Common core document forming part of the reports of States parties

Armenia *

[Date received: 10 May 2019]

Contents

Page

I.General information about the reporting country3

A.Demographic, economic, social and cultural characteristics3

General information3

Geographic data3

Historical overview3

Demographic indicators9

Social, economic and cultural indicators12

B.Constitutional, political and legal structure of the Republic of Armenia21

Data on crime and the justice system30

II.General framework for the protection and promotion of human rights33

C.Acceptance of international human rights norms33

Core international human rights treaties and protocols33

Other UN Conventions and documents on human rights34

Conventions adopted within the framework of the International Labour Organisation, and relating to human rights35

Conventions adopted within the framework of the United Nations Organisation for Education, Science and Culture, and relating to human rights35

Conventions adopted under the auspices of the Hague Conference on Private International Law35

Geneva Conventions and other treaties on International Humanitarian Law36

Conventions adopted within the framework of the Council of Europe, and relating to human rights36

Agreements adopted within the framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States, and relating to human rights37

D.Legal framework for the protection of human rights at the national level37

E.Framework within which human rights are promoted at the national level40

F.Reporting process at the national level44

G.Other related human rights information45

III.Information on non-discrimination and equality47

I.General information about the reporting country

A.Demographic, economic, social and cultural characteristics

General information

1.The Republic of Armenia (shortly referred to as “Armenia”) is a sovereign, democratic, social state governed by the rule of law, with parliamentary system of governance. The state language is Armenian. From the administrative-territorial point of view, Armenia is divided into 10 marzes (regions). The capital is Yerevan which has the status of a community. The national currency of the Republic of Armenia is Dram (ISO code: AMD) which has been put into circulation since 22 November 1993. The national holiday of the Republic of Armenia – the Independence Day, is on 21 September.

Geographic data

2.The Republic of Armenia is situated in the North-Eastern part of the Armenian Highlands, on the borderline of the Caucasus and Western Asia. States bordering the Republic of Armenia are Georgia in the North, Azerbaijan in the East, Iran in the South, Turkey in the West and South-West. Armenia is a land-locked country.

3.The territory of the Republic of Armenia constitutes 29.743 sq. km. The maximum extension of the territory from the North to the South-East is 360 km, from the West to the East – 200 km. 4,8% of the territory of the country is a water basin mainly constituting Lake Sevan.

4.Armenia is a mountainous country. It has a complex geological composition and multiform relief. 76,5% of the territory of the country is at a height of 1000–2500 m above the sea level; the lowest height from the sea level – 375 m, is in the North-East, and the highest point – the peak of Mount Aragats, is 4090 m high.

Historical overview

5.Armenians are of the most ancient people of Western Asia, having formed in the Armenian Highlands, which is located between the Asia Minor and the Iranian plateau, the Black Sea and the plains of Mesopotamia, and stretches from Anti-Tavros to Artsakh Mountains (Karabakh Highland) and the borders of the Kura-Araks lowland. From the end of the 4th millennium BC, the Armenian language began to separate from the Indo-European mother tongue, later strengthening as an independent branch of the Indo-European language family. In the 3rd to the 2nd millennia BC, a rich Bronze Age civilisation developed on the territory of the Armenian Highlands, and the first early state formations emerged. The process of formation of the Armenian people was completed in the 7–6th centuries BC, when the first unified Armenian state was established.

6.Back in the 9th century BC, the Urartu state (known also, as the Kingdom of Van or the Ararat Kingdom) strengthened in the Armenian Highlands which also unified the Armenian ethnic groups around itself. After the fall of Urartu (6th century BC), the Armenian authorities united into one unified state under the rule of the Orontid dynasty. Starting from the end of the 6th century BC, Armenia of the Orontid dynasty admitted the supremacy of the Achaemenid Empire and only after the campaigns of Alexander the Great – in 331 BC, gained full independence. In 190 BC, as a result of a number of successful wars, Artaxias (Artashes) I, the founder of the Artaxiad Dynasty, expanded the boundaries of the Kingdom of Greater Armenia (Mets Hayk), turning it into a powerful and influential state. During the reign of the Artaxiad Dynasty, the influence of the Hellenic culture increased in Armenia.

7.During the reign of Tigranes (Tigran) II the Great (95–55 BC), the Kingdom of Greater Armenia became the most powerful empire of Western Asia, reaching its peak of political power. Completing the unification of the Armenian lands, Tigranes II’s empire included also Atropatene, Assyria, Commagene, Cilicia, Mesopotamia, and other territories. The newly-established empire stretched from the Mediterranean Sea to the Caspian Sea, from the Greater Caucasus to Mesopotamia and the Red Sea. The supremacy of the Armenian king was acknowledged by the Parthian, Jewish, Nabataean, Iberian and Caucasian Albanian kingdoms.

8.The advancement of the Roman Empire in the East put an end to the power of Greater Armenia. At the end of the 1st century BC, the Artaxiad Dynasty fell. In AD 52, by the enthronement of Tiridates (Trdat) I, the foundation of the power of the junior branch of the Arsacids dynasty in Mets Hayk (52–428) was laid down. In the 3rd–4th centuries, as a result of socio-economic transformations, the Kingdom of Mets Hayk gradually became a feudal monarchy. In 301, during the reign of Tiridates (Trdat) III (287–330), Armenia became the first country to proclaim Christianity as the state religion. The heavy fighting against Rome and the Sasanian Persia weakened the Armenian kingdom, the territory whereof was divided between those powers in 387. In 428, the Armenian kingdom lost its independence, becoming a Persian province.

9.Realising the whole danger of the historical situation to the state and the people, in 405, under the patronage of King Vramshapuh and Catholicos Sahak Partev (Isaac or Sahak of Armenia), Mesrop Mashtots created the Armenian alphabet, which, together with the Christian faith, became an unprecedented powerful weapon in the preservation of the national identity for centuries. With the invention of the Armenian alphabet, a new era opened in the history of the Armenian culture, science and literature.

10.From the mid-7th century, the Arab troops invaded Armenia. At the beginning of the 8th century Armenia entirely fell under the Arab rule. In 885 National liberation wars against the Arab rule came to an end with the restoration of Armenian Kingdom headed by Ashot I Bagratuni (Bagratid dynasty). From the mid-10th century, the Bagratuni Kingdom fell. In the prominent Battle of Manzikert of 1071, after the defeat suffered by Byzantium from the Seljuk Turks, Armenia passed under the domination of the Seljuk Turks. As a result, vast masses of Armenians had to leave the homeland. A part of them settled in Cilicia, the population whereof was already mostly Armenian at the end of the 11th century. In the North-Eastern parts of Cilicia – the Mountainous Cilicia, the authority of the Rubinyans was founded in 1080, which later unified the entire Cilicia and a number of neighbouring regions in itself. In 1198, Armenian Prince Levon II Rubinyan founded the Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia, receiving a royal crown from the Emperor of Germany Heinrich IV. The Cilician Armenian Kingdom established close relations with Venice, Genoa, France, Spain, Germany and the Eastern Crusader States. However, in the absence of support from the Christian Europe, under the severe strikes from the Sultanates of Iconium and Egypt, the Cilician Armenian Kingdom existed only for centuries and fell in 1375.

11.Losing the independent statehood, Armenia remained under the dominance of various states for centuries. Vast masses of the Armenian people had to leave the homeland and found migrant colonies in foreign countries. Already in the beginning of the 19th century, major Armenian colonies existed in Constantinople, Tiflis, Moscow, Petersburg, Astrakhan, Crimea, as well as in the large cities of Persia, India, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, Poland, Hungary, Greece, Italy, France, Holland and other countries. The Armenian colonies especially excelled at active scientific, publishing and social activities, which played an important role from the point of view of preservation of the national identity of the Armenian people.

12.In the beginning of the 19th century, Armenia was divided between Persia and the Ottoman Empire. The process of joining the entire Transcaucasia, including Eastern Armenia, to the Russian Empire completed by the peace Treaties of Turkmenchay (1828) and Adrianopolis (1829). As a result of joining the Russian Empire, the recovery of the national self-consciousness and development of capitalist relations accelerated in Armenia.

13.After the Congress of Berlin in 1878, the Armenian Question – the issue of physical security of Armenians residing in the Ottoman Empire, became one of the items on the international agenda. The Armenian question became the integral part of the so-called Eastern Question and played an important role in the international relations. This circumstance and the activation of the Armenian liberation movement led to unprecedented massacres of Armenians in Western Armenia in 1895–1896, organised by the Government of the Ottoman Empire, during which more than 300 000 Armenians became victims.

14.The beginning of World War I failed the reformation programmes aimed at security of Armenians in the Armenian states of the Ottoman Empire, which the European states had obliged Turkey to implement. Taking advantage of the situation existing, the Young Turks Government planned and carried out the Genocide of Armenians residing in the territory of the Ottoman Empire. Within the period of 1915–1923 nearly one and a half of more than two million Armenians were killed, and those who survived, were either forcibly converted to Islam or found a refuge in different countries of the world. All of Western Armenia was deprived of its native Armenian population.

15.Taking advantage of the revolutionary processes taking place in the Russian Empire, on 28 May 1918, Armenia declared independence after more than five centuries. This event was preceded by the heroic battles of Sardarapat, Bash-Abaran and Karakilisa, where the Armenian troops repulsed the aggression of the Turkish regular army, guaranteeing the physical security of the Armenian population of Eastern Armenia and creating grounds for declaration of an independent state. The First Armenian Republic existed only two and a half years; in December 1920, the Russian Red Army entered Armenia and established Soviet rule. Later on, Soviet Armenia was incorporated into the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).

16.By the Russian-Turkish Treaty of Moscow of 1921 and the Treaty of Kars of the same year (between Turkey and the Soviet Republics of Transcaucasia dependent from Russia), Nakhijevan was transferred – as an autonomous republic – to the guardianship of Azerbaijan, provided not to be transferred to a third state. On 5 July 1921, the Caucasus Bureau of the Russian Communist (Workers’) Party, disregarding procedural rules and not having relevant legal powers, decided to include Nagorno-Karabakh region (Artsakh) in the composition of Azerbaijan, as an autonomous oblast. In case of both decisions, the inseparable historical, ethnic and cultural relation of the indicated territories and its primarily Armenian population with Armenia was disregarded. It should be emphasised that the territorial claims of the state of Azerbaijan, having taken the stage of history for the first time, lacked any legal substantiations. The most striking evidence of this circumstance was the decision of the League of Nations, by which the application of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan for the accession to the League of Nations was rejected. The fact that Azerbaijan had not been an independent state before that, its borders and sovereignty had not been recognised de jure by any Member State of the League of Nations, served as a ground for rejection, and, besides that, Azerbaijan did not carry out de facto supervision over the territories it claimed.

17.Nagorno-Karabakh and Nakhijevan, being unlawfully placed under the administrative subordination of the Azerbaijani SSR, were regularly subjected to the policy of depopulation of Armenians and destruction of the Armenian cultural heritage. In this respect, Nakhijevan has particularly suffered, which was completely depopulated of Armenians:

Demographic picture of Nakhijevan Province and the Nakhijevan Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic in 1897–1989 (1,000 people/%)

	1897	1926	1959	1970	1989
Total	100.8 (100%)	104.9 (100%)	141.4 (100%)	202.2 (100%)	293.9 (100%)
Armenians	34.7 (34.4%)	11.276 (10.7%)	9.5 (6.7%)	5.8 (2.9%)	1.9 (0.6%)
Tartars (Azerbaijanis)	64.1 (63.7%)	88.433 (84.3%)	127.5 (90.2%)	189.7 (93.8%)	281.8 (95.9%)
Other	1.9 (0.9%)	5.2 (5%)	4.4 (3.1%)	6.7 (3.3%)	10.2 (3.5 %)

Demographic picture of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast in 1926–1989 (1,000 people/%)

	1926	1970	1989	Expected growth of the population in 1970–1989 (1000 people)	Real growth of the population in 1970–1989 (1000 people)	Difference between the expected growth and real growth of the population (1000 people)
Total	125.3 (100%)	150.3 (100%)	189.0 (100%)	75.0	44.7	- 30.3
Armenians	111.7 (89%)	121.1 (80%)	146.4 (77%)	60.0	25.3	- 34.7
Azerbaijanis	12.6 (10%)	27.2 (18%)	40.6 (21%)	13.5	13.5	0
Russians	0.6 (0.5%)	1.3 (0.9%)	1.4 (0.7%)	-	-	- 0.1
Other	0.4 (0.3%)	0.7 (0.5%)	0.5 (0.3%)	-	-	-

18.Although Soviet Armenia was not a sovereign state, nonetheless, it played an important role in the formation of the Armenian statehood and strengthening of national identity. During the years of Soviet power, Armenia became a progressive industrial and agrarian country – a state of universal literacy, developed science and education, culture, literature and arts. Six Armenian divisions and around 500 Armenian soldiers and officers participated in the World War II in the composition of the Soviet Army. The Armenian National 89th Division participated in the Battle of Berlin. During the years following World War II, a large number of Diaspora Armenians returned to the Homeland – Soviet Armenia. In 1960–1980s the national issues such as the Armenian Genocide, Diaspora, unification of Nagorno-Karabakh with Armenia, Nakhijevan, etc. were repeatedly raised by intellectuals and the public, as well as by the Republic’s leadership. In 1965, on the 50th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, the first mass demonstrations in the history of the USSR took place in Yerevan, under the influence whereof, upon the approval of the authorities of Soviet Armenia, the memorial complex dedicated to the victims of the Armenian Genocide was constructed in 1967.

19.At the end of 1980, the policy of perestroika and glasnost implemented by Mikhail Gorbachev created favourable conditions for raising the issue, by the population of Nagorno-Karabakh, of the status of the oblast. On 20 February 1988, the extraordinary session of the 20th convocation of Oblast Council of the Nagorno-Karabakh Autonomous Oblast (NKAO), guided by the provisions of the Constitution of the USSR, adopted a decision to apply to the Supreme Councils of the Azerbaijani SSR, the Armenian SSR and the USSR, with a motion for withdrawing the Oblast from the composition of Azerbaijan and including in the composition of Armenia. In response to the peaceful process having initiated, violent massacres of the Armenian population were carried out in Sumgait (February 1988), Baku (January 1990) and the other settlements of the Azerbaijani SSR, mostly populated with Armenians (Kirovabad, Khanlar, Shamkhor, etc). As a result of such Armenophobic policy of the leadership of the Azerbaijani SSR and ubiquitous violence, hundred thousands of Armenians had to leave their settlements, becoming migrants. 200 000 of them found shelter in Armenia.

20.Guided by the provisions of the Declaration on the Independence of Armenia (23 August 1990), on 21 September 1991, the Supreme Council of the Armenian SSR decided to hold a referendum on the territory of the Republic on the issue of withdrawing from the composition of the USSR and becoming an independent State. The prevailing majority of the population (94,39 per cent of persons having the right to suffrage) said “yes” to independence. Based on the results of the referendum, on 23 September 1991, the Supreme Council declared Armenia an independent state. In 1995, the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia was adopted, which was amended in 2005 and 2015.

