Armenian Podcasters Detained Amid Renewed Pressure on Independent Voices

Horizon Weekly — Two well-known Armenian podcasters, Vazgen Saghatelyan and Narek Samsonyan of the popular Imnemnimi show, were detained early Thursday following coordinated police searches at their homes and workplaces. The arrests came after Armenia’s Parliament Speaker, Alen Simonyan, filed a complaint against them over alleged “insulting remarks,” a charge the authorities quickly translated into criminal proceedings.

According to their lawyers, the case bears all the signs of political retribution. Just days before their arrest, the duo had released an episode featuring former President Serzh Sargsyan, one of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s chief political rivals, an interview that gained widespread attention online. Within forty-eight hours, prosecutors opened a case and police carried out early morning raids, seizing electronic devices and personal records.

Legal observers and opposition members argue that the official justification, “hooliganism,” is both vague and inappropriate for what is essentially speech-related activity. “We are witnessing the criminalization of criticism,” one lawyer noted, adding that such methods reflect a broader effort to silence dissenting platforms ahead of next year’s parliamentary elections.

In recent years, the Armenian government has increasingly blurred the line between maintaining public order and controlling public opinion. Commentators note that the state’s threshold for what constitutes an “insult” has steadily narrowed, while its tolerance for scrutiny has all but disappeared. The result is an atmosphere in which even microphones must now measure their words.

This latest episode has therefore resonated far beyond the podcasting community. For many Armenians, it carries symbolic weight: when a country begins detaining its commentators, it is not the insult but the insecurity that reveals itself.

Behind the legal language and procedural formality lies a deeper unease, the sense that Armenia’s democratic promise is giving way to a culture of punishment and fear. Once celebrated as a nation of debate and resilience, it now faces the risk of becoming one where conversation itself is placed under arrest.