Armenian government`s decision restricting press coverage of  wreath-laying ceremony at Armenian Genocide Memorial shameful - UJA

ArmInfo.The Department of Information and Public Relations of the Prime Minister's Office issued a message according to which only accredited photojournalists will be allowed to visit the Armenian Genocide Memorial (Tsitsernakaberd) during the government's wreath-laying ceremony on April 24, since the ceremony  will be of a protocol nature.

The press is allowed to attend only  after the government ceremonial part has passed. On this occasion,  the Union of Journalists of Armenia issued a statement in which it  called such a decision shameful, unacceptable and unprecedented.

According to the SJA, this is another noisy, shameful and  unprecedented attempt on the part of the current authorities of  Armenia to limit access to information and prevent the media from  fully performing their professional activities. With this  unacceptable decision, the authorities show their fears and, most  importantly, their attitude towards the work of the media and  journalists.

The statement notes that this is not the first time the press has  been denied access to such events. On January 28 of this year, on the  occasion of the formation of the Armenian Army, the authorities  rudely prohibited journalists from entering the Yerablur military  pantheon. "Such steps by the government of the country, which  declared itself a "bastion of democracy," and especially the  consistent nature of these steps, indicate a violation of democratic  values, including, first of all, unbridled measures directed against  freedom of speech and the press.

The Union of Journalists of Armenia strongly condemns this  anti-democratic behavior of the government and demands an immediate  review of this decision regarding the press and allowing media  representatives to freely cover the events of the anniversary of the  Armenian Genocide without time restrictions.