21.Guided by the principles and norms of public international law, as well as the laws of the USSR still existing then, by the referendum of 10 December 1991, the population of Nagorno-Karabakh stipulated the declaration of the independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic. But the policy of ethnic cleansing and slaughter, implemented by the Azerbaijani authorities in Nagorno-Karabakh and the adjacent territories populated with Armenians, grew into stark aggression and massive military actions by Azerbaijan against the population of Nagorno-Karabakh. As a result of the war, the defense forces of Nagorno-Karabakh managed to repulse the attacks and liberated the major part of the territory occupied by the Azerbaijani regular armed forces, guaranteeing the security and the right to life of the population of the region. Several regions of Nagorno-Karabakh (regions of Shahumyan and Getashen and some parts of Martakert and Martuni) still remain under the Azerbaijani occupation. At the same time, some adjacent regions passed under the control of the armed forces of Nagorno-Karabakh, thus forming a security zone, blocking the further shelling of settlements of NK by Azerbaijan. In May 1994, the Republic of Azerbaijan, the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and the Republic of Armenia concluded a trilateral indefinite truce, which is in force until today. Currently, the Republic of Artsakh (the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic) is a de facto independent state having a territory, permanent population and democratic institutions of governance.

22.The Republic of Armenia, guided by the necessity to guarantee the security of the people of the Republic of Artsakh, gives particular importance to the regulation of the conflict exclusively through peaceful negotiation means and to the international recognition of enjoyment of the right to self-determination of the people of Artsakh. The negotiation process on the peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is carried out under the mediation of the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs – the United States, Russia and France. Currently, the negotiations are in progress on the proposals of the Co-Chairs, based on the three principles of international law – non-use of force or threat of force, territorial integrity, and the equal rights and self-determination of peoples.

23.Despite the negotiations in progress, Azerbaijan, disregarding the calls of the international community to settle the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict exclusively in a peaceful manner, initiated large-scale military actions against the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, in April 2016, applying heavy artillery, missile launchers, tanks and attack helicopters. The four-day-aggression of Azerbaijan was accompanied by grossest violations of human rights and the international humanitarian law; in particular, intentional targeting of civilian settlements and infrastructures, torturing civilians and the soldiers of the Defence Army of the NKR, murders and massacres, as well as mutilations of the corpses of the military servants.

24.Conditioned by the existence of historical memory about the Armenian Genocide, the Republic of Armenia consistently fights for the prevention of the crime of genocide and elimination of consequences of such crimes. One of the priorities of the foreign policy of the Republic of Armenia is the general recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide. Armenia considers that not only from the viewpoint of restoration of historical justice and establishing supremacy of international law, but also within the context of the improvement of the atmosphere of mutual trust in the region and the prevention of such crimes in the future. The fact of the Armenian Genocide has been generally recognised and condemned by the international community of genocide scholars, historians, lawyers and human rights defenders, as well as stipulated by laws, resolutions and decisions of dozens of states, international organisations and administrative units.

25.Within the scopes of the United Nations, Armenia has always come up with initiatives on the prevention of the crime of genocide. As a result of those initiatives, the Commission on Human Rights adopted the Resolutions entitled “ Fiftieth anniversary of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide ” in 1998, and “ Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide ” in 1999, 2001, 2003 and 2005. In 2008, 2013, 2015 and 2018, at the initiative of Armenia, the UN Human Rights Council unanimously adopted Resolutions entitled “ Prevention of Genocide ” , which convey new quality to the policy implemented by the international community for the prevention of genocide.

26.A key hindrance to the economic development of Armenia is the unilateral closing of the Armenian-Turkish border since 1993 and the land blockade carried out by Azerbaijan and Turkey, which is an obvious violation of international legal norms. According to the calculations of the World Bank, Armenia suffers significant economic losses as a result of the blockade.

27.In April–May 2018, Armenia experienced dramatic changes in its political system and life. A new Government came to power through democratic and peaceful (non-violent) revolution and proclaimed the launch of wide-ranging fundamental reforms. The “Velvet revolution” marked a major step in Armenia’s history towards more democratic society. It created a favourable atmosphere that gives fresh impetus to reforms and forward momentum for drastic transformations in the fields of good governance, rule of law and human rights.

28.The events of April–May 2018 as well as the snap elections held in December 2018 were highly praised by international community. The UN Secretary-General highlighted the role of youth in the process of transition. In his address to the General Assembly, António Guterres stated that “Armenia’s young people were at the heart of that country’s peaceful political transition earlier this year – showing the potential of youth to use their voice to advance democracy.”

Demographic indicators

29.Number of the population of the Republic of Armenia according to the results of censuses of 2001 and 2011.

	Existing population	Permanent population
2001	2011	2001	2011
Total	3 002 594	2 871 771	3 213 011	3 018 854
city of Yerevan	1 091 235	1 054 698	1 103 488	1 060 138
Aragatsotn	126 278	125 539	138 301	132 925
Ararat	252 665	246 880	272 016	260 367
Armavir	255 861	256 639	276 233	265 770
Gegharkunik	215 371	211 828	237 650	235 075
Lori	253 351	217 103	286 408	235 537
Kotayk	241 337	245 324	272 469	254 397
Shirak	257 242	233 308	283 389	251 941
Syunik	134 061	119 873	152 684	141 771
Vayots Dzor	53 230	47 659	55 997	52 324
Tavush	121 963	112 920	134 376	128 609

30.Urban and rural distribution of existing population and permanent population in the Republic of Armenia (according to the results of censuses of 2001 and 2011).

	Existing population	Permanent population
Total	Urban	Rural	Total	Urban	Rural
2011, people	2 871 771	1 847 124	1 024 647	3 018 854	1 911 287	1 107 567
expressed as a percentage against the sum total	100	64 . 3	35 . 7	100	63 . 3	36 . 7
2001, people	3 002 594	1 945 514	1 057 080	3 213 011	2 066 153	1 146 858
expressed as a percentage against the sum total	100	64 . 8	35 . 2	100	64 . 3	35 . 7

31.The number of the permanent population of the Republic of Armenia at the end of 2016 (by the record-registration conducted on the bases of the census of 2011) constituted 2 986.1 thousand people, of which 1.567.300 were women, and 1.418.800 were men.

32.Average annual indicator of change of the permanent population of the Republic of Armenia in 2012–2016 constituted – 0,22 %.

33.Density of the population of the Republic of Armenia in 2016 constituted 100 people on 1 sq. km.

34.Distribution of the permanent population of the Republic of Armenia according to ethnic origins and the mother tongue (according to the data of the censuses of 2011 and 2001).

Ethnic origin	Total	Mother tongue	Refused to answer
Armenian	Yezidi language	Russian	Assyrian	Kurdish	Ukrainian	English	Georgian	Persian	Greek	Other
Republic of Armenia	3 018 854	2 956 615	30 973	23 484	2 402	2 030	733	491	455	397	332	913	29
Armenian	2 961 801	2 948 766	249	11 862	124	22	106	357	14	4	78	212	7
Yezidi	35 308	4 271	30 628	79	1	323	0	2	0	0	0	4	0
Russian	11 911	1 372	47	10 466	5	1	6	2	0	0	2	9	1
Assyrian	2 769	418	2	81	2 265	0	1	0	0	0	0	2	0
Kurd	2 162	406	39	24	2	1 684	0	0	0	0	0	7	0
Ukrainian	1 176	208	0	357	1	0	606	0	0	0	2	2	0
Greek	900	557	3	88	1	0	1	0	0	0	249	1	0
Georgian	617	94	0	75	0	0	0	6	440	0	1	1	0
Persian	476	41	3	1	0	0	0	8	0	393	0	30	0
Other	1 634	424	2	434	2	0	12	116	1	0	0	636	7
Refused to answer	100	58	0	17	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	9	14

35.Distribution of the permanent population of the Republic of Armenia according to the religious belief (according to the data of the census of 2011).

Belief	Number of people confessing a belief
Total: considered themselves a follower of a religion, church or branch	2 897 267
of which
Armenian Apostolic	2 796 519
Catholic	13 843
Orthodox	7 532
Nestorian	967
Evangelical	29 280
Jehovah ’ s Witness	8 695
Protestant	773
Mormon	241
Molokan	2 872
Shar-Fadin	25 204
Pagan	5 434
Muslim	612
Other	5 293
Have not considered themselves a follower of a religion, church or branch	34 373
Refused to answer	10 941
Not having mentioned	76 273

36.Age composition of the population of the Republic of Armenia according to the results of censuses of 2001 and 2011.

Age (year)	2011 census	2001 census
0 – 14	18.7 %	24.3 %
15 – 64	70.8 %	66.0 %
65 and over	10.5 %	9.7 %
Total	100 %	100 %

37.Age and gender composition of the population of the Republic of Armenia as of 2016:

Age	Women (thousand people)	Men (thousand people)
0 – 4	97 650	110 595
5 – 9	96 401	109 809
10 – 14	82 661	95 215
15 – 19	82 681	92 647
20 – 24	112 741	109 573
25 – 29	142 596	132 544
30 – 34	134 856	123 121
35 – 39	110 709	100 745
40 – 44	95 407	82 846
45 – 49	91 546	76 513
50 – 54	110 447	90 529
55 – 59	119 208	97 877
60 – 64	90 848	70 629
65 – 69	64 743	46 574
70 – 74	33 550	22 733
75 – 79	53 675	33 120
80+	48 739	28 836

38.Statistics of birth and death in the Republic of Armenia (as per 1 , 000 residents):

Years	Total birth rate	Total death rate
2012	14.0	9.1
2013	13.8	9.0
2014	14.3	9.2
2015	13.9	9.3
2016	13.5	9.4

39.Life expectancy in the Republic of Armenia (in years):

Years	Male	Female	Total male and female
2012	70.9	77.5	74.3
2013	71.5	77.9	74.8
2014	71.8	78.1	75.0
2015	71.7	78.2	75.0
2016	71.6	78.3	75.0

40.Fertility rate in the Republic of Armenia (per 1 woman):

Years	Total in the Republic of Armenia
2012	1.583
2013	1.573
2014	1.651
2015	1.645
2016	1.647

41.Statistical data on households in the Republic of Armenia:

	2011	2012	2013	2014	2015
Average number of household members (as per the permanent population), people	3.9	3.9	3.8	3.8	3.7
Share of households headed by a female, %	30.9	32.2	32.8	32.9	34.0
Share of households headed by a male, %	69.1	67.8	67.2	67.1	66.0
Proportion of children living with one parent among all households according to the gender of the head	female	1.5	1.7	1.6	1.6	1.6
male	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.1

Social, economic and cultural indicators

42.Structure of nominal consumer expenditure of households in the Republic of Armenia in 2012–2015.

Expenditure articles	Monthly average per capita of a household
AMD	%
2012	2013	2014	2015	2012	2013	2014	2015
Consumer expenditure	34 832	36 787	40 770	42 867	100	100	100	100
including:
food	16 970	17 622	18 635	18 705	48.7	47.9	45.7	43.6
of which:
food outside home	439	612	602	540	1.3	1.7	1.5	1.3
purchase of alcoholic beverages	242	235	244	237	0.7	0.6	0.6	0.6
purchase of tobacco	1 119	1 289	1 404	1 414	3.8	3.5	3.7	3.5
non-food commodities	6 159	6 568	7 442	8 074	17.7	17.9	18.3	18.8
services	10 262	11 073	13 045	14 437	29.5	30.1	32.0	33.7
including:
Healthcare	876	1 407	1 035	2 659	2.5	3.8	2.5	6.2
education	440	511	214	488	1.3	1.4	0.5	1.1
housing-utility	4 305	4 501	5 518	5 689	12.4	12.2	13.5	13.3
transport	1 227	1 138	1 493	1 441	3.5	3.1	3.7	3.4
communication	2 009	2 068	2 342	2 393	5.8	5.6	5.7	5.6
culture	178	20	8	101	0.5	0.1	0.0	0.2
legal	184	525	1 072	376	0.5	1.4	2.6	0.9
other services	1 043	903	1 363	1 290	3.0	2.5	3.3	3.0

43.Dynamics of poverty indicators in 2012–2015 (in per cents):

Years	Poor	including:	of which:	Not poor
Very Poor	Extremely poor
2012	32.4	13.5	2.8	67.6
2013	32.0	13.3	2.7	68.0
2014	30.0	10.9	2.3	70.0
2015	29.8	10.4	2.0	70.2

44.Dynamics of poverty indicators according to gender and age groups, in 2012–2015 (in per cents).

Gender and age groups	2012	2013	2014	2015
Extremely poor	Poor	Extremely poor	Poor	Extremely poor	Poor	Extremely poor	Poor
Female	2.9	32.6	2.7	32.2	2.3	30.0	2.2	30.1
Male	2.8	32.2	2.6	31.7	2.2	29.9	1.9	29.5
0 – 5 years old	4.1	38.8	3.6	41.9	3.6	34.4	2.2	34.4
6 – 9 years old	3.6	38.1	2.8	35.5	2.9	34.0	2.8	33.4
10 – 14 years old	2.1	30.3	2.6	32.2	3.1	31.6	2.8	31.4
15 – 17 years old	2.7	36.3	3.8	35.4	3.7	34.8	2.3	36.8
18 – 19 years old	3.9	34.5	4.6	31.5	2.2	30.7	2.9	34.3
20 – 24 years old	2.8	33.4	3.1	31.2	2.2	28.1	1.4	30.5
25 – 29 years old	3.6	32.7	2.1	32.5	1.6	30.4	1.7	26.6
30 – 34 years old	3.4	34.1	2.9	35.2	2.2	31.2	1.9	30.1
35 – 39 years old	1.8	31.1	3.3	32.5	2.2	29.1	2.3	32.3
40 – 44 years old	2.8	31.4	2.9	31.2	1.5	25.7	2.2	27.2
45 – 49 years old	1.9	29.4	2.6	29.7	2.4	28.1	1.9	26.3
50 – 54 years old	2.2	27.4	1.8	26.8	2.0	26.5	2.0	27.9
55 – 59 years old	2.7	27.5	2.3	27.1	1.4	27.1	1.7	28.2
60 – 64 years old	1.8	27.3	1.5	27.0	2.0	24.2	1.8	25.4
65+ years old	3.0	33.3	2.2	30.5	2.1	31.8	1.5	28.8
Total	2.8	32.4	2.7	32.0	2.3	30.0	2.0	29.8

45.Share of the population receiving daily less than 2100 kcal in the food energy consumed per capita (in per cents):

	2012	2013	2014	2015
Country average	52.9	59.2	60.2	60.8

46.Inequality of consumption and incomes in 2012–2015:

	Consumption	Income
2012	2013	2014	2015	2012	2013	2014	2015
Gin coefficient	0.269	0.271	0.277	0.279	0.372	0.372	0.373	0.374

47.Infant mortality rates in the Republic of Armenia (as per 1 , 000 born alive):

