UMBA concerned over legal actions against businessmen and government  officials 

ArmInfo. The Union of Manufacturers and Businessmen of Armenia (UMBA) expresses deep  concern about the recent disproportionate actions of the legal system against businessmen and government officials. 

As noted in the UMBA-issued statement received by ArmInfo, while  advocating the need to fully disclose any violation of the law and  punish the perpetrators, the Union nevertheless considers it  unacceptable when, in the case of an alleged economic crime, even at  the preliminary stage of the investigation of the case, when guilt  has not even been established , extreme methods of suppression,  including detention, are unreasonably applied to businessmen, as well  as government officials.

"A recent example of the above is the arrest of the founder and  director of SYNERGY Ashot Oganesyan and other defendants in the same  case, when the latter were deprived of the opportunity to engage in  normal activities, their business reputation suffered, and the  corresponding case is still under investigation. We believe that such  a preventive measure is disproportionate and unjustified. Such an  approach to businessmen leaves a negative imprint both on their  initiative and on attracting foreign investment," the statement  reads.

A criminal case was opened against a number of officials of the  Ministry of Economy and representatives of the private sector on  January 31. According to investigators, as part of the tender  "Creation of a bank for public investment programs," officials  entered into a conspiracy with the head of one of the companies,  creating artificial obstacles to the participation of its competitor.  As a result, the company that submitted an application three times  more expensive (392 million drams - almost $100 thousand) won. Later  it became known that the company in question was Synergy. Currently,  the director of the company, Ashot Hovhannisyan, has been arrested in  connection with the case; former employee of the company, daughter-  in-law of the Speaker of Parliament Ani Gevorkyan; another employee  of the company, as well as the head of the public investment policy  department of the Ministry of Energy, Lily Sirakanyan. The dismissed  Deputy Minister of Economy Ani Ispiryan was placed under house  arrest.

The day before it was reported that the decisions to arrest the  founder-director and employee of the Synergy International Systems  company Ashot Hovhannisyan and Lily Mkryan as part of the case of  abuse and abuse of power in the Ministry of Economy of Armenia were  appealed to the Court of Appeal. Earlier, the Prosecutor General's  Office of Armenia received a request for personal guarantee from  deputies of the "Civil Contract" faction in this case.