Nikol Pashinyan: Our notions of the justice sector must also comply with the vision of citizens of the Republic of Armenia

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan visited the Ministry of Justice and introduced newly appointed Minister Karen Andreasyan to the staff.

The Prime Minister expressed gratitude to former Minister of Justice Rustam Badasyan for the work done and congratulated Karen Andreasyan on being appointed Minister of Justice. The Prime Minister attached importance to the reforms being implemented in the justice sector and stated that a sense of presence of fairness and justice is eventually one of the major objectives that the people had set forth for the authorities during the revolution that took place in 2018.

''Of course, in this period, a tremendous amount of work has been done, strategies have been adopted, and a number of measures deriving from those strategies have already been implemented. During our conversation, Mr Andreasyan and I said that, on the one hand, continuation of the policy needs to be ensured. On the other hand, with such decisions on personnel, we need to try to bring a new sweep and convey new impetus to the decisions that have already been made and to the implementation of strategies that have already been adopted,'' Nikol Pashinyan said.

In the context of activities of the Ministry of Justice, the head of government attached importance to the process of introducing the Patrol Police (the Ministry of Justice actively participated in the process by developing a policy). ''As long as we do not have a body that develops a sector-specific policy, i.e. the ministry is not formed, the Ministry of Justice must ensure that the reform is substantial. Right from the first days after introduction of the Patrol Police, we have seen a major change in the atmosphere, but we have also recorded a number of practical issues that need to be seriously explored and taken into account in the learning process for admission to the reserve of the city of Yerevan so that officers of the Patrol Police in Shirak and Lori Marzes completely understand the particular problem from the very first minutes of service, including the problems that emerged on the path to the launch of the Patrol Police of Yerevan,'' Nikol Pashinyan said.

Rustam Badasyan expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for the support provided to the Ministry of Justice which has always been felt and has made the government agency be more confident to undertake reforms. ''During this period, we undertook all the necessary measures to ensure smooth transfer of administration of the Ministry. All the relevant drafts that are in the current stage will obviously be transferred as finalised documents to Mr Andreasyan," Badasyan said. The latter congratulated Karen Andreasyan on being appointed Minister of Justice and wished him success in implementing the reforms that have already been launched.

Newly appointed Minister of Justice Karen Andreasyan also expressed gratitude to the Prime Minister for the great trust and for entrusting him with the responsible package to him. ''Taking the opportunity, I would like to congratulate you on regaining the great trust of the people. I am glad for the legacy that I am receiving. Mr Badasyan, I know what a heavy legacy you received. I promise to convey new impetus to your zealous plans for reforms that you have implemented in this short period of time, and to complete them. Mr Prime Minister, I would like to promise that, with this team of young people with great potential, we will finally be able to make sure justice is eventually served in the whole country. Thank you for the trust,'' Karen Andreasyan said.

Summing up, Prime Minister Pashinyan attached importance to the reforms implemented in the justice sector and the judiciary. “Our notions and perceptions must also comply with the vision of citizens of the Republic of Armenia. Of course, the path that we have taken so far has not been easy, and it will not be easy to continue that path. Here consistency is truly necessary. However, let us not forget that the judiciary is very large and includes the penitentiary procedure, the Compulsory Enforcement Service, the Civil Status Acts Registration Agency, etc. The new model of penitentiary service proposed by Mr Badasyan is very interesting, and we must talk about this in more detail in the near future. Once again, I would like to express gratitude for the activities carried out so far and wish us all success," the head of government said.