Years	infant mortality rate
2012	10.8
2013	9.7
2014	8 .8
2015	8.8
2016	8.6

48.Maternal mortality rates in the Republic of Armenia (as per 100 , 000 born alive):

Years	Rate of maternal mortality
2012	18.8
2013	21.5
2014	18.6
2015	16.8
2016	34.5

49.Infectious diseases recorded in the Republic of Armenia in 2013–2016:

	Total (people)	of whom: 0 – 14 years old (people)
2013	2014	2015	2013	2014	2015
Typhoid fever	-	-	1	-	-	1
Paratyphoid fever A, B, C	-	1	-	-	1	-
Salmonella infection	300	404	397	203	244	246
Acute intestinal infection	8 238	9 452	12 268	6 137	7 176	9 633
Dysentery bacillus carrier	10	5	5	5	3	1
Tularemia	1	1	1	1	1	-
Anthrax	19	-	2	1	-	-
Brucellosis, primarily detected	219	381	309	25	37	28
Diphtheria	-	-	-	-	-	-
Pertussis	30	85	27	29	84	27
Parapertussis	22	16	6	22	16	5
Meningococcal disease	4	8	6	3	7	6
Tetanus	-	1	-	-	1	-
AIDS	142	180	161	4	7	2
HIV	236	350	294	5	6	4
Acute flaccid paralysis	22	23	17	22	23	17
Measles	10	13	33	3	10	19
Viral hepatitis	213	201	250	29	17	49
Rabies	-	-	-	-	-	-
Infectious mononucleosis	381	465	474	269	336	355
Epidemic parotitis	2	2	4	2	2	4
Rickettsioses	-	-	-	-	-	-
Malaria, primarily detected	-	1	2	-	-	-
Leptospirosis	-	4	-	-	-	-
Acute upper respiratory infections	157 999	128 202	124 088	105 970	91 152	86 018
Influenza	64	13	36	33	8	29
Respiratory tuberculosis	909	894	728	9	16	7
Syphilis	-	1	-	-	-	-
Gonococcal infection (gonorrhea)	18	15	13	-	-	-
Scabies	90	86	41	43	29	18
Pediculosis	184	42	56	180	40	53
Leishmaniasis	10	9	18	9	8	17

	2016
Total (people)	of whom: 0–18 years old (people)
Typhoid fever	1	1
Paratyphoid fever A, B, C	-	-
Salmonella infections	361	247
Acute intestinal infection	9 628	7 698
Dysentery bacillus carrier	-	-
Tularemia	9	4
Anthrax	5	0
Brucellosis, primarily detected	276	50
Diphtheria	-	-
Pertussis	15	14
Parapertussis	5	5
Meningococcal disease	3	3
Tetanus	1	-
HIV	295	3
Acute flaccid paralysis	20	19
Measles	2	2
Viral hepatitis	100	14
Rabies	-	-
Infectious mononucleosis	552	453
Epidemic parotitis	2	1
Rickettsioses	-	-
Malaria, primarily detected	2	-
Leptospirosis	-	-
Acute upper respiratory infections	184 987	127 565
Influenza	409	184
Respiratory tuberculosis	692	32
Syphilis and gonococcal infection	351	6
Scabies	26	8
Pediculosis	32	28
Leishmaniasis	18	15

50.Mortality in the Republic of Armenia according to main causes of death:

	Number of dead (as per 100 thousand residents)
	2013	2014	2015	2016
Of infectious and parasitical diseases	8.2	9.3	10.3	7.9
Of neoplasms	185.6	189.2	203.1	190.3
O f them – malignant	184.9	188.6	202.0	189.2
Of diseases of the endocrine system, nutritional and metabolic disorders	44.3	41.1	44.0	40.4
O f them – of pancreatic diabetes	43.2	39.5	42.5	39.1
Of blood circulation system diseases	428.9	440.2	426.6	453.5
Of respiratory diseases	54.4	61.8	70.8	71.8
Of digestive diseases	53.9	54.6	55.0	61.6
Of genitourinary diseases	31.0	30.2	28.0	29.1
Of accidents, poisonings, injuries	42.4	41.1	45.1	42.9
Of congenital defects, deformations and chromosomal disorders	15.4	15.1	13.4	13.4
Symptoms, signs and pathological disturbances revealed through clinical and laboratory examinations, not classified under other classes	23.4	24.0	18.5	18.4
Of other causes	12.4	13.0	13.1	14.0
Total number of the dead	899.9	919.6	927.8	943.3

51.Gross enrolment ratio of pupils in general education primary schools in the Republic of Armenia (in per cents):

	Total	Girls	Boys
2012	95.2	96.0	94.5
2013	94.1	94.9	95.3
2014	93.1	93.5	92.6
2015	91.6	91.6	91.6
2016	91.2	91.2	91.3

52.Gross enrolment of pupils in general education schools in the Republic of Armenia (in per cents):

	Total	Girls	Boys
2012	89.2	91.7	86.9
2013	87.9	90.5	85.7
2014	87.8	89.9	85.9
2015	86.4	88.3	84.6
2016	86.0	87.5	84.7

53.Number of pupils having left/dropped out of general education schools in the Republic of Armenia in the beginning of the academic year:

	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Total	1 070	527	244	302	260
Boys	680	353	211	196	167
Girls	390	174	33	106	93

54.Ratio of the number of studying persons to the number of pedagogues in state education institutions in the Republic of Armenia (the number of studying persons per one pedagogue)

	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Pre-school institutions	13.5	12.4	12.7	12.4	12.3
General education institutions	9.1	9.2	9.4	9.6	9.7
Primary vocational (technical) education institutions	7.3	7.0	7.4	7.2	7.3
Secondary vocational education institutions	8.0	7.4	6.6	6.1	6.1
Higher education institutions	7.6	7.1	7.0	7.6	7.2

55.Level of literacy in the Republic of Armenia, according to the data of the census of 2011, constituted 99.6 %.

56.Level of unemployment in the Republic of Armenia according to gender and age groups (in per cents):

	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Total	17.3	16.2	17.6	18.5	18.0
15 – 24	35.4	36.1	37.2	32.5	36.6
25 – 34	20.2	18.7	20.1	23.1	19.3
35 – 44	14.6	13.2	15.8	17.2	17.3
45 – 54	13.7	12.7	12.9	13.8	14.5
55 – 64	12.2	11.7	11.8	13.2	13.9
65 – 75	7.2	5.1	6.8	8.5	8.5
Male	16.5	14.5	15.8	17.6	18.1
15 – 24	31.5	31.8	30.7	28.6	28.6
25 – 34	17.6	14.4	17.1	19.0	19.0
35 – 44	13.8	10.7	13.3	15.5	15.5
45 – 54	12.3	11.1	12.3	14.2	14.2
55 – 64	12.7	12.4	12.1	16.4	16.4
65 – 75	11.2	5.4	6.8	9.8	9.8
Female	18.2	18.1	19.5	19.5	17.8
15 – 24	40.7	41.5	45.0	37.2	46.0
25 – 34	23.4	24.8	24.1	28.5	22.2
35 – 44	15.4	15.5	18.1	19.0	16.7
45 – 54	14.8	13.9	13.3	13.6	13.3
55 – 64	11.7	11.0	11.6	9.7	10.9
65 – 75	2.9	4.8	6.8	6.9	5.3

57.Employment in the Republic of Armenia according to types of economic activity and gender (1 , 000 people):

	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Total	1 172.8	1 163.8	1 133.5	1 072.6	1 006.2
Agriculture	437.2	422.1	394.8	379.0	338.1
Industry	138.3	131.9	131.1	120.7	121.4
Construction	69.2	66.1	58.6	49.9	37.5
Services	528.1	543.6	549.2	523.2	509.3
Male	605.0	607.5	589.4	562.3	528.2
Agriculture	187.6	174.3	174.6	174.6	161.7
Industry	98.1	97.4	89.0	84.0	84.8
Construction	65.8	63.7	55.9	47.9	36.0
Services	253.5	272.1	269.6	255.8	245.6
Female	567.8	556.3	544.1	510.4	478.0
Agriculture	249.6	247.8	220.1	204.3	176.3
Industry	40.2	34.5	41.9	36.8	36.5
Construction	3.3	2.3	2.7	2.0	1.4
Services	274.7	271.5	279.2	267.1	263.7

58.Informal employment in the Republic of Armenia in 2012–2016 according to gender and sector (main activity, 1 , 000 people):

	Formal	Informal
Total	Male	Female	Total	Male	Female
2012
Total	599.3	318.0	281.3	573.5	287.0	286.4
Agriculture	4.6	2.5	2.1	432.6	185.1	247.5
Industry	117.8	84.4	33.4	20.6	13.7	6.9
Construction	22.0	18.9	3.1	47.1	46.9	0.2
Services	454.9	212.2	242.8	73.2	41.3	31.8
2013
Total	601.5	333.7	267.8	562.3	273.8	288.5
Agriculture	3.6	3.0	0.6	418.5	171.3	247.2
Industry	111.1	83.5	27.6	20.8	13.9	6.9
Construction	21.2	19.6	1.7	44.8	44.2	0.7
Services	465.6	227.7	237.9	78.0	44.4	33.6
2014
Total	582.3	305.9	276.4	551.2	283.5	267.7
Agriculture	2.6	2.2	0.3	392.2	172.4	219.8
Industry	100.8	71.4	29.4	30.2	17.7	12.5
Construction	22.6	20.4	2.2	36.0	35.5	0.5
Services	456.3	211.8	244.5	92.8	58.0	34.9
2015
Total	575.5	302.8	272.7	497.2	259.5	237.7
Agriculture	4.1	3.3	0.8	374.9	171.3	203.6
Industry	102.5	73.2	29.3	18.3	10.7	7.6
Construction	17.3	15.6	1.7	32.6	32.3	0.3
Services	451.6	210.6	240.9	71.5	45.2	26.3
2016
Total	551.2	288.3	262.9	454.9	239.8	215.1
Agriculture	2.9	2.0	0.9	335.2	159.7	175.5
Industry	101.1	73.6	27.5	20.2	11.3	9.0
Construction	14.8	13.5	1.4	22.6	22.6	0.0
Services	432.4	199.3	233.1	76.9	46.3	30.6

59.Main macroeconomic indicators of the Republic of Armenia:

	2013	2014	2015	2016
GDP per capita (USD)	3 680.1	3 852.1	3 512.4	3 524.4
Nominal GDP (million AMD)	4 555 638.2	4 828 626.3	5 043 633.2	5 067 293.5
Nominal GDP (million USD)	11 121.3	11 609.5	10 553.3	10 546.1
Real GDP growth	103.3	103.6	103.2	100.2
Gross national income (million AMD)	4 835 231.1	5 0536 98.6	5 255 309.9	5 175 028.9
Inflation (as of the end of period), %	5.6	4.6	(0.1)	(1.1)

60.Consumer price index in the Republic of Armenia in 2012–2016 (against the previous year):

	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Consumer price index (in per cents)	102.6	105.8	103.0	103.7	98.6

61.Public debt of the Republic of Armenia in 2012–2016.

	billion AMD	million USD
	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Public debt of the Republic of Armenia	1 764.4	1 861.3	2 109.6	2 456.3	2 875.6	4 372.0	4 588.5	4 441.5	5 077.7	5 942.1
including:
Foreign public debt	1 509.0	1 581.6	1 797.9	2 088.0	2 325.6	3 739.1	3 899.1	3 785.2	4 316.2	4 805.6
Domestic public debt	255.4	279.6	311.7	368.4	550.0	632.9	689.4	656.3	761.5	1 136.5

62.Allocations made from the 2013–2016 State Budget of the Republic of Armenia with respect to social expenses (million AMD):

	2013	2014
	Actual State Budget	Social expenses against the Actual State Budget (%)	Actual State Budget against the GDP (4,555,638.2) (%)	Actual State Budget	Social expenses against the Actual State Budget (%)	Actual State Budget against the GDP (4,828,626.3) (%)
total expenses	1 142 890.4	100 %	25.1 %	1 235 053.4	100 %	25 . 6 %
including:
Social expenses	464 829.6	40.7 %	10.2 %	534 921.0	43.3 %	11.1 %
Healthcare	64 355.3	5.6 %	1.4 %	76 645.4	6.2 %	1.6 %
Education	103 094.7	9.0 %	2.3 %	115 806.1	9.4 %	2.4 %
Social protection	297 379.6	26.0 %	6.5 %	342 469.5	27.7 %	7.1 %

	2015	2016
	Actual State Budget	Social expenses against the Actual State Budget (%)	Actual State Budget against the GDP (5,043,633.2) (%)	Actual State Budget	Social expenses against the Actual State Budget (%)	Actual State Budget against the GDP (5,067,293.5) (%)
total expenses	1 408 996.5	100 %	27 . 9 %	1 449063.6	100 %	28 . 6 %
including:
Social expenses	592 062.8	42 . 0 %	11 . 7 %	607 860.6	41 . 9 %	12 . 0 %
Healthcare	86 079.4	6 . 1 %	1 . 7 %	88 645.9	6 . 1 %	1 . 7 %
Education	122 280.0	8 . 7 %	2 . 4 %	122 411.7	8 . 4 %	2.4%
Social protection	383 703.4	27 . 2 %	7 . 6 %	396 803.1	27 . 4 %	7.8%

63.2013–2016 expenses of the Republic of Armenia, made with foreign support (million AMD):

	2013	2014
	Actual State Budget	Expenses made with foreign support	%	Expenses made with foreign support against the GDP (4,555,638.2) (%)	Actual State Budget	Expenses made with foreign support	%	Expenses made with foreign support against the GDP (4,828,626.3) (%)
Total expenses	1 142 890.4	58 476.9	5.1%	1.28%	1 235 053.4	69 466.9	5.6%	1.44%
including:
General public services	188 135.7	9 364.9	5.0%	0.21%	217 276.1	9 728.1	4.5%	0.20%
Defence	182 019.0	0.00	0.0%	0.00%	190 440.9	0.00	0.0%	0.00%
Public order, security and judicial activity	91 399.6	474.1	0.5%	0.01%	104 793.0	0.00	0.0%	0.00%
Economic relations	128 316.0	27 086.1	21.1%	0.59%	83 253.8	31 686.2	38.1%	0.66%
Environmental protection	4 601.1	689.4	15.0%	0.02%	4 672.7	649.1	13.9%	0.01%
Housing construction and utility services	21 727.7	12 369.0	56.9%	0.27%	31 296.2	20 321.8	64.9%	0.42%
Healthcare	64 355.3	4 616.4	7.2%	0.10%	76 645.4	4 385.0	5.7%	0.09%
Recreation , culture and religion	18 644.3	770.0	4.1%	0.02%	21 395.6	325.3	1.5%	0.01%
Education	103 094.7	1 685.7	1.6%	0.04%	115 806.1	2 012.2	1.7%	0.04%
Social protection	297 379.6	1 421.3	0.5%	0.03%	342 469.5	359.2	0.1%	0.01%
Reserve funds not classified under main categories	43 217.3	0.00	0.0%	0.00%	47 004.1	0.00	0.0%	0.00%

	2015	2016
	Actual State Budget	Expenses made with foreign support	%	Expenses made with foreign support against the GDP (5,043,633.2) (%)	Actual State Budget	Expenses made with foreign support	%	Expenses made with foreign support against the GDP (5,067,293.5) (%)
Total expenses	1 408 996.5	116 795.0	8.3%	2.32%	1 449 063.6	125 150.6	8.6%	2.47%
including:
General public services	281 397.0	27 156.2	9.7%	0.54%	292 117.4	10 714.3	3.7%	0.21%
Defence	198 527.7	0.00	0.0%	0.00%	225 877.2	14 436.3	6.4%	0.28%
Public order, security and judicial activity	122 024.7	187.4	0.2%	0.00%	120 304.5	44.3	0.0%	0.00%
Economic relations	109 825.7	57 161.2	52.0%	1.13%	131 062.3	79 637.7	60.8%	1.57%
Environmental protection	5 651.1	953.3	16.9%	0.02%	4 459.5	492.8	11.1%	0.01%
Housing construction and utility services	39 214.5	19 235.5	49.1%	0.38%	25 642.6	9 365.1	36.5%	0.18%
Healthcare	86 079.4	4 910.5	5.7%	0.10%	88 645.9	7 345.3	8.3%	0.14%
Recreation , culture and religion	30 389.7	4 070.0	13.4%	0.08%	26 607.2	371.0	1.4%	0.01%
Education	122 280.0	2 681.3	2.2%	0.05%	122 411.7	1 992.5	1.6%	0.04%
Social protection	383 703.4	439.6	0.1%	0.01%	396 803.1	751.4	0.2%	0.01%
Reserve funds not classified under main categories	29 903.3	0.00	0.0%	0.00%	15 132.2	0.00	0.0%	0.00%

B.Constitutional, political and legal structure of the Republic of Armenia

64.The Constitution of the Republic of Armenia was adopted through a national referendum held on 5 July 1995. Amendments in line with generally recognised rules of international law were made to the Constitution through a referendum on 27 November 2005 and 6 December 2015. The 5th of July is celebrated as Constitution Day in the Republic of Armenia.

