Russia has always been in focus of Armenian bloggers’ attention. On the newly opened E-channel blog Lragrox is reporting, that the “Educated Media” foundation, the legal successor of “Internews” media organization widely recognized among journalists, has been forced to halt its activities. Lragrox approaches the problem from the Armenian point of view:
This is especially dangerous, because the Armenian government usually tries to follow the big brother and repeat its actions. They say – the bad example is especially appealing. Hopefully the Internews Armenia staff will pay their taxes and report their amounts in due time. It sounds like a bad joke, but it is alas the sad truth. Let me know what you think…
I think it’s worth pointing out again that those in opposition or representing an alternative view to the authorities need to make sure they always work and act within the law. My understanding is that the Russian authorities have done this on the basis of investigating the financial activities of the organization after criminal charges were brought against its head who broke the law upon entering Russia.
A1 Plus reports that Manana Aslamazyan brought money into the country without declaring it. Yes, the authorities exploited this fact, but really, people should understand that this is what they do — wait for any violation of the law to close down operations. As Lragrox says, people need to be careful. I know for a fact that many alternative media outlets are taking money under the table for writing critical pieces and articles against the government.