People in Armenian should not face persecution for their political views, a spokesperson of the Prosperous Armenia party (PAP) has said.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Tigran Urikhanyan stressed that anyone who committed a crime should be held accountable regardless of party affiliation.

Asked whether the court ruling to convict the young activists of the opposition Armenian National Congress for 2-6 years is fair, the PAP member said the party has already voiced its position on the issue.

“The Secretary of the PAP faction, Naira Zohrabyan, has given an exhaustive answer to the question, naturally expressing concerns over both the terms of imprisonment they received and the process in general,” he noted.

Urikhanyan shares the viewpoint that the sentence is stricter than it could have been.

As to why PAP is not joining the protests calling for the young activists’ release, he said it is necessary to take more effective measures.