Minister of Justice discusses issues related to ensuring and strengthening legal and social guarantees for persons forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh with Commissioner for Equality of the European Commission Ms Helena Dalli

Minister of Justice Grigor Minasyan had a meeting with Commissioner for Equality of the European Commission Helena Dalli. The Minister expressed gratitude for the active support of the European Union in the field of human rights protection and pinpointed the fact that the state policy of the Republic of Armenia in this area is developed by ensuring human-centered, right-based and gender-sensitive approaches, guaranteeing free and constructive dialogue with the civil society. Talking about the comprehensive state policy in the field of human rights, the Minister of Justice emphasised that in September 2023, the Government adopted the 2023-2025 Action Plan arising from the National Strategy for Human Rights Protection which reflects the priorities in this field in 11 strategic directions.

Grigor Minasyan also informed his colleague that the Government is committed to continue leading a consistent policy to improve the legislative framework and the practice for ruling out discrimination, as well as combating gender-based and domestic violence. In this context, the Minister informed that a draft Law "On ensuring legal equality" is being refined, which will provide for active mechanisms to fight against discrimination, as well as presented the types of liability that are provided for in the new Criminal Code for gender-based and domestic violence.

The parties also considered issues related to improvement of the toolkits aimed at ensuring and strengthening the legal and social guarantees for persons forcibly displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh.

Helena Dali touched upon the Joint press statement following the 5^th meeting of the EU-Armenia Partnership Council reaffirming the joint commitment of Armenia and the EU in the areas of human rights, the rule of law and democratic principles, as well as in the fight against hate speech and disinformation. The Commissioner emphasised the importance of comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation, provided details about the EU regulations and expressed the willingness of the EU to support the Government of Armenia in this direction.

At the end of the meeting, the parties agreed to continue co-operation, particularly within the framework of development of comprehensive legislation in line with mechanisms and European standards for ensuring legal equality, and the effective application of those standards.