65.As a result of the constitutional amendments of 2015, the Republic of Armenia made a transition from semi-presidential government model to parliamentary government. Consequently, the extensive process of radical reforms with regard to fundamental laws and governmental bodies of Armenia was initiated.

66.According to the Constitution, the Republic of Armenia is a sovereign, democratic, social state governed by the rule of law, where the power belongs to the people. The people shall exercise their power through free elections, referenda, as well as through state and local self-government bodies and officials provided for by the Constitution. State power shall be exercised in conformity with the Constitution and the laws, based on the separation and balance of the legislative, executive and judicial powers.

67.The Constitution of the Republic of Armenia shall have supreme legal force. Laws must comply with constitutional laws, whereas secondary regulatory legal acts must comply with constitutional laws. In case of conflict between the norms of international treaties ratified by the Republic of Armenia and those of laws, the norms of international treaties shall apply.

68.The National Assembly shall be the representative body of the people and shall implement the legislative power in the Republic of Armenia. The National Assembly shall exercise supervision over the executive power, shall adopt the State Budget and perform other functions prescribed by the Constitution.

69.The National Assembly shall be composed of at least one hundred and one Deputies. The National Assembly shall be elected through proportional electoral system, for a term of five years. Everyone who has attained the age of twenty-five, has held citizenship of only the Republic of Armenia for the preceding four years, has been permanently residing in the Republic for the preceding four years, has the right of suffrage and has command of the Armenian language, may be elected as a Deputy of the National Assembly. Deputies shall represent the whole people, shall not be bound by imperative mandate, shall be guided by their conscience and convictions.

70.Representatives of national minorities shall be allocated with seats in the National Assembly under the procedure prescribed by the Electoral Code.

71.The National Assembly shall elect from among its members the Chairperson of the National Assembly and three deputies thereof. One of the deputies shall be elected from among the Deputies included in the opposition factions. The Chairperson of the National Assembly shall represent the National Assembly and ensure normal operation thereof. A Deputy, a faction of the National Assembly and the Government shall have the right to legislative initiative. At least fifty thousand citizens having the right of suffrage shall be entitled to propose, upon popular initiative, a draft law to the National Assembly.

72.The powers of the National Assembly comprise ratification, suspension or revocation of international treaties, adoption of the State Budget upon submission of the Government, adoption of a law on amnesty upon recommendation of the Government.

73.The National Assembly may, upon recommendation of the Government, adopt a decision on declaring war or establishing peace. In case of impossibility to convene a sitting of the National Assembly, the Government shall decide on the issue of declaring war. The National Assembly may lift the martial law or state of emergency declared by the Government or cancel the implementation of measures provided for under the legal regimes thereof.

74.Ideological pluralism and a multiparty system shall be guaranteed in the Republic of Armenia by the Constitution. Political parties shall be formed and operate freely and shall promote the formulation and expression of the political will of the people. Equal legal opportunities shall be guaranteed by law for the activities of political parties. The structure and activities of political parties may not contradict the democratic principles. According to the Constitution, every citizen shall have the right to establish a political party together with other citizens and the right to join any political party. No one may be compelled to join any political party. Judges, prosecutors and investigators may not be members of a political party. The law may prescribe restrictions on the right to establish a political party and the right to join any political party for servicemen of the armed forces, national security, the police and other militarised bodies.

75.According to the data of the Agency for State Register of Legal Entities of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia, 81 political parties were registered in the Republic of Armenia as of July 2017.

76.The factions in the parliament of the sixth convocation of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia formed as a result of the snap elections to the National Assembly held on 9 December 2018, have been distributed in the following way:

Faction	Number of Deputies	Percentage ratio of number of Deputies
“ My Step ” [Im Kayly] faction	88	66.7 %
“ Prosperous Armenia ” [Bargavatch Hayastan] faction	26	19.7 %
“ Bright Armenia ” [Lusavor Hayastan] faction	18	13.2 %
Total	132	100 %

77.By the quota granted to the national minorities and as a result of the elections to the National Assembly, one representative from each of the four largest national minorities (Yezidis, Russians, Assyrians and Kurds) of the Republic of Armenia was included in the composition of the parliament.

78.Nineteen female deputies were members of the parliament of the sixth convocation of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, formed as a result of the elections to the National Assembly held on 2 April 2017, comprising 18% of the total number of the Deputies. The number comprised 10 % in the parliament of the previous fifth convocation.

79.Thirty-two deputies are members of the parliament of the seventh convocation of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, formed as a result of the snap elections to the National Assembly held on 9 December 2018, comprising 24% of the total number of the Deputies.

80.The President of the Republic shall be the head of the State. He or she shall observe the compliance with the Constitution, in the course of exercising his or her powers, he or she shall be impartial and shall be guided exclusively by state-wide and nation-wide interests. The President of the Republic shall be elected by the National Assembly, for a term of seven years. Everyone having attained the age of forty, having held citizenship of only the Republic of Armenia for the preceding six years, having been permanently residing in the Republic of Armenia for the preceding six years, having the right of suffrage and having command of the Armenian language may be elected to this position. The same person may be elected as President of the Republic only once. The President of the Republic may not hold any other position, engage in entrepreneurial activities, perform other paid work or hold membership in any political party in the course of exercising his or her powers.

81.In the cases and under the procedure prescribed by law, the President of the Republic shall conclude international treaties, upon recommendation of the Government; appoint and recall diplomatic representatives to foreign states and international organisations, upon recommendation of the Prime Minister; receive the letters of credence and letters of recall of diplomatic representatives of foreign states and international organisations. Upon the recommendation of the Prime Minister, the President shall, in the cases and under the procedure prescribed by law, appoint and dismiss the supreme command of the armed forces and of other troops. The President of the Republic shall, in the cases and under the procedure prescribed by law, decide on issues in respect of granting and terminating citizenship of the Republic of Armenia, as well as of granting pardon to convicts.

82.The Government shall be the supreme body of the executive power in the Republic of Armenia, which shall, based on its programme, develop and implement the domestic and foreign policies of the State. The Government shall exercise general management of the bodies of the state administration system. The matters pertaining to the executive power and not reserved to state administration bodies or other local self-government bodies shall fall under the competence of the Government.

83.The Government shall implement a single state policy on financial and economic, credit and tax matters, as well as shall administer state property.

84.The Government shall be composed of the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Ministers and ministers. Immediately after commencement of the term of powers of the newly-elected National Assembly, the President of the Republic shall appoint as Prime Minister the candidate nominated by the parliamentary majority formed under the procedure prescribed by the Constitution. The Prime Minister shall, within the framework of the Programme of the Government, determine the general directions of policy of the Government, manage the activities of the Government and coordinate the work of the members of the Government. He or she may give assignments to the members of the Government in respect of specific issues. The Prime Minister shall head the Security Council, which shall prescribe the main directions of the defence policy.

85.The armed forces of the Republic of Armenia shall fall under the subordination of the Government. The decision on the use of armed forces shall be taken by the Government. In case of urgent necessity, the Prime Minister shall, upon recommendation of the Minister of Defence, take a decision on the use of armed forces and shall immediately inform the members of the Government thereon. At the time of war, the Prime Minister shall act as the Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.

86.In the Republic of Armenia, justice shall be administered only by courts in compliance with the Constitution and laws. Any interference with the administration of justice shall be prohibited. The Constitutional Court, the Court of Cassation, courts of appeal, courts of first instance of general jurisdiction, as well as the Administrative Court shall operate in the Republic of Armenia. Other specialised courts may be established in the cases provided for by law. Establishment of extraordinary courts shall be prohibited.

87.In the Republic of Armenia, constitutional justice shall be administered by the Constitutional Court, ensuring the supremacy of the Constitution. When administering justice, the Constitutional Court shall be independent and shall abide only by the Constitution. The issues of compliance of laws, decisions of the National Assembly, decrees and executive orders of the President of the Republic, decisions of the Government and the Prime Minister, and secondary regulatory legal acts with the Constitution shall be vested in the Constitutional Court. The Constitutional Court shall determine the compliance of draft amendments to the Constitution, draft legal acts put to referendum, commitments enshrined in international treaties subject to ratification with the Constitution. Settlement of disputes related to decisions adopted upon the results of a referendum, those of the elections of the National Assembly and President of the Republic, disputes arising between constitutional bodies with respect to the constitutional powers thereof, as well as a number of functions prescribed by the Constitution shall be vested in the Constitutional Court.

88.The Supreme Judicial Council, which is an independent state body and guarantees the independence of courts and judges, shall operate under the procedure prescribed by the Constitution. The Supreme Judicial Council shall be composed of ten members, five of which shall be elected by the General Assembly of Judges from among judges having at least ten years of experience as a judge, and the other five members shall be elected by the National Assembly, by at least three fifths of votes of the total number of Deputies, from among academic lawyers and other prominent lawyers with high professional qualities and at least fifteen years of professional work experience only. The member elected by the National Assembly may not be a judge. Members of the Supreme Judicial Council shall be elected for a term of five years, without the right to be re-elected.

89.The Supreme Judicial Council shall draw up and approve the lists of candidates for judges; propose to the President of the Republic the candidates for judges subject to appointment; propose to the President of the Republic the candidates for chairpersons of courts and the candidates for chairpersons of chambers of the Court of Cassation, subject to appointment; propose to the National Assembly the candidates for judges and for Chairperson of the Court of Cassation. In case of discussing the issue of subjecting a judge to disciplinary liability, as well as in other cases prescribed by the Judicial Code, the Supreme Judicial Council shall act as a court.

90.In the Republic of Armenia, the Supreme Court shall be the Court of Cassation, except for the field of constitutional justice. The Court of Cassation, by way of revision of judicial acts within the scope of powers prescribed by law, shall ensure the uniform application of laws or other regulatory legal acts and eliminate the fundamental violations of human rights and freedoms.

91.Judges of the Constitutional Court shall be elected by the National Assembly for a term of twelve years, by at least three fifths of votes of the total number of Deputies. The Constitutional Court shall be composed of nine judges, of which three judges shall be elected upon recommendation of the President of the Republic, three judges upon recommendation of the Government, and three judges upon recommendation of the General Assembly of Judges. The General Assembly of Judges may nominate only judges. The same person may be elected as a judge of the Constitutional Court only once. The Constitutional Court shall elect the Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson of the Constitutional Court from among its members for a term of six years, without the right to be re-elected.

92.Judges shall hold office until attaining the age of sixty-five, whereas judges of the Constitutional Court – until attaining the age of seventy.

93.Judges of the Court of Cassation shall, upon recommendation of the National Assembly, be appointed by the President of the Republic. The National Assembly shall elect the nominated candidate by at least three fifths of votes of the total number of Deputies, from among the three candidates nominated by the Supreme Judicial Council for each seat of a judge. Judges of the courts of first instance and courts of appeal shall be appointed by the President of the Republic, upon recommendation of the Supreme Judicial Council. Judges shall hold office until attaining the age of sixty-five, whereas judges of the Constitutional Court – until attaining the age of seventy.

94.When administering justice, a judge shall be independent, impartial and act only in accordance with the Constitution and laws. A judge may not be held liable for the opinion expressed or judicial act rendered during administration of justice, except where there are elements of crime or disciplinary violation. A judge may not hold any position not related to his or her status in other state or local self-government bodies, any position in commercial organisations, or engage in entrepreneurial activities or perform other paid work, except for scientific, educational and creative work. A judge may not engage in political activities.

95.Criminal prosecution of a judge of the Constitutional Court with respect to the exercise of his or her powers may be initiated only upon the consent of the Constitutional Court. A judge of the Constitutional Court may not be deprived of liberty, with respect to the exercise of his or her powers, without the consent of the Constitutional Court, except where he or she has been caught at the time of or immediately after committing a criminal offence. Criminal prosecution of a judge with respect to the exercise of his or her powers may be initiated only upon the consent of the Supreme Judicial Council. A judge may not be deprived of liberty, with respect to the exercise of his or her powers, without the consent of the Supreme Judicial Council except where he or she has been caught at the time of or immediately after committing a criminal offence.

96.Pursuant to the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, the church shall be separate from the State in the Republic of Armenia. At the same time, Article 18 of the Constitution prescribes that “The Republic of Armenia shall recognise the exclusive mission of the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church, as a national church, in the spiritual life of the Armenian people, in the development of their national culture and preservation of their national identity. The relations between the Republic of Armenia and the Armenian Apostolic Holy Church may be regulated by law.”

97.The Constitution of the Republic of Armenia prescribes that everyone shall have the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. This right shall include the freedom to change religion or belief and, either alone or in community with others and in public or in private, the freedom to manifest them in preaching, church ceremonies, other rites of worship or in other forms. The expression of this right may be restricted only by law for the purpose of state security, protecting public order, health and morals or the basic rights and freedoms of others. Religious organisations shall enjoy legal equality and shall be vested with autonomy. The procedure for the establishment and operation thereof shall be prescribed by law.

