Grigor Minasyan receives representatives of PACE Monitoring Committee who are in Armenia on fact-finding mission

Minister of Justice Grigor Minasyan receives Co-Rapporteurs of the Monitoring Committee of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe for Armenia Kimmo Kiljunen, Boriana Åberg and Secretary of the PACE Monitoring Committee Matthew Monin, who are in Armenia on a fact-finding mission.

The Minister spoke about the importance of the legal and social situation of the refugees forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh, the support provided by the State, the need for support from the international community and co-operation with international partners.  Grigor Minasyan mentioned that on 26 October the Government approved the procedure for granting temporary protected status to persons forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh.

Grigor Minasyan informed his international partners that last month the Parliament of Armenia ratified the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and earlier the Parliament had also adopted Protocol No. 13 “On the Abolition of the Death Penalty in All Cases” attached to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.

The Minister of Justice also presented the works of the Ministry aimed at improving the electoral system, emphasising that the drafting of draft laws providing for amendments and supplements to the Electoral Code and related laws, is based on the Opinion provided by the Venice Commission.

The sector-specific reforms made by the Ministry of Justice within the scope of Anti-Corruption were touched upon during the meeting. The Minister attached importance to the adoption of a new Anti-Corruption Strategy in which the most important goals to be implemented in 2023-2026 were predetermined, and the National Strategy for Human Rights Protection was adopted. Grigor Minasyan emphasised that both Strategies and the major drafts are always deliberated with sector-specific non-governmental organisations.

The activities to be implemented for regulation of the mass media were presented to the international partners; in particular, it is envisaged to establish an independent body — the Mass Media Self-Regulation System in which the State is not going to play any role. Discussions with sector-specific non-governmental organisations in this direction are currently underway.

Grigor Minasyan noted that, based on the 2021-2026 Action Plan of the Government and the 2022-2026 Strategy for Judicial and Legal Reforms, the new draft Law “On enforcement proceedings” was drafted and put into circulation, and its adoption envisages the resolution of the issues reported in the judgements of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) against the Republic of Armenia with regard to the phase of compulsory enforcement and bringing the full body of sector-specific legislation in line with European standards. Resolving the aforementioned issues reported in the ECHR judgements is also envisaged as a separate strategic goal under the 2023-2026 National Strategy for Human Rights Protection.

The disciplinary processes in relation to judges were discussed with the PACE representatives. In this context, the Minister informed that the package of the draft Constitutional Law “Judicial Code of the Republic of Armenia” have already been developed and submitted to the Parliament, by which judges will be provided with the opportunity to appeal the decisions rendered by the Supreme Judicial Council on subjecting judges to disciplinary liability. Touching upon the reforms in the judicial sector, the Minister informed that an Anti-Corruption Court of Appeal has been set up, which ensures examination of anti-corruption cases through the three-tier judicial system. In order to create guarantees for the independence of judges and social guarantees for them, the salaries of more than 200 judges, including the judges of the Constitutional Court, have been raised.

The PACE Monitoring Committee highly appreciated the co-operation with the Venice Commission.

At the end of the meeting, the parties also discussed other issues of mutual interest.