Category: 2019

                                        Friday, 
Head Of Armenian Judicial Watchdog Resigns
Armenia -- Gagik Harutiunian, head of the Supreme Judicial Council, speaks at 
the council headquarters in Yerevan, April 10, 2019.
Gagik Harutiunian, the head of a state body overseeing Armenia’s courts, 
resigned on Friday, citing recent days’ developments that followed the 
government’s strong criticism of the Armenian judiciary.
In what may have been a related development, Harutiunian’s brother Arzuman was 
dismissed as deputy director of the National Security Service. No official 
reason was given for the sacking proposed by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and 
formalized by President Armen Sarkissian.
In a letter publicized by his spokesman, Harutiunian said he no longer finds it 
“expedient” to head the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC) “in view of ongoing 
developments relating to the judicial authority and courts and my concerns 
expressed in that regard through the media on May 20.”
“I wish you continued fruitful activities in the establishment of an 
independent judicial authority befitting a rule-of-law state,” read the letter 
addressed to members of the council.
The concerns cited by Harutiunian followed Pashinian’s May 19 appeal to his 
supporters to block the entrances to all court buildings in the country. The 
appeal came the day after a Yerevan court ordered former President Robert 
Kocharian released from jail pending the outcome of his trial on coup and 
corruption charges. The court’s decision angered many allies and supporters of 
Pashinian.
Armenia -- Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian visits protesters outside a court 
building in Yerevan, May 20, 2019.
Speaking at a May 20 meeting with senior state officials, Pashinian said that 
Armenian courts remain linked to “the former corrupt system” and distrusted by 
the population. He announced plans for a mandatory “vetting” of all judges. 
Many of them should resign even before the start of such a process, the prime 
minister said.
Harutiunian was among the officials invited to the emergency meeting. However, 
he did not attend it because of being unable to leave the SJC building in 
downtown Yerevan blockaded by government loyalists.
Two dozen protesters again rallied outside the building on Thursday, demanding 
the resignation of Harutiunian as well as judges.
Pashinian’s calls for the court blockade were denounced as unconstitutional by 
Armenia’s leading opposition groups. The SJC likewise said in a statement that 
any pressure on the courts is “unacceptable.”
The SJC was formed just over a year ago in accordance with sweeping 
constitutional changes enacted in 2015. According to Armenia’s amended 
constitution, its main mission is to “guarantee the independence of the courts 
and the judges.”
Armenia -- Gagik Harutiunian reads out a Constitutional Court ruling in 
Yerevan, April 28, 2017.
The council has the power to nominate virtually all new judges appointed by 
Armenia’s president and parliament. It is also empowered to take disciplinary 
action against judges or have them terminated altogether.
Harutiunian, 71, headed the Armenian Constitutional Court before until being 
elected SJC chairman in February 2018 by the country’s former parliament 
controlled by Serzh Sarkisian’s Republican Party.
A Communist Party figure in Soviet times, Harutiunian had been elected in 1990 
deputy speaker of Armenia’s first post-Communist parliament. He served as 
vice-president in the administration of Levon Ter-Petrosian, Armenia’s first 
president elected in 1991.
Harutiunian became chairman of the newly established Constitutional Court in 
1996 shortly after the post of vice-president was abolished by the 
Ter-Petrosian administration. The court has rarely handed down rulings 
challenging the former Armenian presidents.
Armenian Parliament Holds Hearings On ‘Transitional Justice’
        • Ruzanna Stepanian
Armenia -- Parliament speaker Ararat Mirzoyan speaks during parliamnetary 
hearings on transitional justice, Yerevan, .
The National Assembly held on Friday hearings on the introduction of 
“transitional justice” in Armenia which Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian regards 
as a major element of judicial reforms planned by him.
Pashinian told the parliament dominated by his allies to start working on 
“mechanisms for transitional justice” when he held on Monday an emergency 
meeting with senior state officials. The meeting came as his supporters blocked 
the entrances to court buildings across the country.
Pashinian called for such a blockade on Sunday following a Yerevan court’s 
decision to release his bitter foe and former President Robert Kocharian from 
custody. “The judicial authority does not enjoy the people’s trust and 
therefore lacks sufficient legitimacy to act,” he said, demanding a mandatory 
“vetting” of all judges.
