:

1. At the patient’s request

2. In case of improvement of the patient

3. At the request of the authorized officials of the RA Ministry of Justice.

3. Gagik Khachatryan not only needs surgical treatment of neck stenosis but also is instructed to continue therapeutic and rehabilitation treatment

As for the first point, we would like to inform you that Gagik Khachatryan did not express a wish to be discharged. As for the second point, based on available documents, including ones at the disposal of the RA Ministry of Justice, Gagik Khachatryan not only needs surgical treatment of neck stenosis but also is instructed to continue the therapeutic and rehabilitation treatment.

It turns out that Gagik Khachatryan's discharge should have taken place at the request of the authorised body. It is for that exact reason we submitted a corresponding inquiry to "Astghik" Medical Center, where they informed in writing that a request regarding Gagik Khachatryan's discharge had been sent to the "Penitentiary Medicine Center" SNCO of the RA Ministry of Health, the response of which will determine whether or not Gagik Khachatryan will be discharged. At the moment, as of 18:36 (22.05.2020), there is no initiative or order to discharge.

Prior to the transfer, the officials and the doctor who came with them were also informed about this. Moreover, the members of the legal team presented the above-mentioned note to them as well.

The RA Penitentiary Service was also informed about this through the hotline operator. We also sent the note to the relevant e-mail address of the service and asked them to find out from the medical center whether Gagik Khachatryan had been discharged at the time of the transfer or not. The requests and demands have been deliberately ignored.

4. State officials have a vested interest in the case of Gagik Khachatryan

And after all this, the RA Ministry of Justice informs that the state officials do not have a vested interest in transferring Gagik Khachatryan to a penitentiary institution.

And finally, the following question: Why did the employees of the RA Ministry of Justice illegally interrupt Gagik Khachatryan's treatment again on January 22, 2020 at Astghik MC to transfer him to a penitentiary institution? Why did the Director of the "Penitentiary Medicine" SNCO of the RA Ministry of Justice demand from the Chief Physician of "Astghik" MC by letter No. E-535 to discuss the possibility of terminating Gagik Khachatryan's inpatient treatment in a short period of time? Which was an obvious example of the state body putting pressure on the medical center to interrupt Gagik Khachatryan’s treatment. Based on all of this, on 01.04.2020 Gagik Khachatryan's lawyer asked the director of the SNCO to refrain from unnecessary interference in Gagik Khachatryan's treatment as well as from putting indirect pressure on the Civil Medical Center to stop his treatment."

As for the minister's statement that a report will be submitted to the Prosecutor General's Office to prepare materials, we inform that Khachatryan's legal team submitted such a report on the crime yesterday, which probably forced the minister to make such a statement. The announcement is an attempt to create the impression that the Ministry of Justice is the initiator of the already ongoing process, but this is not the case.