Gevorgyan's associates demanded a response from EU authorities regarding his death in the pre-trial detention center.

The death of oppositionist Arsen Gevorgyan in the Yerevan pre-trial detention center "Nubarashen" and the alleged political persecution in Armenia require a public response from the European Union, said the politician's associates today during a protest at the EU representation in Yerevan.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on November 10, Arsen Gevorgyan, a candidate from the opposition party "Strong Armenia" for the head of the Stepanavan community, died in the Yerevan pre-trial detention center "Nubarashen". He was arrested on October 21 on charges of bribing voters, which he denied. According to preliminary reports, the cause of death was a heart attack, while the party blamed the initiators of the criminal prosecution of oppositionists for what happened.

Associates of Arsen Gevorgyan from the "Strong Armenia" party, led by entrepreneur Samvel Karapetyan, held a protest at the EU representation in Yerevan on November 11 under the slogan "Justice for Arsen Gevorgyan". Participants of the protest demanded that European authorities publicly respond to the death of the oppositionist in the pre-trial detention center and the alleged political persecution in Armenia.

"This is our main demand – belonging to the opposition should not be punishable by law," said parliament member from the "Strong Armenia" faction Areka Ovsepyan, whose words were quoted today by the news agency "News-Armenia".

Ovsepyan expressed dissatisfaction with the lack of a public response from the European Union to what is happening in Armenia. According to her, Gevorgyan was detained because of his opposition views and participation in the municipal elections in Stepanavan from the opposition party. The deputy called on European structures to pay attention to this situation and make it public.

In her speech at the EU representation, Ovsepyan also questioned the justification for Gevorgyan's arrest and demanded to clarify the circumstances of the medical assistance provided to him. She pointed out the need to establish the time of the ambulance's arrival and to check how timely and adequate the medical assistance was for the detainee, reported today by the Armenian publication Oragir.news.

The deputy stated that during the election campaign she walked a lot with Gevorgyan and did not hear any complaints from him about his health. Ovsepyan expressed confidence that if the oppositionist had remained free, his death could have been avoided. At the same time, she acknowledged that such a conclusion is based on assumption, and the circumstances of what happened require further clarification.

Ovsepyan placed the responsibility for the persecution of oppositionists on the Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan. In her assessment, the authorities use detention as a means of pressure on political opponents. The deputy stated that European structures should openly speak about the state of democracy in Armenia and cases of selective criminal prosecution of oppositionists.

In connection with Gevorgyan's death, a criminal case has been initiated in Armenia, and a forensic examination has been appointed. The Ombudsman's office has also begun to investigate the circumstances of Gevorgyan's death and intends to request clarifications from the competent state authorities, noted today on its website by the Public Radio of Armenia. The publication noted that earlier the Anti-Corruption Committee accused Gevorgyan of giving money to several dozen voters in exchange for votes for "Strong Armenia", but the politician himself did not admit the accusation.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that criminal cases against representatives of the Armenian opposition have repeatedly become grounds for accusations against the Armenian authorities of political persecution. Thus, on November 5 of this year, the court detained for a month the leader of the "Strong Armenia" party, Samvel Karapetyan, in a case of financial abuses in the company "Electric Networks of Armenia". Karapetyan rejected the accusations, and his supporters stated that they were politically motivated.

On October 23, 2026, the Anti-Corruption Court extended the detention of former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan and his son Sedrak, who are accused in a case of corruption and legalization of criminal proceeds. Opposition representatives called the criminal prosecution of Kocharyan politically motivated.

On June 24, the court arrested for two months the coordinator of the "Ayakve" movement, Avetik Chalabyan, in a case of preparing to obstruct the exercise of voting rights. His associates called the arrest part of a policy of pressure on the opposition.