98.The reforms related to the electoral system and institute of referendum were, among other things, considered as issues deemed to be priorities underlying the constitutional amendments of 2015 and requiring the adoption of new essential approaches at the level of constitutional decisions. Within that framework, Constitutional Law “Electoral Code of the Republic of Armenia” was adopted by the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia on 25 May 2016 and entered into force on June 1.

99.Pursuant to the Constitution, elections of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia and of community councils of elders, as well as referenda shall be held on the basis of universal, equal, free and direct suffrage, by secret ballot.

100.Pursuant to the Electoral Code, electors shall participate in elections on equal grounds. Public authorities shall ensure equal conditions for the exercise of the right of suffrage of electors. Electors shall – irrespective of national origin, race, gender, language, religion, political or other views, social origin, property or other status – have the right to elect and to be elected.

101.Preparations for and holding of elections shall be public, on the basis of the principle of free and voluntary exercise of the right of suffrage. No one has the right to force an elector to vote for or against a candidate (a political party) or has the right to force an elector to participate or not to participate in elections. Voting shall be held by secret ballot. Secrecy of voting shall be not only the right, but also the responsibility of an elector. Control over the free expression of the will of an elector shall be prohibited.

102.As a result of the constitutional amendments of 6 December 2015, only one type of national elections, i.e. the elections to the National Assembly, is held in the Republic of Armenia, whereas before the constitutional amendments of 2015, the President of the Republic was also elected through national elections.

103.Pursuant to the Electoral Code of the Republic of Armenia, the whole composition of the parliament shall be elected under the proportional electoral system, from one multi-mandate constituency which covers the whole territory of the Republic, applying the method of electoral quota for the distribution of mandates (the method of maximum remainder shall be applied during the secondary distribution).

104.The Electoral Code adopted in 2016 focuses special attention on the issue of increasing representation of female Deputies in the parliament. Therefore, the principle of 25 per cent – as a minimum – representation of representatives of each sex in the electoral lists has been enshrined. Beginning from 2021, the principle of 30 per cent – as a minimum – representation of representatives of each sex in the electoral lists will be applied.

105.The Electoral Code envisages four quotas for the representatives of the national minorities, one representative for each of the first four national minorities with the largest number of resident population according to the data of the latest census preceding the elections. During the elections to the National Assembly of 2017, the national minorities were Yezidis with a population of 35.308, Russians with a population of 11.911, Assyrians with a population of 2.769, and Kurds with a population of 2.162.

106.A three-level system of electoral commissions shall operate in the Republic of Armenia: the Central Electoral Commission (CEC), district electoral commissions and one precinct electoral commission at each electoral precinct. The Central Electoral Commission and the district electoral commissions shall act on a permanent basis and shall be formed exclusively on the principle of professionalism, and the participation of political parties in the formation of electoral commissions is ensured only at the level of precinct electoral commissions.

107.The system of electoral commissions is headed by the Central Electoral Commission, which is endowed with constitutional status, is an independent state authority which shall organise the elections of the National Assembly and local self-government bodies, referenda, as well as exercise supervision over the lawfulness thereof. The Central Electoral Commission shall comprise of seven members. The chairperson and other members of the Central Electoral Commission shall, upon recommendation of the competent standing committee of the National Assembly, be elected by the National Assembly by at least three fifths of votes of the total number of Deputies, for a term of six years.

108.In 13 electoral commissions (4 in Yerevan, 9 in the marzes), 38 district electoral commissions shall operate, 10 of which in Yerevan and 28 in the marzes. The district electoral commissions shall comprise of 7 members, shall be formed for a 6-year period. The Central Electoral Commission shall appoint the members of district electoral commission.

109.Citizens of the Republic of Armenia having attained the age of 18 as of the day of election shall have the right to elect and participate in the referenda in the Republic of Armenia.

110.Persons having attained the age of 18 that do not hold citizenship of the Republic of Armenia may only participate in the elections of the local self-government bodies in case of having been registered in the Population Register of the community for at least one year prior to the voting day where the elections are held.

111.According to the data of the authorised body drawing up and maintaining the lists of electors, the number of electors included in the list of electors during the elections to the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia of 2 April 2017 comprised 2 564 195, 1 195 902 of which were male representatives and 1 368 293 – female representatives.

112.Chronological overview of the elections held in the Republic of Armenia in 2012–2017, according to the schedule prescribed by law:

National elections	Local elections
Elections to National Assembly	6 May 2012	Elections of head of community and council of elders	12 February 2012 8 July 12 9 September 2012 16 September 2012	Elections of the Council of Elders of Yerevan	5 May 2013
Presidential elections of the Republic of Armenia	18 February 2013	26 May 2013 17 October 2013 8 December 2013
9 March 2014 8 June 2014 19 October 2014 14 December 2014
15 March 2015 7 June 2015 13 September 2015 6 December 2015	14 May 2017
Elections to National Assembly	2 April 2017
14 February 2016 17 April 2016 18 September 2016 2 October 2016
12 April 2017 18 June 2017 5 November 2017

113.The numerical overview of the ratio of national and sub-national elections held in accordance with the schedule prescribed by law in the Republic of Armenia in 2012–2017:

Elections	Number
Elections to National Assembly	2
Elections of the Council of Elders of Gyumri and Vanadzor	1
Elections of the Council of Elders of Yerevan	2
Elections of head of community	1 545
Election of members of the Council of Elders	1 571

114.The average participation rates during the national elections and elections of local self-government bodies, according to the administrative and territorial division:

	2012 Elections to National Assembly	Presidential elections of 2013
Marz	Total number of electors	Number of voting participants	Participation(%)	Total number of electors	Number of voting participants	Participation (%)
Yerevan	814 225	483 263	59.35	824 859	445 725	54.04
Aragatsotn	113 690	78 918	69.42	114 323	72 769	63.65
Ararat	212 317	149 389	70.36	213 038	157 927	74.13
Armavir	222 641	125 092	56.19	224 622	128 637	57.27
Gegharkunik	185 981	122 785	66.02	186 456	128 881	69.12
Lori	236 441	140 006	59.21	237 494	143 318	60.35
Kotayk	231 710	150 453	64.93	232 594	138 231	59.43
Shirak	228 732	131 644	57.55	229 265	132 939	57.98
Syunik	121 433	87 892	72.38	109 384	71 979	65.8
Vayots Dzor	47 412	31 748	66.96	47 227	29 577	62.63
Tavush	108 324	71 668	66.16	108 560	71 278	65.66
Total	2 522 906	1 572 858	62.34	2 527 822	1 521 261	60.18

	Elections of local self-government bodies of 2016 and elections of the Council of Elders of Yerevan of 2017 Elections of the Council of Elders of Yerevan	Elections to National Assembly of 2017
Marz	Total number of electors	Number of voting participants	Participation (%)	Total number of electors	Number of voting participants	Participation (%)
Yerevan	84 2151	345 158	40.99	845 810	494 590	58.48
Aragatsotn	106 855	61 277	57.35	116 816	77 734	66.54
Ararat	203 205	93 028	45.78	221 507	151 692	68.48
Armavir	228 766	100 391	43.88	232 010	128 828	55.53
Gegharkunik	174 220	89 805	51.55	191 672	128 268	66.92
Lori	225 060	107 589	47.80	238 291	138 222	58.01
Kotayk	235 239	105 431	44.82	238 421	140 540	58.95
Shirak	225 396	99 098	43.97	230 701	133 299	57.78
Syunik	104 934	63 918	60.91	115 348	78 122	67.73
Vayots Dzor	45 276	26 657	58.88	47 108	30 700	65.17
Tavush	90 060	52 947	58.79	110 037	73 044	66.38
Total	2 481 162	1 145 299	46.16	2 587 721	1 575 039	60.87

115.The legal norms for the activities of non-governmental organisations in the Republic of Armenia are enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, the Civil Code of the Republic of Armenia, the Laws of the Republic of Armenia “On Non-Governmental Organisations” and “On state registration of legal persons, state record-registration of separate subdivisions, institutions of legal persons, and individual entrepreneurs”, as well as international treaties of the Republic of Armenia.

116.The freedom of association is enshrined in the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia. According to the Constitution, everyone shall have the right to freedom of association with others, including the right to form and join trade unions for the protection of labour interests. No one may be compelled to join any private association. The procedure for the establishment and operation of associations shall be prescribed by law. The freedom of associations may be restricted only by law, for the purpose of state security, protecting public order, health and morals or the basic rights and freedoms of others. The activities of associations may be suspended or prohibited only upon court decision, in the cases and under the procedure prescribed by law.

117.The new Law of the Republic of Armenia “On Non-Governmental Organisations” was adopted on 16 December 2016, which defines the legal status of non-governmental organisations, regulates the relations arising during the establishment, administration, activities, re-organisation and liquidation thereof. Article 2 of the Law stipulates that non-governmental association of the citizens of the Republic of Armenia, foreign nationals, stateless persons and/or legal persons, having a status of a non-commercial organisation, shall be a non-governmental organisation. It shall independently decide its organisational structure, scope, objectives and forms of activity.

118.According to the data of the Agency for State Register of Legal Entities of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia, 4782 non-governmental organisations were registered in the Republic of Armenia as of July 2017.

119.The right of establishing and joining political parties is also enshrined in the Constitution, according to which: “Every citizen shall have the right to establish a political party together with other citizens and the right to join any political party. No one may be compelled to join any political party. Judges, prosecutors and investigators may not be members of a political party. The law may prescribe restrictions on the right to establish a political party and the right to join any political party for servicemen of the armed forces, national security, the police and other militarised bodies. Political parties shall publish annual reports on the sources of their financial means and expenditures, as well as on their property. The activities of a political party may, in the cases prescribed by law, be suspended upon the decision of the Constitutional Court. Political parties advocating violent overthrow of the constitutional order or using violence for the purpose of overthrowing the constitutional order shall be unconstitutional and shall be subject to prohibition upon the decision of the Constitutional Court.”

120.According to the data of the Agency for State Register of Legal Entities of the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia, 81 political parties were registered in the Republic of Armenia as of July 2017.

Data on crime and the justice system

121.Number and portion of murders and crimes that are dangerous to life:

	2012	2013	2014	2015	2016
Total	per 100 000 persons and residents	Total	per 100 000 persons and residents	Total	per 100 000 persons and residents	Total	per 100 000 persons and residents	Total	per 100 000 persons and residents
Recorded murders (Article 104 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia)	50	1.7	48	1.6	53	1.8	52	1.7	66	2.2
Number of persons subjected to criminal liability for murder	37	1.1	32	1.1	36	1.2	45	1.5	57	1.9
Including:	female	0	0.0	3	0.1	2	0.1	1	0.0	2	0.1
Minors	0	0.0	0	0.0	1	0.0	0	0.0	5	0.2
Previously convicted	7	0.2	2	0.1	3	0.1	4	0.1	2	0.1
Recorded attempted murders (Articles 34 – 104 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia)	25	0.8	25	0.8	28	0.9	35	1.2	36	1.2
Number of persons subjected to criminal liability for attempted murder	21	0.6	17	0.6	24	0.8	24	0.8	35	1.2
Including:	female	0	0.0	0	0.0	0	0.0	1	0.0	2	0.1
Minors	1	0.0	1	0.0	1	0.0	0	0.0	0	0.0
Previously convicted	2	0.1	0	0.0	1	0.0	1	0.0	0	0.0

122.According to point 3 of Article 138 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Armenia, the period for keeping the accused under detention in pre-trial criminal proceedings in the Republic of Armenia may not exceed two months. According to part 4 of the same article, taking into consideration the particular complexity of the case, the court may extend the specified two-month period up to six months, and in special cases, where the person is accused of having committed a grave or particularly grave crime – up to twelve months. Therefore, the general minimum duration of detention imposed as a measure of restraint on the accused shall be up to 2 months, the general maximum duration – up to 1 year.

123.Number of imprisoned convicts according to periods of imprisonment:

	2013	2014	2015	2016
	people	per 100 000 persons and residents	people	per 100 000 persons and residents	people	per 100 000 persons and residents	people	per 100 000 persons and residents
1 year inclusive	568	18.8	451	15.0	493	16.4	438	14.6
More than 1 year, up to 2 years inclusive	402	13.3	285	9.5	233	7.7	236	7.9
More than 2 years, up to 3 years inclusive	402	13.3	270	9.0	227	7.6	196	6.5
More than 3 years, up to 5 years inclusive	528	17.5	511	17.0	440	14.6	434	14.5
More than 5 years, up to 8 years inclusive	187	6.2	187	6.2	102	3.4	111	3.7
More than 8 years, up to 10 years inclusive	48	1.6	29	1.0	33	1.1	11	0.4
More than 10 years, up to 15 years inclusive	44	1.5	43	1.4	21	0.7	21	0.7
Life imprisonment	0	0.0	0	0.0	0	0.0	1	0.03
Total	2 179	72.1	1 776	58.9	1 549	51.5	1 449	38.4

124.Number of persons convicted for violent and other grave crimes:

	2013 `	2014	2015	2016
	people	per 100 000 residents	people	per 100 000 residents	people	per 100 000 residents	people	per 100 000 residents
Murder	32	1.1	38	1.3	17	0.6	21	0.7
Murder committed in the heat of passion	2	0.1	0	0.0	1	0.0	3	0.1
Murder in excess of necessary defence	0	0.0	1	0.0	0	0.0	0	0.0
Causing death by negligence	1	0.0	2	0.1	3	0.1	4	0.1
Intentionally causing grave harm to the health	117	3.9	106	3.5	86	2.9	79	2.6
Intentionally causing medium gravity harm to the health	38	1.3	19	0.6	14	0.5	23	0.8
Intentionally causing light harm to the health	23	0.8	30	1.0	19	0.6	22	0.7
Battery	29	1.0	44	1.5	34	1.1	72	2.4
Kidnapping	86	2.9	53	1.8	69	2.3	46	1.5
Rape	5	0.2	4	0.1	4	0.1	2	0.1
Committing sexual actions with a person below the age of sixteen	27	0.9	34	1.1	43	1.4	45	1.5
Violating the inviolability of residence	11	0.4	16	0.5	13	0.4	18	0.6
Violating the rules of labour protection	5	0.2	4	0.1	10	0.3	9	0.3
Robbery	44	1.5	32	1.1	36	1.2	25	0.8
Larceny	62	2.1	51	1.7	62	2.1	53	1.8
Theft	499	16.5	468	15.5	506	16.9	476	15.9
Fraud	145	4.8	115	3.8	89	3.0	92	3.1
Embezzlement or peculation	82	2.7	82	2.7	60	2.0	53	1.8
Extortion	18	0.6	12	0.4	12	0.4	4	0.1
Intentionally destructing or damaging property	20	0.7	22	0.7	12	0.4	24	0.8
Illegal entrepreneurial activity	4	0.1	1	0.0	3	0.1	0	0.0
Preparing or sale of counterfeit money or securities	1	0.0	1	0.0	5	0.2	4	0.1
Maliciously evading payment of taxes, duties or other mandatory payments	11	0.4	7	0.2	3	0.1	1	0.0
Illegal acquisition, sales, storage, transportation, or carrying of weapons, ammunition, explosive substances or explosive devices	75	2.5	80	2.7	101	3.4	72	2.4
Smuggling	27	0.9	47	1.6	44	1.5	20	0.7
Violating road traffic rules and rules of operation of means of transport	121	4.0	109	3.6	82	2.7	116	3.9
Hooliganism	178	5.9	133	4.4	115	3.8	79	2.6
Drug-related crimes	483	16.0	351	11.7	350	11.7	290	9.7
Illegal harvesting of water animals and plants	3	0.1	9	0.3	6	0.2	7	0.2
Excess of official powers	19	0.6	22	0.7	17	0.6	8	0.3
Receiving bribe	8	0.3	10	0.3	12	0.4		0.0
Giving bribe	11	0.4	3	0.1	11	0.4	2	0.1
Official forgery	9	0.3	3	0.1	15	0.5	17	0.6
Official negligence	2	0.1	0	0.0	1	0.0	6	0.2
Use of violence against representative of the authorities	38	1.3	29	1.0	19	0.6	24	0.8
Forgery, sales or use of documents, stamps, seals, forms, state registration plates of means of transport	69	2.3	27	0.9	54	1.8	75	2.5
Evasion of compulsory military or alternative service, training musters or mobilisations	6	0.2	0	0.0	6	0.2	4	0.1
False denunciation	44	1.5	47	1.6	64	2.1	74	2.5
Other crimes	1126	37.3	932	31.0	846	28.2	663	22.2
Total	3 481	115.4	2 944	97.8	2 844	94.8	2 533	84.8

