Antifake  representatives accuse Armenian Ombudsman`s Office of  silence amid health deteriorations of Imnemnimi podcaster

ArmInfo. Representatives of the fact-checking and information website "Antifake" held a protest outside the Armenian Ombudsman's Office, accusing the institution of inaction regarding the deteriorating health of Narek  Samsonyan. The Imnemnimi podcast hosts has been on a hunger strike  for 11 days.

Protesters brought eleven plastic plates of food to the Armenian  Ombudsman's Office to symbolize each days of the hunger strike. They  highlighted a critical incident on January 18, when Samsonyan's  health reportedly took a sharp turn for a worse.  Astghik Matevosyan,  editor of Antifake and Narek Samsonyan's lawyer, noted that, despite  these developments, the Human Rights Ombudsman's Office has not  issued a single statement, released a single report, or visited  Samsonyan. She stated that the purpose of the protest was not to  request future action, but to formally document the perceived failure  of the state's primary human rights body to fulfill its mandate.

It should be noted that during the demonstration, a man from the  office emerged to remove the plates.  Later, Artur Aslanyan,  spokesperson for the Ombudsman's office, informed the group that the  Human Rights Defender was prepared to meet with a three-person  delegation. Matevosyan and several colleagues entered the building to  present their grievances directly.

Notably, the press secretary declined to answer questions, stating  that he was not personally aware of the details and that no formal  application had been submitted regarding the situation. However, he  assured them that the Ombudsperson Anahit Manasyan is taking action  on her own initiative, without specifying what those actions  entailed. Addressing the office's public silence, Aslanyan cited  medical confidentiality.  Matevosyan countered this by pointing to  international precedents where Human Rights Defenders publicly  address such cases regardless of privacy constraints.