According to Deputy Justice Minister Anna Vardapetian, such vetting should be 
part of transitional justice. “This in no way presupposes any humiliating 
processes,” she insisted during the hearings attended by lawmakers, government 
officials and legal experts.
“Vetting is done to verify the integrity of individuals holding public 
positions,” said Vardapetian. She listed the three main criteria for the 
planned evaluation of judges: “attitude towards human rights, attitude towards 
to the rules of professional ethics and asset status.”
Pashinian has repeatedly called for “transitional justice” ever since he swept 
to power in May 2018 following mass protests dubbed a “velvet revolution.” But 
he has so far shed little light on what that would mean in practice.
Parliament speaker Ararat Mirzoyan, who chaired the hearings, admitted that 
Pashinian and his political team have yet to flesh out their plans for judicial 
reform. “The state authorities have not formulated a position,” he said. “These 
hearings are also aimed at helping to formulate that position.”
In any case, Mirzoyan said, the reform will not lead to the creation of 
“emergency courts” controlled by the current authorities. “Transitional justice 
must support, cleanse, vet and reform the existing judicial system in a legal 
and legislative manner,” he said.
Opposition lawmakers warned in this regard any reform of the domestic judiciary 
must conform to the constitution. One of them, Naira Zohrabian, said Armenian 
courts must not be told hand down ruling under popular pressure engineered by 
the government.
Armenian opposition groups have denounced as unconstitutional the court 
blockade initiated by Pashinian.
Constitutional Court Chief Visits Karabakh
        • Naira Nalbandian
Armenian Constitutional Court Chairman Hrayr Tovmasian (L) and Karabakh 
President Bako Sahakian.
The chairman and two other members of Armenia’s Constitutional Court met with 
Nagorno-Karabakh’s president, Bako Sahakian, during a visit to Stepanakert on 
Friday.
A spokesman for Sahakian insisted that the visit had been planned beforehand 
and is not related to the dramatic developments in Yerevan triggered by a 
court’s May 18 decision to free Robert Kocharian, Armenia’s Karabakh-born 
former president prosecuted on coup charges.
The judge presiding over Kocharian’s trial cited written guarantees of the 
defendant’s “adequate behavior” which were signed by Sahakian and his 
predecessor Arkadi Ghukasian. The judge went on to suspend the high-profile 
trial, saying that the charges may contradict the Armenian constitution. He 
therefore asked the Constitutional Court to pass judgment on that.
The court said earlier this week that it has already started a “preliminary” 
examination of the appeal. The court has one month to decide whether or not to 
open hearings on it.
A statement by Sahakian’s office said the Karabakh leader discussed with the 
visiting delegation headed by Hrayr Tovmasian, the Constitutional Court 
chairman, “issues related to cooperation of the two Armenian states in the 
judicial sphere.”
Speaking to RFE/RL’s Armenian service, Davit Babayan, insisted that they did 
not discuss the criminal proceedings against Kocharian. Accordingly, Babayan 
denied any connection between Tovmasian’s visit and the Kocharian-related 
developments.
Karabakh’s leaders and parliamentary parties had repeatedly called for 
Kocharian’s release. Visiting Yerevan on May 15, the Karabakh parliament 
speaker said such statements reflect public opinion in Karabakh.
Born and raised in Karabakh, Kocharian governed the Armenian-populated 
territory from 1992-1997. He rejects the charges as politically motivated. 
Armenia’s current government and law-enforcement bodies deny political motives 
behind his prosecution.
While in Stepanakert, Tovmasian and the two other judges accompanying him also 
met with local university students.
According to a Karabakh opposition parliamentarian, Hayk Khanumian, Tovmasian 
had developed close ties with Sahakian in his previous capacity as member of 
Armenia’s parliament representing the former ruling Republican Party (HHK).
Pashinian Again Blasts Armenian Courts
Armenia -- Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian meets with the heads of foreign 
diplomatic missions in Yerevan, .
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian again lambasted Armenia’s courts on Friday, 
saying that they are not trusted by the population and therefore need to 
undergo radical changes.
Meeting with the Yerevan-based ambassadors of foreign states, Pashinian also 
said that his government is ready to cooperate with the international community 
in creating a “truly independent judicial system.” He insisted judicial reforms 
planned by it are not aimed at ensuring government control over the judiciary.