125.Number of deaths of persons under custody:

2013	2014	2015	2016	2017
19	38	28	29	17

126.A moratorium on the death penalty was introduced in 1990, and since then nobody has been sentenced to death penalty in the Republic of Armenia. The provision with regard to the application of the death penalty as a sanction has been removed from the new Criminal Code adopted in August 2003. In September of the same year, Armenia ratified Protocol No. 6 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms concerning the Abolition of the Death Penalty. Sentencing to or imposing death penalty was prohibited by the Constitution of 2005. In May 2006, Armenia signed Protocol No. 13 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, concerning the abolition of the death penalty in all circumstances. Article 24 of the supplemented Constitution of 2015 prescribes that “No one may be sentenced or subjected to death penalty.”

127.Number and portion of judges and prosecutors in the Republic of Armenia:

	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017
	People	per 100 000 persons and residents	People	per 100 000 persons and residents	People	per 100 000 persons and residents	People	per 100 000 persons and residents	People	per 100 000 persons and residents
Number of prosecutors	337	11.08	337	11.2	337	9.8	337	11.2	337	11.3
Number of judges	220	7.3	228	7.6	217	7.2	231	7.7	226	7.6

128.Number of criminal, civil and administrative cases received and completed by the courts of the Republic of Armenia:

	2013	2014	2015	2016
Number of received criminal, civil and administrative cases	77 472	106 690	135 363	153 732
Completed cases	51 977	67 623	89 302	100 286
Number of cases appealed to the Court of Appeal of the Republic of Armenia	8 159	7 609	7 916	8 367
Completed cases	6 945	6 427	6 501	6 364
Number of complaints received at the Court of Cassation of the Republic of Armenia	4 302	4 039	4 198	4 330
Completed case examinations	3 915	3 503	3 464	3 703

129.Funds allocated from the State Budget of the Republic of Armenia of 2013–2016 to the Police, National Security, courts and Prosecutor’s Office of the Republic of Armenia (AMD million):

	2013	2014	2015	2016
	Actual State Budget	Total Specific weight in expenditures (%)	Actual State Budget	Total Specific weight in expenditures (%)	Actual State Budget	Total Specific weight in expenditures (%)	Actual State Budget	Total Specific weight in expenditures (%)
Expenditures (total)	1 142 890.4	100.0%	1 235 053.4	100.0%	1 408 996.5	100.0%	1 449 063.6	100.0%
including:
public order, security and judicial activity	76 802.8	6.7%	87 418.4	7.1%	122 024.7	8.7%	120 304.5	8.3%
including:
Police	49 461.6	4.3%	57 118.0	4.6%	63 391.3	4.5%	62 288.8	4.3%
National security	16 841.0	1.5%	18 624.1	1.5%	19 919.1	1.4%	18 415.1	1.3%
Courts	7 706.8	0.7%	8 631.5	0.7%	10 568.2	0.8%	10 446.3	0.7%
Prosecutor ’ s Office	2 793.4	0.2%	3 044.8	0.3 %	3 301.6	0.2%	3 698.9	0.3%

II.General framework for the protection and promotion of human rights

C.Acceptance of international human rights norms

Core international human rights treaties and protocols

130.The Republic of Armenia has ratified and/or joined the following core international human rights treaties:

•Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948.

•International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 1966.

•International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1966.

•International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, 1965.

•Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, 1976.

•Convention on Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women, 1979.

•Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 1984.

•Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1989.

•Optional Protocol to the Convention on Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women, 2000.

•Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict, 2000.

•Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography, 2000.

131.The Republic of Armenia has ratified the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict (2000), while making a declaration.

132.The Republic of Armenia also signed the Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (1990) in September 2013, and is in the internal process of ratifying it.

Other UN Conventions and documents on human rights

133.The Republic of Armenia has also ratified a number of other UN Conventions and documents on human rights:

•Convention on Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, 1948.

•Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees, 1951, and Protocol Relating to the Status of Refugees, 1967.

•Convention Relating to the Status of Stateless Persons, 1954.

•Convention on the Reduction of Statelessness, 1961.

•United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime, 2000.

•Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime, 2000.

•Protocol against the Smuggling of Migrants by Land, Sea and Air, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime, 2000.

•Protocol against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, their Parts and Components and Ammunition, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime, 2001.

134.The Republic of Armenia has signed the Charter of the International Criminal Court. However, the Constitutional Court of the Republic of Armenia, upon its decision of 13 August 2004, suspended the ratification process, finding that certain provisions of the Charter contradict the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia.

Conventions adopted within the framework of the International Labour Organisation, and relating to human rights

135.The Republic of Armenia has ratified the following conventions adopted within the framework of the International Labour Organisation, and relating to human rights:

•Convention concerning the Application of the Weekly Rest in Industrial Undertakings, 1921 (No. 14).

•Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour, 1930 (No. 29).

•Convention concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour, 1930 (No. 29).

•Convention concerning Labour Inspection in Industry and Commerce, 1947 (No. 81).

•Convention concerning Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise, 1948 (No. 87).

•Migrant Workers (Supplementary Provisions) Convention, 1949 (No. 97).

•Collective Bargaining Convention, 1949 (No. 98).

•Convention concerning Equal Remuneration for Men and Women Workers for Work of Equal Value, 1951 (No. 100).

•Convention concerning the Abolition of Forced Labour, 1957 (No. 105).

•Convention concerning Discrimination in Respect of Employment and Occupation, 1958 (No. 111).

•Convention concerning Employment Policy, 1964 (No. 122).

•Minimum Wage Fixing Convention, 1970 (No. 131).

•Holidays with Pay Convention (Revised), 1970 (No. 132).

•Minimum Age Convention, 1973 (No. 138).

•Migrant Workers (Supplementary Provisions) Convention, 1975 (No. 143).

•Labour Relations (Public Service) Convention, 1978 (No. 151).

•Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182).

Conventions adopted within the framework of the United Nations Organisation for Education, Science and Culture, and relating to human rights

136.The Republic of Armenia has ratified the following Conventions adopted within the framework of the United Nations Organisation for Education, Science and Culture, and relating to human rights:

•Convention against Discrimination in Education, 1960.

Conventions adopted under the auspices of the Hague Conference on Private International Law

137.The Republic of Armenia has ratified the following conventions adopted under the auspices of the Hague Conference on Private International Law:

•Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, 1980.

•Convention on International Access to Justice, 1980.

•Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption, 1993.

•Convention on Jurisdiction, Applicable Law, Recognition, Enforcement and Co-operation in Respect of Parental Responsibility and Measures for the Protection of Children, 1996.

Geneva Conventions and other treaties on International Humanitarian Law

138.The Republic of Armenia has ratified the following Geneva Conventions and treaties on international humanitarian law:

•Convention (I) for the Amelioration of the Condition of the Wounded and Sick in Armed Forces in the Field, 1949.

•Geneva Convention (II) for the Amelioration of the Condition of Wounded, Sick and Shipwrecked Members of Armed Forces at Sea, 1949.

•Geneva Convention (III) relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War, 1949.

•Geneva Convention (IV) relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, 1949.

•Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol I), 1977.

•Protocol Additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Protection of Victims of International Armed Conflicts (Protocol II), 1977.

•Protocol additional to the Geneva Conventions of 12 August 1949, and relating to the Adoption of an Additional Distinctive Emblem (Protocol III), 2005.

Conventions adopted within the framework of the Council of Europe, and relating to human rights

139.The Republic of Armenia has ratified the following Conventions adopted within the framework of the Council of Europe, and relating to human rights:

•Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (amended by Protocol No. 11), 1950.

•Protocol to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (amended by Protocol No. 11), 1952.

•Protocol No. 2 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, conferring upon the European Court of Human Rights competence to give Advisory Opinions, 1963.

•Protocol No. 3 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, amending Articles 29, 30 and 34 of the Convention, 1963.

•Protocol No. 4 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, securing certain rights and freedoms other than those already included in the Convention and in the first Protocol thereto, 1963.

•Protocol No. 5 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, amending Articles 22 and 40 of the Convention, 1966.

•Protocol No. 6 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms concerning the abolition of the death penalty, 1983.

•Protocol No. 7 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms (amended by Protocol No. 11), 1984.

•Protocol No. 8 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, 1985.

•European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 1987.

•European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, 1992.

•Protocol No. 1 to the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 1993.

•Protocol No. 2 to the European Convention for the Prevention of Torture and Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, 1993.

•Protocol No. 11 to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, Restructuring the Control Machinery Established Thereby, 1994.

•Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities, 1995.

•Sixth Protocol to the General Agreement on Privileges and Immunities of the Council of Europe, 1996.

•The Revised European Social Charter, 1996.

•Protocol No. 12 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, 2000.

•Additional Protocol to the Convention on Cybercrime, concerning the criminalisation of acts of a racist and xenophobic nature committed through computer systems, 2003.

•Protocol No. 14 to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, Amending the Control System of the Convention, 2004.

•Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings, 2005.

•Protocol No. 15 amending the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, 2013.

•Protocol No. 16 to the Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, 2013.

•Council of Europe Convention on the counterfeiting of medical products and similar crimes involving threats to public health, 2011.

Agreements adopted within the framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States, and relating to human rights

140.The Republic of Armenia has ratified the following agreements adopted within the framework of the Commonwealth of Independent States, and relating to human rights:

•Agreement on Cooperation between the CIS Member States in the Fight against Trade in Human Beings, Organs and Tissues of Human Origin, 2006.

•Agreement on cooperation between the Ministries of Internal Affairs (Police) of the States Parties to the Commonwealth of Independent States in the fight against human trafficking, 2010.

D.Legal framework for the protection of human rights at the national level

141.The Constitution of the Republic of Armenia fully enshrines the human rights prescribed by the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948 and Convention of the Council of Europe for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms of 1950.

142.Pursuant to Article 3 of the Constitution, the human being shall be the highest value in the Republic of Armenia. The inalienable dignity of the human being shall constitute the integral basis of his or her rights and freedoms. The respect for and protection of the basic rights and freedoms of the human being and the citizen shall be the duty of the public power. The public power shall be restricted by the basic rights and freedoms of the human being and the citizen as a directly applicable law.

143.Chapter 2 of the Constitution (Article 23–81) is entirely dedicated to the basic rights and freedoms of the human being and the citizen. During state of emergency or martial law, basic rights and freedoms of the human being and the citizen – with the exception of a number of rights (including rights to dignity, life, physical and mental integrity, general equality before the law, fair trial, rights of the child, prohibition of discrimination, freedom to marry, legal equality of women and men etc.) prescribed by the Constitution – may be temporarily suspended or subjected to additional restrictions under the procedure prescribed by law, but only to the extent required by the existing situation within the framework of international commitments undertaken with respect to derogations from obligations during state of emergency or martial law.

144.Pursuant to Article 61 of the Constitution, everyone shall have the right to effective judicial protection of his or her rights and freedoms. Everyone shall, in accordance with the international treaties of the Republic of Armenia, have the right to apply to international bodies for the protection of human rights and freedoms with regard to the protection of his or her rights and freedoms.

145.The Republic of Armenia has been a State Party to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms since 26 April 2002. By joining the Convention, Armenia has accepted the jurisdiction of the European Court of Human Rights, which covers all the issues referring to the interpretation and implementation of the provisions of the Convention and the Protocols thereto.

146.General statistics of the judgements with regard to the cases initiated against the Republic of Armenia at the European Court of Human Rights in 2013–2017 according to the type of judgement and type of violation of the right enshrined by the Convention:

Type of procedure	Number of judgements
Judgements, as a result of which at least one violation was recorded	34
Judgements, as a result of which no violation was recorded	3
Friendly settlements	-
Other judgements	-
Total number of judgements	37

Content of the Article of the Convention that has been violated	Number of judgements
Right to Life	2
Prohibition of torture	-
Inhuman or Degrading Treatment	2
Ineffective examination	2
Prohibition of slavery and forced labour	-
Right to liberty and security	9
Right to a fair trial	18
Examination within a reasonable time	-
Non-execution of a judgement	3
No punishment without law	-
Right to respect for private and family life	1
Freedom of thought, conscience and religion	-
Freedom of Expression	-
Freedom of Assembly and Association	1
Right to marry	-
Right to an effective remedy	3
Prohibition of discrimination	-
Protection of property	12
Right to education	-
Right to free elections	-
Right not to be tried or punished twice	-
Other Articles of the Convention	-

147.Pursuant to the Constitution, everyone shall have the right to receive the assistance of the Human Rights Defender in all the cases of violation of his or her rights and freedoms, enshrined by the Constitution and laws, on the part of state and local self-government bodies and officials, as well as on the part of organisations in the cases prescribed by law.

148.The institute of Human Rights Defender was established in Armenia in 2004. As a result of the Constitutional Amendments adopted through the Referendum of 2005, a number of legal norms were prescribed, which determined the role and significance of the Human Rights Defender, as a constitutional institute. The guarantees for independence and immunity of the Human Rights Defender were enshrined, as well as the obligation of state and local self-government bodies to co-operate with the Defender were prescribed by the Constitution.

149.The Human Rights Defender is an independent and permanent official at constitutional level. The role of the Human Rights Defender was re-evaluated as a result of the Constitutional Amendments of 2015. On the one hand, the issue of significance of that body was raised in terms of improvement of the legal system of the country, on the other hand, the absolute right of each person to apply to the Human Rights Defender was registered.

