The Republic of Armenia will engage in the Perincek v. Switzerland case as a third party, Press Service of the Prosecutor General’s Office of Aremnai reports.
On August 20, 2014 Armenian Prosecutor General Gevorg Kostanyan had sent an official application to the European Court of Human Rights to engage in the Dogu Perincek case as a third party.
The Court’s Grand Chamber confirmed Armenia’s participation today. The hearing is scheduled for January 28, 2015.
Armenia will have an opportunity to present its stance at the sitting. Before that the Armenian party will submit its position on the issue in a written form.
Turkey is also engaged in the Perincek v. Switzerland case as a third party
Remind that under the provisions of the Swiss law, in 2007, Turkish citizen Dogu Perincek was convicted for denying the Armenian Genocide. Failing to win two appeals against the judgment, Perincek appealed the ECHR, which on December 17 ruled that the Swiss courts’ rulings violated the appellant’s right to freedom of expression.
The ECHR ruling in December stated that “the free exercise of the right to openly discuss questions of a sensitive and controversial nature is one of the fundamental aspects of freedom of expression and distinguishes a tolerant and pluralistic democratic society from a totalitarian or dictatorial regime.”
Switzerland’s Federal Office of Justice (FoJ) later requested to have the case of Dogu Perincek referred to the Grand Chamber for review.