Pashinian reiterated that unlike the country’s government and parliament formed 
as a result of democratic elections, Armenian courts lack the “mandate to act 
on behalf of the people.” “The public just doesn’t trust our judicial system, 
and this could become a continuous source of crises,” he said.
“We hope and are confident that we will succeed in forming, through close 
cooperation with our international partners, a credible judicial system,” he 
added in remarks publicized by his press office.
The office did not release the transcript of his ensuing question-and-answer 
with the foreign envoys.
Pashinian already stated on Monday that the domestic judiciary “does not enjoy 
the people’s trust” because it remains connected to Armenia’s former 
leadership, having validated “dozens of illegalities” which he said were 
committed by the latter. All judges must therefore undergo a mandatory 
“vetting,” he said, adding that many of them should resign even before the 
start of such a process.
On Sunday, one day after a Yerevan court ordered former President Robert 
Kocharian’s release from custody, Pashinian urged supporters to block the 
entrances to all court buildings in the country. The move prompted strong 
criticism from Armenian opposition parties. Some of them accused Pashinian of 
illegally pressuring the courts and paralyzing their work.
Two representatives of the Council of Europe’s Parliamentary Assembly (PACE) 
likewise expressed concern at the court blockade on Tuesday. Council of Europe 
Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland discussed the issue with Pashinian by phone 
the following day.
A statement released by the Strasbourg-based organization said Jagland and 
Pashinian agreed that judicial reforms “should proceed in conformity with the 
Constitution, the relevant international standards and Armenia's obligations as 
a member state of the Council of Europe.” It also announced that a team of 
Council of Europe experts will travel to Yerevan soon to “offer advice and 
assistance with the necessary reforms.”
For its part, the European Union expressed readiness on Thursday to help the 
Armenian authorities carry out a “comprehensive and far-reaching judicial 
reform” with “technical and financial assistance.”
“We welcome the unequivocal commitment by the Armenian Government to pursue 
justice reform in accordance with the Armenian Constitution and Armenia's 
international commitments,” read a statement released by the Yerevan-based 
diplomatic missions of the EU and its member states.
Press Review
“Haykakan Zhamanak” says that political opponents of the Armenian authorities 
accuse them of seeking to stifle dissent while their supporters claim that they 
are too cautious in reforming the country. “These pressures exerted on the 
authorities from both sides sometimes lead them to make mistakes, which are 
skillfully exploited by their rivals ‘hardened’ by political and 
quasi-political intrigues,” writes the paper edited by Prime Minister Nikol 
Pashinian’s wife, Anna Hakobian. “The first apparent mistake of the authorities 
is that they thought that as soon as the government stops interfering in the 
work of the courts judicial independence and impartiality will be guaranteed. 
It turned out that this is not the case. They should have not only refrained 
from interfering in the courts but also prevented others from interfering.”
The second mistake, the paper goes on, was the protests which were staged by 
government supporters outside a Yerevan court holding the trial of former 
President Robert Kocharian. “They should have put the pressure not on the court 
but on those who were pressuring the court,” it says.
“Zhoghovurd” reports on an anti-government rally held by the Armenian 
Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) in Yerevan’s Liberty Square on 
Thursday. “As expected, the rally was attended not only by Dashnaktsutyun 
figures but also members of the [former ruling] HHK,” writes the paper. It 
notes that the rally marked the first major protest against Pashinian’s rule. 
“And it was organized by a party which was part of Pashinian’s government in 
not-so-distant past,” it says.
In another commentary, “Zhoghovurd” comments on the “serious crisis in 
Armenia’s judicial system.” The pro-government paper points out that the Court 
of Appeals issued a statement on Thursday criticizing recent decisions made by 
the Constitutional Court regarding appeals filed by former President Robert 
Kocharian and Vachagan Ghazarian, who used to work as former President Serzh 
Sarkisian’s chief bodyguard. It says that that the Constitutional Court had 
never been openly criticized by another court before. Echoing Pashinian’s 
statements, the paper says that the Armenian judiciary is “under the influence 
of the former corrupt authorities.”
(Lilit Harutiunian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
Copyright (c) 2019 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc.
1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.
www.rferl.org