150.As a result of the Constitutional Amendments adopted through the Referendum of 2015, the main functions and powers of the Human Rights Defender, as well as the procedure for the election thereof were separately prescribed by Chapter 10, stating that the Human Rights Defender shall be elected by the National Assembly, upon recommendation of the competent standing committee of the National Assembly, by at least three fifths of votes of the total number of Deputies, for a term of six years. It was enshrined in the Constitution that the Human Rights Defender shall be an independent official who observes the maintenance of human rights and freedoms on the part of state and local self-government bodies and officials, whereas in the cases prescribed by the Law on the Human Rights Defender – also on the part of organisations, as well as contributes to the restoration of violated rights and freedoms and improvement of the regulatory legal acts related to human rights and freedoms.

151.The right of immunity prescribed for a Deputy of the National Assembly shall extend to the Human Rights Defender. The Human Rights Defender may not, during his or her term of powers, hold membership in any political party or otherwise engage in political activities. He or she must show political restraint in public speeches.

152.In 16 December 2016, the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia adopted the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Armenia “On Human Rights Defender”, which is of paramount importance for strengthening the role of the Human Rights Defender, as well as increasing the international reputation thereof. The Law prescribes that a complaint must be submitted to the Defender within a year following the day the applicant has learnt or should have learnt about the (alleged) violation of his or her rights and freedoms. The Defender shall – immediately after receiving and registering a complaint – carry out examination of the complaint as prescribed by the Defender and shall render a decision on accepting the complaint for consideration; not considering the complaint, presenting to the person having submitted the complaint the possible means for the protection of his or her rights and freedoms, forwarding the complaint for consideration by another body.

153.The legal status of the Human Rights Defender in terms of consideration of individual complaints, as well as the level of institutional influence thereof have been strengthened by law. The Defender has been vested with powers which enable him or her to contribute to the process of addressing systemic issues related to human rights in the country, through preventive activities. The above-mentioned particularly refers to the opportunity of having representatives at the Constitutional Court and the National Assembly or to the mechanisms for submitting recommendations to the competent authorities in the field of prevention of torture, for achieving results, etc.

154.The activities of the Defender in separate fields, particularly prevention of torture, improvement of regulatory legal acts etc. have been subjected to special regulation. The Law stipulates that the Defender shall conduct monitoring of the application of the provisions of the UN‑Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as carry out the prevention of violations of the rights of the child and the protection thereof. Moreover, the status of the National Preventive Mechanism of the Human Rights Defender, prescribed by the Optional Protocol to the UN Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment was stipulated by the Law.

155.The status of the Staff to the Human Rights Defender has also been determined by the Law: norms on prohibition of interrogation both for competent representatives of the Staff and for representatives of non-governmental organisations, as well as independent experts, etc. to be elected through public mechanism provided for by law have been envisaged. The financial guarantees for the Staff have also been strengthened by Constitutional Regulations. In particular, it has been envisaged by the Law that each year the amount of allocation provided for by the State Budget for financing the activities of the Defender and the Staff thereto, as well as of the Defender as the National Preventive Mechanism may not be less than the amount of allocation provided for by the State Budget of the previous year. Obligation of state and local self-government bodies and organisations to assist in the activities of the Defender has also been stipulated by the Law.

156.Pursuant to the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia and Constitutional Law of the Republic of Armenia “On Human Rights Defender”, the Defender shall submit to the National Assembly an annual communication on his or her activities during the previous year, as well as on the state of protection of human rights and freedoms, and as the National Preventive Mechanism, the Defender shall publish a separate communication on the activities undertaken during the previous year. In cases of specific issues of public resonance or of gross violations of human rights, the Defender may also make ad hoc public reports or communications, which may include not only cases and facts on the violation of rights but also recommendations on the improvement of regulatory legal acts relating to the human rights and freedoms.

157.The institute of the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia was granted the highest “A” status in 2013, which indicates the full compliance of the institute with the Paris Principles, as well as guarantees its status of a national institute accredited by the United Nations.

E.Framework within which human rights are promoted at the national level

158.A number of state structures and substructures operate in the Republic of Armenia, which aim at keeping the spotlight on the issues concerning protection of human rights. The institute of Human Rights Defender has already been mentioned, the establishment and further strengthening whereof has been a significant step towards the regulated protection of human rights in the country.

159.Following the recent reforms, the powers of the Human Rights Defender have been extended also in relation to the promotion of human rights at the national level. Firstly, annual communications, regular and extraordinary reports submitted by the Defender, as well as the public statements made thereby with regard to systemic issues have a unique significance for raising the legal consciousness of the public regarding the scope of safeguarding and protection of human rights. In addition, the Constitutional Law of the Republic of Armenia “On Human Rights Defender” granted the Defender powers in the field of education. Thus, the Defender may, for the Staff to the Defender, as well as stakeholders and organisations, conduct trainings on issues related to human rights and freedoms.

160.Following the constitutional amendments of 2015, parliamentary system of governance was established in Armenia, which resulted in the extension of the function of the National Assembly to exercise parliamentary supervision, which, according to the Constitution, is reserved to the standing committees of the National Assembly. The constitutional enshrinement of such a provision is aimed both at enhancing the role of the parliament and introducing effective mechanisms for the protection of human rights.

161.In the National Assembly the functions of supervision over the protection of human rights fall within the competence of the Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs and Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs. The scope of powers of the Committees is quite broad and includes areas such as constitutional amendments, electoral system, constitutional court, justice, protection of human rights, rights of the child, advocacy, political parties, non-governmental associations, religion, legal equality of women and men, national minorities, etc. At the sittings convened under the procedure prescribed by law, the Committees consider the submitted legislative initiatives, identifying the problems concerning the issues of protection of human rights and possible contradictions with other legal acts. With respect to the clarification of issues concerning the subject of parliamentary supervision, the Committee may, upon its decision, invite competent officials to the Committee who are obliged to attend the sitting of the Committee and answer the questions. The Committee also regularly organises parliamentary hearings with respect to the draft laws of wide publicity and actively cooperates with the civil society in this format.

162.The Council on Women’s Issues adjunct to the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia has been operating since 2000, with a view to coordinate the activities for solution of the key issues related to women in Armenia. The most distinguished female figures of executive and legislative powers, as well as of non-governmental organisations, creative unions, and of the field of culture are involved in the composition of the Council.

163.The National Minority Coordinating Council has been operating since 2000, which mainly aims at promoting and protecting the rights and freedoms of national minorities in Armenia, as well as discussing, analysing legal acts related to this field and preparing recommendations thereof. The Council is to ensure the protection of rights of national minorities, to boost their inter-community relations, as well as to promote the effectiveness of state care with regard to special educational and cultural, legal, and other issues. Members of the Council are two representatives nominated from among 11 national minorities residing in the Republic of Armenia.

164.The National Commission for the Protection of Rights of the Child, which has been established by Decision of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia No 835-N of 28 October 2005, is comprised of representatives of state administration bodies and non-governmental organisations dealing with the rights of a child.

165.The National Commission for Persons with Disabilities has been established by Decision of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia No 98-N of 25 February 2008, wherein representatives of state administration bodies and non-governmental organisations dealing with issues of persons with disabilities were involved by the right of equal participation.

166.The Department for Ethnic Minorities and Religious Affairs of the Staff of the Government of the Republic of Armenia was established in 2004, which is the body regulating the relations between the state and religious organisations as prescribed by the Law of the Republic of Armenia “On freedom of conscience and religious organisations”. The Department also performs the functions of the body authorised by the Government of the Republic of Armenia for “ensuring the preservation of traditions of persons belonging to the national minorities and protection of their right to the development of language and culture”.

167.The Public Council has been operating since 2008, the status of which, following the referendum of 2015, was enshrined also by the Constitution – as an advisory body of the Government. Among other issues, the Public Council also focuses on the issues related to the human rights. In particular, the Commission on Civil Society Development, Commission on National Minorities, Commission on Demographic and Gender Affairs, as well as the Commission on Religion, Diaspora and International Integration Affairs operate under the Public Council, the scope of activities whereof is closely related to the issues of human rights protection in Armenia.

168.The civil society development is still under process in Armenia, which, in recent years, has essentially accelerated and made significant progress. The role of non-governmental organisations and the representatives of the civil society in social and political processes has notably increased which is conditioned by the guarantees stipulated by the improved legislation. The non-governmental organisations directly promote the dissemination of human rights values and make a major contribution to the protection of these rights. This, first and foremost refers to the rights of children, women, national minorities, young people, pensioners, persons with limited physical capacities, refugees and arrested persons. Many NGOs regularly carry out studies in the field of human rights protection, develop various preventive and public awareness programmes. At the same time, the state structures of the Republic of Armenia actively cooperate with the representatives of the civil society and NGOs by engaging them in the activities of different advisory bodies, as well as organising joint discussions of different formats.

169.An example of close cooperation with the civil society may be the process of development of the 2017–2019 Action Plan deriving from the National Strategy on Human Rights Protection, within the framework of which the representatives of the civil society submitted around 150 recommendations which were discussed during 10 sectoral sessions. Also, another successful example of the work with non-governmental organisations, the cooperation between state bodies and non-governmental organisations in drawing up national reports of the Republic of Armenia that are submitted to the UN and the Council of Europe monitoring bodies, shall be mentioned (see also paragraph 187).

170.Pursuant to the decision of the Government of the Republic of Armenia adopted in 2015, the institute of public councils – formed adjunct to the Ministries – is introduced which is conditioned by the need to ensure the participation of the civil society in the performance of tasks and objectives set before the Ministry.

171.In 2017, the Ministry of Justice of the Republic of Armenia launched the www.e-draft.am platform which enables the active participation of the representatives of the civil society in law-making activities. The website also provides an opportunity to get acquainted with the posted drafts, follow their further process, get acquainted with the submitted comments and, in case of registering on the website, also to submit comments, get acquainted with the summary pages of comments on the drafts, accepted recommendations and the justifications for the non-acceptance thereof.

172.The Republic of Armenia pays particular attention to the human rights education considering it as the most important factor contributing to the development of democracy. The programmes for general education include topics on tolerance, human rights, racial discrimination, history and culture of national minorities. The subject “Me and the Surrounding World” has been introduced in 2nd–4th grades of schools of general education, the aim of which is to broaden the children’s understanding and knowledge of the surrounding world, develop their life skills and abilities. Topical units relating to fundamental human rights, gender equality, violence elimination, tolerance and civil society are included in the standard and curriculum of the subject “Social Science” of schools of general education. The National Institute of Education of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Armenia regularly conducts trainings of teachers teaching the above-mentioned subjects as well.

173.The cooperation between the UNDP Representation in Armenia and the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Armenia resulted in the implementation of the 2012–2015 National Action Plan for Human Rights Education, within the framework whereof measures for human rights education among teachers and pupils were brought into being.

174.The institutions of general education have their own websites which contribute to the awareness-raising among students with regard to programmes implemented within the scope of issues concerning the human rights and the legislative issues. Major sources of information are also the official internet platforms, where forums and public consultation pages are available to ensure feedback.

175.For the purpose of teaching human rights in the sector of education and awareness-raising among students in Armenia, large-scale activities have been carried out also in the sector of education to eliminate manifestations of discrimination against national and religious minorities, as well as gender discrimination. In particular, with the support of UNDP, “Teaching tolerance” manual for teachers was developed and introduced in elementary schools, “Diversity and Tolerance” – in basic schools, “Dignity and Tolerance” – in high schools. The programme teaches tolerance, co-operation to pupils, promotes conflict resolution, etc. Pedagogues using the manual have undergone corresponding training within the scope of the programme. The educational and methodological manual “How to Prevent Violence at School” has been developed for pedagogues of educational institutions with the support of “Hope and Help” organisation and has been distributed to all educational institutions.

176.In the education system special importance is attached to the teaching of topics concerning the legal equality of women and men. A number of higher education institutions of the Republic organise special courses on the above-mentioned topics. In 2014, a training module entitled “Gender Equality and Gender Violence” was developed for pedagogues, psychologists, social workers and administrative workers of educational institutions. Within the framework of this module, topics on legal equality of women and men, prevention of gender-based violence have been included in the training programmes envisaged for principals, vice-principals and teachers of schools of general education, institutions of primary vocational (handicraft) and secondary vocational education of the Republic of Armenia. “Trust” Social Work and Sociological Research Center has organised training courses on combating gender-based violence for certain target groups and pupils, pedagogues of high schools, students and lecturers of pedagogical higher education institutions of the country have been engaged therein. In 2013, within the framework of the three-year project of U.S. Agency for International Development “Advancing Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment in Armenia”, the Center for Gender and Leadership Studies was established in YSU. YSU Center for Gender and Leadership Studies performs comprehensive research, training functions and, jointly with Armenian higher education institutions, local NGOs and international agencies, supports women in career advancement. A new two-year Master’s programme “Women, Leadership and Development” has been introduced at the Yerevan State University since 2015.

177.Mandatory minimum requirements for the content of the general curriculum of law departments in higher education institutions of Armenia include the following courses: “Theory of State and Law”, “Norms of Law”, “Legality”, “History of State and Law of Foreign Countries”, “Constitutional Law”, “Constitutional Status of a Human and Citizen, their Constitutional Rights, Freedoms and Duties, Constitutional Guarantees for their Exercise”, “Constitutional Law of Foreign Countries”, “International Law”, “International Security Law”, “Human Rights and International Law”, “International Humanitarian Law” and other similar courses.

178.Since 2001, six human rights libraries have been set up as human rights education resource centres in different marzes. Yerevan Brusov State University of Languages and Social Sciences has the UNESCO Chair on Human Rights, Democracy and Politology.

179.The Government of the Republic of Armenia also emphasises the training of separate professional groups in this field, including civil servants of different state agencies, lawyers, employees of power structures (the Police of the Republic of Armenia, Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Armenia, National Security Service of the Republic of Armenia), judges, etc. International fundamental instruments on human rights are taken as a basis for educational programmes, including the Universal Declaration on Human Rights and two international covenants.

180.The Government of the Republic of Armenia carries out public awareness raising policy on human rights by cooperating with representatives of international organisations and civil society. The Government strives to promote the translation and dissemination process of international conventions. Thus, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia has supported the publication activities of the collection of UN international documents on human rights providing official translation of the documents.

181.Every year appropriate financial funds are being allocated from the State Budget of the Republic of Armenia for the sphere of human rights protection. These financial funds are involved in the relevant expenditures allocated to state bodies and agencies. General and comprehensive statistics on funds allocated for the protection of human rights in the Republic of Armenia are unavailable.

182.Funds allocated to the Office of the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia from the State Budget of the Republic of Armenia in 2013–2016:

	2013	2014	2015	2016
AMD (thousand)	246 113.6	223 138.0	244 887.2	260 967.4

F.Reporting process at the national level

183.Preparation of national periodic reports in accordance with international obligations of the Republic of Armenia is carried out in accordance with the procedure approved by Decision of the Government of the Republic of Armenia No 1483‑N of 23 November 2007.

