Court hears CivilNet case against Avinyan over media insult

By Gevorg Tosunyan

The Yerevan Civil Court on Monday heard arguments in a defamation case brought by the Civilitas Foundation, parent organization of CivilNet, against Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan over a televised remark that the foundation believes targeted CivilNet with offensive language.

The case centers around a December 2024 broadcast on Factor TV, during which Avinyan, debating with former Yerevan mayor Hayk Marutyan, referred to the media as having “become one big garbage dump.” Civilitas argues that the statement was aimed squarely at CivilNet in retaliation for an investigative report it published in partnership with the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which alleged that a business linked to Avinyan’s family benefited from state funds while he served as deputy prime minister.

During Monday’s hearing, Civilitas’ lawyer Karen Tonoyan argued that the comment was not a general critique of the media but a targeted insult against CivilNet. He cited the context of the live debate, where Marutyan had just referenced CivilNet’s investigation, and Avinyan directly mentioned the outlet by name.

“Avinyan’s words clearly tied his frustration over CivilNet’s article,” Tonoyan said in court. “His remark — ‘media here has become one big garbage dump’ — was not a general statement but a response aimed at discrediting a specific report and outlet.”

Tonoyan supported his argument with references to dictionary definitions, legal precedents from Armenia’s Court of Cassation and the European Court of Human Rights, and a December 2024 statement from the Journalists’ Union of Armenia. That statement criticized Avinyan’s language and confirmed that his remarks appeared specifically directed at CivilNet.

In contrast, Avinyan’s legal representative, Vahagn Gasparyan, argued that the mayor’s statement was not defamation and was not intended to target CivilNet or journalists in general. He insisted that the remark was a “value judgment” based on existing disputes and precedents where courts had found journalistic standards lacking in certain cases.

Gasparyan also contested the admissibility of some of the evidence presented by Civilitas, particularly video recordings, arguing that they had not yet been properly submitted through formal procedures. He dismissed the Journalists’ Union’s statement as irrelevant to the legal merits of the case.

The court has already postponed the initial hearing once, after the mayor failed to appear, with Judge Tigran Grigoryan denying a motion to allow a proxy to represent Avinyan due to the absence of proper legal authorization.

The next hearing in the case is scheduled for August 27.

While Civilitas is not seeking financial compensation, it is requesting that Avinyan issue a public apology on live television and that the court ruling be published on Factor TV’s website.

The case plays out against the backdrop of another legal battle: Avinyan has filed a separate lawsuit against CivilNet, demanding 3 million drams (roughly $7,500) in damages and the removal of the investigative article. The report in question detailed how, during Avinyan’s tenure overseeing Armenia’s agricultural subsidy program, several beneficiaries contracted services from Irrigate LLC — a company owned by his father — raising concerns over conflicts of interest.

Also read: Trial begins in CivilNet’s lawsuit against Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan