The expert online workshop on the study “Integrity Checking and Responsibility of Judges under the extraordinary conditions (of transitional justice): International experience and mechanisms for implementation in Armenia” organized jointly by the CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition of Armenia, and Armenian Lawyers’ Association (ALA) was held on 8 November.

During the discussion, Ms Zhanna Aleksanyan, the President of the “Journalists for Human Rights” NGO mentioned that within the framework of this topic they do not talk about one issue, it is about the issue of integrity checking of the investigative bodies, and the prosecutor’s office.

She also mentioned that she had raised a question about that during the discussion organized by the Ministry of Justice a few days ago, but that question stayed unanswered and she had the impression that the responsibility for all that, that is to become the restraint for the preliminary investigation body, the prosecutor’s office, is left to the judge.

ALA President Karen Zadoyan noted that although the scope of the presented study did not include law enforcement agencies, but in previous studies related to transitional justice there was a reference to it, and a procedural solution was provided, it was noted that the problem cannot be solved only by vetting judges, because the problem in substance, is also present in the law enforcement bodies – the police, the prosecutor’s office, the investigative bodies and it is not expedient to reform one structure and at the same time ignore the other.

Arzuman Harutyunyan

Mr. Arzuman Harutyunyan, President of “Association of Audio-Visual Reporters” NGO and a member of the CSO Anti-Corruption Coalition of Armenia, speaking about the study and the recommendations made as a result of them, noted the importance of launching an active public awareness campaign.
In response to the raised issue, the President of the Armenian Lawyers’ Association Karen Zadoyan mentioned that the main problem of the failure of the reforms implemented in Armenia in recent years was also the incorrect feedback with the public.