Due to a court case initiated by the Freedom of Information Center of Armenia on February 19, 2013, the court decision an administrative penalty (fine in the amount of 80.000 AMD, 30.000 AMD from which is for not providing information to the FOICA’s first request, and 50.000 AMD for not providing information to the FOICA’s second request) was imposed to the head of the “Daughter Marianna” Co. Ltd Tigran Vardanyan for not providing information to the Freedom of Information Center’s information requests. The court also obliged the head of the “Daughter Marianna” Co. Ltd to compensate court expenses of the FOICA for 100.000 AMD and the 3.000 AMD state fee paid by the FOICA. By the way, this is the second judicial precedent, when an administrative penalty was imposed on an official for failing to provide information.
On November 18, 2011, the FOICA sent an information request to the head of the “Daughter Marianna” Co. Ltd Tigran Vardanyan asking to inform are the milk products of the company are produced by natural or not natural milk, as well as providing a list of which milk product of the company is from a natural milk, which is not, and/or provide an information on the quantity of natural milk in each milk product. The company left the FOICA’s request unanswered. On December 6, 2011, the FOICA sent the second information request.
In response to the FOICA’s second request on December 16, 2011, the company replied, that the requested information is marked on each packet of the company’s product, as well, there was a referral to the company’s website. However, the requested information was available neither on the packet of the company’s products nor on the company’s website.
On December 19, 2011, the FOICA filed a lawsuit in the RA Administrative Court (for more information, see https://foi.am/en/all-cases/item/964/). By the decision made on February 19, 2013, the RA Administrative court satisfied the FOICA’s claim, imposing an administrative penalty on the head of the “Daughter Marianna” Co. Ltd Tigran Vardanyan for not providing information to the Freedom of Information Center’s information requests. And obliging to compensate court expenses of the FOICA.