184.A certain state administrative body shall be responsible for the preparation of each national report. Where the preparation of a national report derives from the obligation prescribed by the international treaties of the Republic of Armenia, the state administrative body responsible for the implementation of the given international treaty shall be the responsible authority for the preparation of the report. Where the preparation of a national report derives from the obligations assumed within the framework of international organisations, to which the Republic of Armenia is a member, the government agency appointed as prescribed by the President of the Republic of Armenia or the Government of the Republic of Armenia shall be the authority responsible for the preparation of the national report.

185.Where necessary, inter-agency working groups or commissions may be set up during the preparation of reports. The competent government agency may engage specialists, experts, and consultants in the preparation of a national report.

186.After drawing up the draft of the national report, the competent government agency shall agree it with the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, and, where necessary, also with other interested state administration bodies. After receiving opinions and summarising the report, the competent government agency organizes a public discussion with the participation of the representatives of civil society. Non-governmental entities are also engaged in the preparation of national reports, particularly NGOs and representatives of civil society. Open discussions of special format are organised for this purpose, where the provisions of the given report are discussed. During these discussions the participants have the opportunity to present their comments and recommendations, which to the extent possible are incorporated in the final draft.

187.The final draft version of the national report is then submitted to the Government of the Republic of Armenia for the final approval.

188.The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia, as a rule, undertakes and coordinates the elaboration activities for the follow-up reports. Stemming from the subject scope of the given international document or convention, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Armenia compiles necessary information from the relevant government agencies of the Republic of Armenia and communicates it to the international monitoring bodies.

G.Other related human rights information

189.The human rights protection is one of the priorities of the Government of the Republic of Armenia. Armenia is committed to the principle of universality of human rights and the application thereof under the principle of equality and without discrimination. The constitutional reforms of 2015, as well as fundamental political changes in Armenia of spring of 2018, have presented with new opportunities for implementing more comprehensive and coordinated policy in the field of human rights, as well as fully ensuring the equality of all before the law, strengthening the system of independent and effective justice and decisive fight against corruption.

190.Upon becoming a member of the United Nations Organization in 1992 and recognising the principles of universal values, human rights protection and democracy-building as an integral component of state ideology, Armenia has been actively involved in the activities launched within the framework of this organisation and has cooperated with many structures and subdivisions of the organisation.

191.Armenia is committed to the objectives and principles of the UN Charter and Universal Declaration of Human Rights, including the principles of respect for and promotion of human rights, legal equality and self-determination of peoples, peace, justice and rule of law.

192.In 2002, the Republic of Armenia was elected from among the group of Eastern European countries as a member of the United Nations Human Rights Commission and was re-elected in 2004; moreover, in 2005–2006 the Armenian representative was the Vice Chairman of the Commission. This was primarily an eloquent evidence of international recognition and enhancing of the reputation of Armenia, especially in the sphere of human rights protection.

193.In 2004–2006, Armenia was a member of the UN Economic and Social Council. In June 2018, Armenia was elected for second time as a member of the UN ECOSOC by 177 affirmative votes, reaffirming the commitment to support the international efforts towards stable development and make national contribution to the activities of the Council.

194.Reaffirming the willingness to support the international efforts towards strengthening of the equality of women, opportunities and role of women in different areas of public life, Armenia was elected as a member of the UN Commission on the Status of Women in April 2018. Previously, Armenia was a member of the Commission in 2003–2011.

195.Armenia effectively cooperates with the UN structures of the human rights system. In particular, Armenia readily submits national reports to the UN treaty bodies of human rights and actively participates in the expert discussions. In 2006, Armenia extended a standing invitation to special rapporteurs and independent experts.

196.Armenia attaches importance to the effective operation of the UN Universal Periodic Review. Currently, Armenia is consistently implementing the recommendations of the 2nd cycle of Periodic Review, given in January 2015. In 2018, Armenia, on a voluntary basis, submitted to the Human Rights Council an intermediary report of the Universal Periodic Review.

197.In 2015, Armenia became a full-fledged member of the Executive Committee (EXCOM) of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, reaffirming its willingness to promote the international efforts towards solution of the issues faced by the refugees.

198.Armenia attaches great importance to the participation in the UN peace-keeping missions, considering it as a contribution to the maintenance of international peace and security. Currently, Armenian peace-keeping forces are successfully doing service in Lebanon within the framework of the UNIFIL mission.

199.Armenian peace-keeping forces are also deployed in Kosovo and Afghanistan within the frameworks of the KFOR and “Resolute Support” missions respectively. In 2018, four female peacekeepers joined the Armenian peace-keeping forces in Kosovo.

200.Committed to the 2030 Agenda and Sustainable Development Goals, in July 2018 Armenia submitted the first national voluntary report of Armenia summarising the progress of implementation of the Agenda for Sustainable Development and the goals and targets deriving therefrom.

201.Armenia actively supports the efforts towards the strengthening of the International Humanitarian Law. Armenia has ratified the Geneva Conventions of 1949 and all additional protocols, including the Additional Protocol of 2005.

202.Notwithstanding the economic difficulties, Armenia is regularly being included in the Honour Roll of the United Nations for timely and duly paying the membership fees.

203.Armenia became a full-fledged member of the Council of Europe on 25 January 2001 and assumed relevant obligations to amend the legal system of the country and to adopt European values for human rights protection. In the meantime, all the Conventions of the Council of Europe provided for by the membership have been ratified.

204.Currently, Armenia is actively involved in activities carried out by the main bodies of the Council of Europe, as well as expert committees on intergovernmental cooperation and launches initiatives of great significance for the operation and role of the organisation. Due to different mechanisms of cooperation, a great number of programmes have been implemented. The 2015–2018 Action Plan is in progress, which reflects the priorities and international obligations of Armenia and is designed to support Armenia in performing its statutory and special obligations of a member state of the Council of Europe.

205.The key legislative packages of the Republic of Armenia have been adopted and amended with the support of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (“Venice Commission”), including the package of constitutional reforms adopted through referendum of 2015 and the current large-scale legislative reforms deriving therefrom.

206.The National Strategy on Human Rights Protection was approved in 2012, on the basis of which the Government of the Republic of Armenia approved the 2014–2016 Action Plan in 2014 deriving from the National Strategy on Human Rights Protection. For the purpose of ensuring the continuity of actions of state bodies in the field of human rights protection, the Government of the Republic of Armenia approved the 2017–2019 Action Plan deriving from the National Strategy on Human Rights Protection by Decision No 483-N of 4 May 2017. The Action Plan was drawn up with the active involvement of the representatives of the civil society. This included 96 measures in the following fields: protection of civil and political rights (right to life, right to not be subjected to torture, cruel, degrading and other inhuman treatment or punishment, right to freedom of expression, right to freedom of media and assembly, right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion, etc.), protection of rights of vulnerable groups (protection of rights of persons with disabilities, children and women, right to preservation of national and ethnic identity), protection of human rights in armed forces, social and economic, cultural rights (right to health protection, right to education, cultural rights, right to healthy environment, etc.). Taking into consideration the experience in conducting the previous action plan, it was decided to create also a coordinating body which would monitor the progress of implementation by the responsible republican executive bodies and state bodies established by law of the actions provided for by the Plan, organise – on a quarterly basis – regular discussions, coordinate the activities of those bodies in terms of implementation of the Plan.

207.A number of key programmes have been drawn up and implemented in the field of human rights, including the “Poverty Reduction Strategic Paper”, which was renamed as “Sustainable Development Programme” in 2008, the “Gender Policy Strategic Action Plan for 2011–2015”, “2011–2015 Strategic Action Plan to Combat Gender-based Violence”, “2004–2015 National Programme for the Protection of Children’s Rights in the Republic of Armenia”, “2006–2015 Strategy for Social Protection of Persons with Disabilities”, etc.

208.The “2012–2016 Strategic Programme for Legal and Judicial Reforms in the Republic of Armenia and the List of Measures Stemming from the Programme” was approved in 2012. The main purpose of the Programme is to ensure a legal system and judiciary that complies with the standards for a modern legal state. The Programme includes areas such as, in particular, criminal, civil and administrative justice, judicial system, prosecutor’s office, areas of services rendered to citizens, where legislative, as well as law enforcement measures are envisaged for the solution of problems existing in each of them. For the purpose of full-fledged and effective implementation of the activities, the time limit for the implementation of the Action Plan has been extended until the end of 2017. Concurrently, the Draft Action Plan for Legal and Judicial reforms for 2019–2030 is being drawn up.

209.Armenia has recorded sound achievements in the field of fight against trafficking. In the recent decade, various measures have been implemented with regard to the prevention of trafficking, as well as support and protection of victims. The Republic of Armenia has acceded to all international and regional legal documents concerning the fight against trafficking. The “National Programme for Organising Fight against Trafficking in and Exploitation of Human Beings in the Republic of Armenia for the period of 2016–2018 and Programme Implementation Schedule” has been approved by Decision of the Government of the Republic of Armenia No 726-N of 7 July 2016. In June 2017, Armenia was included in Tier 1 in the “Annual Report on Trafficking in Persons” of the US Department of State for five consecutive years, as one of the countries more successfully fighting against trafficking in and exploitation of human beings.

210.All the anti-trafficking activities implemented in Armenia are supervised by the Council to combat trafficking in human beings (established in 2007). Heads of all the line ministries and stakeholder agencies are involved as members of this Council. The representatives of the relevant non-governmental and international organizations accredited in Armenia actively participate in Council’s activities. The Council coordinates all the activities and initiatives aimed at fighting against trafficking implemented in the Republic of Armenia.

211.The Republic of Armenia consistently executes the decisions adopted at the largest international conferences on human rights, as well as, upon necessity, makes follow-up reports. Among the conferences mentioned, the following should be distinguished: the Fourth World Conference on Women (Beijing platform), World Conference on Human Rights (Vienna, 1993), UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20), Millennium Summit (Millennium Development Goals), etc.

III.Information on non-discrimination and equality

212.A respective legislative framework has been created in the Republic of Armenia to ensure the equality of all before the law and to exclude discrimination against the vulnerable groups in Armenia.

213.Since regaining independence, the Republic of Armenia has acceded to almost all international treaties on non-discrimination, which constitute an integral part of the legal system of the Republic of Armenia by virtue of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia and laws of the Republic of Armenia “On international treaties of the Republic of Armenia” and “On legal acts” and have supremacy over the laws of the Republic of Armenia.

214.The Constitution amended through the referendum of 2015 clearly prohibits manifestations of discrimination. Pursuant to Article 29 of the Constitution, “Discrimination based on sex, race, skin colour, ethnic or social origin, genetic features, language, religion, world view, political or other views, belonging to a national minority, property status, birth, disability, age, or other personal or social circumstances shall be prohibited.” Article 30 of the Constitution enshrines legal equality of women and men.

215.The principles enshrined in the above-mentioned point are guaranteed by the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Armenia and the Judicial Code of the Republic of Armenia. Crimes against constitutional rights and freedoms of the human being and the citizen are also criminalised under Chapter 19 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia, Article 143 whereof prescribes that indirect or direct violation of rights and freedoms of the human being and the citizen on the ground of sex, race, colour, ethnic or social origin, genetic features, language, religion, world view, political or other views, belonging to a national minority, property status, birth, disability, age or other circumstances of personal or social nature which have harmed rights and lawful interests of the human being and the citizen, shall be punished by a fine or imprisonment.

216.Article 3 of the Law of the Republic of Armenia “On citizenship” prescribes that citizens of the Republic of Armenia shall be equal before the law irrespective of grounds for acquisition of the citizenship of the Republic of Armenia, nationality, race, sex, language, belief, political or other views, social origin, property or other status, are entitled to enjoy all the rights, freedoms, and obligations prescribed by the Constitution and laws.

217.Armenia is an active supporter of the fight against racial discrimination, xenophobia and intolerance and regularly undertakes measures to strengthen the international efforts towards fight against crimes on the grounds of hatred and hate speech.

218.The National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia adopted the Law of the Republic of Armenia “On ensuring equal rights and equal opportunities for women and men” in 2013, which prescribes the guarantees for ensuring equal rights and equal opportunities for women and men in political, social, economic, cultural and other fields of public life and covers the relations arising therefrom.

219.Following wide-ranging public discussions held within the framework of the policy on preventing and combating domestic violence, the Law “On prevention of domestic violence, protection of persons subjected to domestic violence and restoration of solidarity in family” was adopted in December 2017.

220.Armenia ratified the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention) in January 2018, which is currently in the internal process of preparation for ratification and alignment with the legislation.

221.The Action Plan for Gender Balance of the Candidates for Judges was approved by the decision of the Council of Court Chairpersons on 29 August 2014 and aims at encouraging the participation of female judges in scientific conferences, seminars, round-table discussions, training courses, awareness-raising programmes on gender issues, held by state and non-state bodies and organisations, assisting in the study of international practice in gender issues, as well as supporting in drawing up training materials, analyses, themed training programmes for the promotion of gender equality.

222.The separate and comprehensive draft Law “On legal equality” is currently in the stage of active public discussions and the necessity of adoption thereof is enshrined also in the 2017–2019 Action Plan for Human Rights Protection.

223.The draft Law “On freedom of conscience and religious organisations” is currently in the stage of public discussions.

224.The National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia adopted the Law of the Republic of Armenia “On social assistance” in December 2014, one of the fundamental principles of which is to ensure the right to social assistance for each person residing in the Republic of Armenia (citizens of the Republic of Armenia, foreign citizens with the right to reside in the Republic of Armenia (residency status), stateless persons and persons holding refugee status) where there are grounds prescribed by law.

225.Wide-ranging reforms are being carried out in the field of protection of the rights of the child and it relies on the principle that “every child must be raised in the family”. A range of legislative reforms have been carried out, actions are being taken to establish alternative services in the Republic to ensure the protection of best interests of the child.

226.Within the framework of reforms in respect of key issues of the elderly, the “Strategy for overcoming the consequences of ageing and social protection of the elderly people and the 2017–2021 Action Plan for the implementation of the Strategy” of the Government of the Republic of Armenia was adopted on 18 May 2017, which aims at creating a favourable and healthy environment for elderly persons, by ensuring their decent life.

227.Within the framework of protection of the rights of persons with disabilities, the Law of the Republic of Armenia “On protection of rights of persons with disabilities and their social inclusion” has been drafted and submitted for consideration and it aims to ensure favourable conditions for the exercise, on equal basis with other persons, of civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights and freedoms of persons with disabilities, their equal participation in public life and effective social inclusion. Concurrently, the Draft includes the provision regarding the independent monitoring and prevention mechanism, by reserving the function of implementation of monitoring over the process of ensuring accessible conditions and equal opportunities for social inclusion to the Human Rights Defender of the Republic of Armenia. In 2017, the Government of the Republic of Armenia adopted “2017–2021 Comprehensive Programme on Social Integration of Persons with Disabilities and List of Measures Ensuring the Implementation of the Programme”, within the framework of which accurate measures aimed at ensuring equal and accessible conditions for persons with disabilities and protection of their rights have been developed for all main areas of public life: urban development, transport, information, culture, sport.