Watchdog

YEREVAN -- A coalition of nongovernmental organizations in Armenia is calling for the release of all jailed opposition members, RFE/RL's Armenian Service reports.

The Partnership for Open Society, which unites about 50 NGOs involved in civic activism, said in an annual report on March 9 that the continued imprisonment of the opposition activists is a major source of political instability in the country.

The group also criticized the government's overall human rights record.

"Tensions between the government, the opposition, and the public will continue as long as the government delays the release of all political prisoners and the restoration of their rights," the report said, referring to about a dozen jailed oppositionist activists.

They were among more than 100 supporters of former President Levon Ter-Petrossian arrested following a disputed presidential election in February 2008. The authorities deny any political motives behind their prosecution.

The NGO coalition also accused the authorities of continuing to restrict freedom of assembly and speech and abetting human rights abuses committed by security agencies in 2010.

In particular, it denounced the government's continuing tight grip on the broadcast media.

The NGO coalition's report is aimed at assessing government actions stemming from Armenia's inclusion in the European Neighborhood Policy (ENP) program, which offers it the prospect of closer partnership with the EU conditional on political and economic reforms.

The report concludes that Yerevan officials have largely failed to deliver on reform pledges given to the EU.

"It is clear that in terms of political rights, Armenia's citizens are not better protected than they were in 2004 when the European Neighborhood Policy was initiated," one of the reports authors, Boris Navasardian of the Yerevan Press Club, told RFE/RL.

"True, a lot of paperwork has been done," he said. "But what has changed as a result of that in terms of civil rights?"

Navasardian also disagreed with the EU officials' overall satisfaction with Yerevan's ENP-related actions. "They don't seem to have a clear idea of how to work with former Soviet republics," he said.

CHISINAU -- A Moldovan human rights defender has condemned a recent visit to Chisinau by a leading American antigay activist and his statements against the homosexual community, RFE/RL's Moldovan Service reports.

Iulia Marcinschi, a leader of Moldova's Antidiscrimination Coalition, told RFE/RL today that Scott Lively's remarks in Chisinau last week constitute hate speech and should be condemned by the authorities.

During his visit, Lively said ending discrimination against gays would be the first step towards the "homosexualization" of society and would be followed by granting gay people the right to marry and adopt children.

Lively, who made trips to Uganda in 2009 when it was drafting some of the toughest antigay legislation in the world, was invited to Moldova by two local Orthodox Christian organizations, Pro Familia and Moldova Crestina.

Those groups oppose government efforts to pass an antidiscrimination bill required by the European Union as part of an association agreement Chisinau hopes to sign with Brussels.

The antidiscrimination bill contains a "sexual orientation" clause, which has angered conservative groups in Moldova.

The draft bill was approved by the government on February 17 but still needs to be passed by the parliament.

This week, leading members of parliament said they will not consider discussing the bill until the "sexual orientation" reference is removed.

The bill was also condemned by Moldova's Orthodox Church, which has called on parliament to reject it.

Vitalie Marian, vice president of Pro Familia, told RFE/RL today that he completely agreed with Lively's views and that he is pleased with the results of his visit and would invite him again "anytime."

Moldovan authorities have not commented publicly on Lively's trip or his comments.

But human rights activist Marcinschi said the Education Ministry replied to a February 24 letter from a gay rights organization sent before Lively's visit. In it, the ministry promised to prevent him from speaking at schools in the event that he had plans to do that.

Lively's only public appearance in Chisinau was a press conference on February 28 with local antigay activists at the headquarters of the InfoPrim Neo news agency.