The Anti-Corruption Coalition of Civil Society Organizations of Armenia, represented by its Governing Board, expresses deep concern about the recent evident manifestations of pressure against civil society representatives.

On October 31, 2024, among a group of individuals, law enforcement authorities detained well-known public figure, international expert, and law-abiding citizen Hovhannes Avetisyan on suspicion of illegal possession of weapons. We deem it necessary to note that Hovhannes Avetisyan is a highly qualified specialist with a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Harvard University and has also studied at Tufts and Georgia universities. He is a recognized expert in public financial management with extensive experience in public administration, international and local organizations, and is the co-translator of Daron Acemoglu’s book “Why Nations Fail” into Armenian.

It is noteworthy that Hovhannes Avetisyan’s detention occurred precisely during the period when he had begun to publicly criticize the policies of the current authorities and expose systemic issues. This is becoming a concerning pattern where public figures who maintain critical positions towards the authorities are subjected to various forms of pressure and persecution.

Hovhannes Avetisyan is known as an active participant in the political events of spring 2018, who, together with his colleagues, united graduates of the best foreign universities through the LUYS Foundation against the prime minister’s tenure at that time. Such treatment by the current authorities towards a person who has demonstrated civic initiative raises deep concerns from the perspective of preserving democratic values.

We are deeply concerned about several circumstances:

1. Law enforcement authorities have applied the extreme measure of detention without first conducting a process of verification of weapons and their documentation.
2. The detention was carried out against a father of two minor children, without taking this circumstance into account.
3. The principle of presumption of innocence has been violated.
4. These actions cause serious damage to Hovhannes Avetisyan’s professional reputation and career.
5. Such conduct could have severely negative consequences for the entire civil society, creating an atmosphere of self-censorship and self-limitation.

It is significant that Hovhannes Avetisyan, with the professional support of his lawyer, was released after midnight on October 31, which once again questions the necessity and justification of the detention.

Taking into account the above, we call upon:

1. Law enforcement authorities to conduct further investigative actions exclusively within the framework of the law, without applying unnecessarily harsh measures.
2. Anti-corruption bodies to immediately examine possible corruption risks in the actions of law enforcement bodies in this case and provide an appropriate assessment.
3. The Human Rights Defender to investigate possible violations of Hovhannes Avetisyan’s rights in this case and accordingly take measures to restore his honor and dignity, and compensate for the material and moral damages caused.
4. International organizations and diplomatic missions to pay attention to the growing trends of pressure against civil society representatives in Armenia.

At the same time, we express confidence that Hovhannes Avetisyan, being a law-abiding citizen, will support the conduct of an impartial investigation to reveal the truth.

The Anti-Corruption Coalition of CSOs of Armenia declares its readiness to closely monitor the further progress of the case and, if necessary, to come forward with new statements and actions.

Anti-Corruption Coalition of CSOs of Armenia Governing Board

Note: The Anti-Corruption Coalition of CSOs of Armenia is a professional civil society structure founded on November 28, 2014, in Yerevan. The Coalition currently has more than 50 civil society organizations as members, and the secretariat functions are carried out by the Armenian Lawyers’ Association.

November 1, 2024