Our health condition is incompatible with imprisonment: three arrestees declare hunger strike, request meeting with prosecutor, justice minister

Two arrestees and one convict have refused to pass medical treatment at the Hospital of Convicts, convict Gegham Melkonyan told Aysor.am.

“I have fully admitted my guilt (robbery). I am sentenced to five years and four months. The prosecutor demanded 5 years and four months without taking into consideration any medical document proving that I am ill for already 17 years, I have chronic diseases, I am in post-traumatic condition,” the convict said, adding that he declared hunger strike and refuses to drink water either.

“I claim that my punishment is very long, it could have been less, especially when the other side has no complains and demands from me. The prosecutor says – you are not ill if you manage to commit a crime,” the convict said.

Melkonyan stressed that during the 9 months of imprisonment he was 16 times transported to Erebuni and St Gregory the Illuminator medical centers. Once he was transported to Cardiology Institute with heart failure.

“I do not say release me, I say reduce the punishment term for at least a year as my diseases are extremely grave,” he said.

Arrestee Vanik Galstyan told Aysor.am that his demand is the same. His health condition is incompatible with the arrest.

“I have undergone heart surgery. Now I am kept in custody which is not allowed. Every day they say today or tomorrow we will examine you and say whether to release you or not. I am in custody for already 8 months. I underwent surgery 7 months ago. I have heart diseases but it has never been voiced at court. I have been kept in Hospital of Convicts for eight months. I have been kept on nitroglycerin. They took me to surgery at the very last second. Now I am just a 30% person. Can a 30% person be kept in jail? We have refused to take medicine and are going to die. Yesterday the head of the jail came and said – Vanik, you will not handle it, stop the hunger strike – but I will not,” Galstyan said.

They said the third person who declared a hunger strike is Karen Hovhannisyan who suffered a stroke.

“He is kept here illegally, without any facts. There are people in freedom who say we did it and have proofs but no one listens to them,” Gegham Melkonyan said.

He said that he and Vanik Galstyan admit their guilt but being kept in jail is incompatible with their health while Karen Hovhannisyan demands to be set free as he does not admit the charges against him.

Grigoryan said they want to draw the attention of the prosecutor, justice minister, NA deputies and government representatives to their issue and request meeting with them.