Armenia’s leading independent television station Forced Out Of Yerevan Offices

Wednesday 20, July 2005
Armenialiberty.com

By Ruzanna Khachatrian

[...]
The once popular A1+ channel removed its equipment from two rooms in a building belonging to the National Academy of Sciences and has until Saturday to vacate the rest of the editorial offices which it has leased for over 10 years.

The eviction followed A1+’s defeat in a court battle with the Academy which wants its property back, citing the need to accommodate the staff of two research institutes that were relocated from another building in the city center last year.
[...]
[...] Its owner and chief executive, Mesrop Movsesian, believes that the eviction was initiated by the authorities with the aim of finally closing his company.
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"What surprises me is that there are also other organizations based in this building and none of them has been told to immediately leave the offices,” he said.
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“Today I sent a letter to the prime minister asking for his intervention.”
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A1+ was the only TV channel that regularly aired criticism of President Robert Kocharian and his government. It lost its broadcasting license in April 2002 after a disputed tender that was granted to a newly created pro-government company. The move was condemned by local and international media groups as a serious blow to press freedom in Armenia.
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Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.