Robert Kocharyan Criticizes Renewed Trial as "Legal Hooliganism," Says He Was Forced Back Into Politics Due to Armenia's Crisis

Robert Kocharyan, Armenia's former president, has strongly criticized the reopening of his trial, calling it "legal hooliganism." His comments come after a new trial against him began in late September, more than three years after his acquittal in a high-profile case related to post-election violence in 2008.

Kocharyan, along with his former chief of staff Armen Gevorgyan and two retired military generals, is being prosecuted again in connection with the tragic events of March 2008 in Yerevan. The violence, which followed disputed presidential elections, left eight protesters and two police officers dead. The four men had previously been cleared of charges related to an alleged "overthrow of the constitutional order" in April 2021, after Armenia’s Constitutional Court ruled that the charges were unconstitutional.

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Despite their acquittal, prosecutors have pushed to reopen the case with a new accusation related to the same 2008 events. The Court of Cassation granted permission for the new trial last month. Kocharyan, however, views this as a politically motivated effort to target him and his associates.

Speaking to journalists after attending the second hearing of the new trial, Kocharyan shared his frustration with the ongoing legal proceedings: "For more than one and a half years, I was imprisoned illegally, under a non-existent article of the Criminal Code, and neither the prosecutors nor any other state body has apologized to me," he said.

He went on to accuse the prosecution of using dubious tactics to bring the case back to court. "On the contrary, through some deception, they are bringing the case back to court for certain purposes. What is happening is legal hooliganism," he stated.

Kocharyan also addressed his return to politics, explaining that it was driven by the nation’s crisis: "There is no denying that, if it is about engaging in politics or not engaging in politics, I have not engaged in politics since April 9, 2008," he said, referring to the end of his presidential term. "Since 2018, politics has started to engage with me. The position does not have the sweetness that invisible people can cling to."

He said that Armenia's current situation left him no choice but to reenter the political arena. "I believe the country is in danger, and that forces me to return to politics. Until those threats are resolved, it is my and my team’s right to return to politics," he said. His remarks reflect his deep concern about Armenia’s challenges, particularly in the wake of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, which saw the country lose the entire territory to Azerbaijani occupation.

Despite the trial's renewal, it remains unclear what specific charges Kocharyan and his co-defendants—Gevorgyan, former Defense Minister Seyran Ohanyan, and former army chief of staff Yury Khachaturov—are currently facing. Prosecutors have yet to formally present a new accusation. However, the presiding judge and a trial prosecutor have maintained that all four men are "defendants" in the case.

At the start of the trial, Kocharyan rejected the notion that he was an official defendant. "I am not an accused; I have come here to show good will," he told the court, before leaving the dock, where defendants typically sit, to join his legal team.

This new trial is the latest chapter in a long and contentious legal battle stemming from the political unrest in 2008. The violence erupted after mass protests over the outcome of the presidential election, which Kocharyan had overseen. Opposition figures, including current Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, led the protests. The former government, headed by Kocharyan and his allies, viewed the demonstrations as an attempt to overthrow the state by force.

Pashinyan himself was imprisoned for nearly two years for his role in the protests. However, he later emerged as a key political figure and rose to power in 2018 after leading Armenia’s "Velvet Revolution," a peaceful uprising that ended the long rule of the country’s previous leadership. Since becoming prime minister, Pashinyan’s government has faced accusations from opposition groups of targeting political rivals, including Kocharyan, through selective prosecution.

In 2021, after the Constitutional Court cleared Kocharyan and his co-defendants of the coup charges, the former president continued to face legal challenges. He and Gevorgyan were put on trial for separate corruption charges. However, that trial ended without a verdict in December 2022, and Kocharyan managed to avoid further punishment when the statute of limitations expired in May 2023.

The judge who presided over Kocharyan’s corruption trial, Anna Danibekyan, was controversially removed from the bench in July 2023. The government, along with a judicial oversight body led by an ally of Prime Minister Pashinyan, accused Danibekyan of allowing Kocharyan to deliberately delay the trial. Her removal has raised concerns about political interference in Armenia’s judiciary, with Kocharyan’s supporters arguing that it shows the government’s desire to manipulate the legal process to its advantage.

Kocharyan’s supporters argue that the legal challenges he faces are part of a broader effort by Pashinyan’s government to weaken the opposition and distract from Armenia’s ongoing challenges, including security threats and economic difficulties.

Kocharyan, for his part, has consistently maintained that the charges against him are politically motivated. He has vowed to continue his political career despite the legal battles. With the new trial now underway and no clear resolution in sight, the case remains a focal point of tension in Armenia’s already polarized political environment.