EU ambassador to Armenia: You will have no human rights without rule of law

Political will is important in Armenia’s path to democracy, EU Ambassador to Armenia Andrea Wiktorin told reporters on Friday on the sidelines of a discussion on human rights protection in places of depravation of liberty and the institution of the human rights defender as a preventive mechanism.

“The political will is there. Now we have to do the implementation together,” Wiktorin said, adding the UN and EU stand ready to support Armenia in different fields.

“The important thing now is to go step by step to do the reforms you have foreseen and we will be there to help you,” she said.

The diplomat noted the EU is closely cooperating with the UN on the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and the 16 SGD goal is where the efforts meet.

In response to a question over the human rights situation in Armenia and the work of the Armenian government over the past one year and a half, the diplomat said she has ‘a comparison’.

“I think the situation really improved and I can only underline again that you have quite a lot of reforms that need to be implemented. You will have no human rights without rule of law,” the ambassador stressed.

“I am here now for four months, but I am really impressed by all the efforts done to bring forward the judiciary reform. The EU will be a big partner in this to support the process,” the ambassador said.

She added during the Partnership Committee meeting held in Brussels in December both sides agreed that a progress is being made. “But it doesn’t mean that we can stop, it doesn’t mean that everything is finalized tomorrow. So it really needs more time and continued engagement,” she stressed.

Andrea Wiktorin said to be also impressed by the Armenian government’s engagement in the development and implementation of the anti-corruption strategy.