MPG Poll: Majority of Armenians believe country has political  prisoners

ArmInfo.More than half of the Armenian public (55%) believes the country currently holds political prisoners. The "Bazar-Blot" poll, conducted by MPG (the Armenian affiliate of the Gallup International Association),  highlights growing public concern over judicial independence and political persecution. Another 22% of respondents believe there are none, and another 23% found it difficult to answer.

When asked to name specific individuals they consider political  prisoners, respondents pointed most frequently to Samvel Karapetyan,  the businessman and leader of the "Strong Armenia" party. Karapetyan  was cited by 31.3% of those polled.  The list of figures identified  by the public as being politically targeted includes prominent  religious and social leaders:  Samvel Karapetyan: 31.3% Archbishop  Bagrat Galstanyan (leader of "Sacred Struggle" movement): 20.3%  Archbishop Mikael Ajapahyan (Primate of the Diocese of Shirak): 11.0%  Davit and Mikael Minasyan (students): 5.5% Vardan Ghukasyan (former  Mayor of Gyumri): 5.5% Narek Samsonyan & Vazgen Saghatelyan (hosts of  Imnemnimi"): 4.3% (combined)

Note, that the telephone survey was conducted with  100 respondents  in Armenia from April 1 to April 3 of this year. The sample size was  100 people, with a sampling error of +/- 3%.  In 2011, MPG became the  official representative of the Gallup Association in Armenia, one of  the most prestigious and independent public opinion research  organizations in the world. Since 2003, MPG has implemented  over 800  projects of varying sizes in the sociological and marketing research.