With regard to Armenia’s obligations and commitments in respect
of the principle of the rule of law:
5.1 implementation of the constitutional reform and the legislative
reforms that should accompany it requires an acceleration of the
legislative process. Nonetheless, draft legislation of importance
to both the democratic process in Armenia and the honouring of the
country’s commitments vis-à-vis the Council of Europe should be
the subject of a genuine debate both inside and outside parliament
in which all the political parties and civil society participate
and which is conducted with the support of international experts.
In addition, simply passing legislation is not enough to implement
democratic reforms. The Assembly calls on the Armenian authorities
to take the necessary steps to ensure that the law is effectively
applied, as this does not always appear to be the case at present;
5.2 the Assembly welcomes the fact that the revised constitution
has granted a right of access to the Constitutional Court to ordinary
citizens, the Human Rights Defender (Ombudsperson), members of the National
Assembly, subject to the requirement that at least one-fifth of
all of its members support an application, local authorities and
the courts. Armenia has thus been able to honour its commitment
on the subject. This possibility was rapidly utilised by hundreds
of individuals, the Human Rights Defender and the opposition, and
the Constitutional Court has started to play a vital role as guarantor
of the country’s institutions and of human rights. The Assembly
hopes that it will also play a major role in deciding any complaints
or appeals relating to the forthcoming elections, thereby guaranteeing
that the election process complies with democratic standards;
5.3 in the wake of the constitutional reform, the membership
of the Judicial Council is now in conformity with European standards.
A number of laws have already been amended to implement the new
constitutional provisions on independence of the judiciary. Other
reforms, such as those relating to ethics and the training of judges,
are included in a draft Judicial Code, on which the Council of Europe has
given its experts’ opinion and which was adopted by the National
Assembly in first reading at the end of December 2006. The Parliamentary
Assembly calls on the Armenian authorities to implement the reform
of the judicial system, not least the general prosecutor’s office,
as soon as possible, taking into account the recommendations made
by the Council of Europe experts. To reinforce de facto independence
of the judiciary and eradicate corruption, apart from reforming
the law, it will also be necessary to resolve the problems linked
to the financing of the judiciary and judges’ remuneration and to
enhance training efforts;
5.4 the Assembly deplores the fact that allegations of ill-treatment,
particularly during police custody, and of extortion by the police
and the National Security Service are still being made. The limited
number of complaints lodged which result in members of the police
being found guilty of abuse of authority or of exceeding their authority,
as well as the greater number of allegations concerning which no
complaint is lodged for fear of reprisals, continue to fuel the
feeling that impunity prevails. The Assembly takes note of the recent
or current legislative reforms, introduced with the Council of Europe’s
assistance, and hopes they will enable the image of the Armenian
police to be improved and the guarantees of democratic supervision
of police activities to be strengthened. It points out that in a
state governed by the rule of law it is not enough to impose disciplinary
penalties on members of the police who have committed criminal offences;
criminal proceedings must also be taken against them;
5.5 the Assembly is pleased that Armenia has ratified both
Council of Europe conventions on combating corruption, the Civil
Law Convention on Corruption (ETS No. 174), which entered into force on
1 May 2005, and the Criminal Law Convention on Corruption (ETS No.
173), which came into force one year later, on 1 May 2006. The Assembly
notes that, despite a number of institutional measures aimed at
taking more effective action, corruption, which is fed in part by
the underground economy, a high level of tax evasion and the existence
of organised crime, remains a serious problem in Armenia, affecting
many public-service sectors. These include the courts, the police,
the customs service, the tax inspectorate, the education and health
sectors, the licensing office and the privatisation process. The Assembly
urges the Armenian authorities to act upon the recommendations of
the Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) and on MONEYVAL’s
recommendations concerning the fight against money laundering. The
new anti-corruption strategy for the period 2007-2009 should be
finalised as soon as possible with the Council of Europe’s assistance.
