Democracy Watch

Campaign posters ahead of the Mayoral elections in Yerevan, Armenia By Tigran Grigoryan and Tatev Baghdasaryan On December 18, Factor TV hosted a live debate between Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan and his predecessor, Hayk Marutyan. During the debate, Marutyan criticized Avinyan’s conduct in office, particularly highlighting investigative findings from the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP). These findings, […]

By Tatev Baghdasaryan and Tigran Grigoryan In the ongoing controversy surrounding Hovik Aghazaryan, a former member of Armenia’s ruling Civil Contract party, allegations of blackmail and political pressure have emerged. During a recent interview, Aghazaryan claimed that “influential figures” threatened to reveal intimate details of his private life unless he resigns from his parliamentary position. Among […]

By Tatev Baghdasaryan A week ago, it was reported that last month, Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan took off on a week-long official visit to Los Angeles, USA, accompanied by a delegation of nine people. To organize the trip, the Yerevan Municipality signed a direct, non-competitive procurement contract worth around USD 31,800 with Luxury Voyage LLC. The expenses included eight […]

By Tatev Baghdasaryan Alexander Sirunyan, the ruling party’s nominee for a non-judge position on the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), has recently become one of the most controversial figures in Armenian public life. His nomination has sparked widespread criticism and raised serious concerns about the potential impact on the independence and integrity of the judiciary. The […]

By Tigran Grigoryan and Tatev Baghdasaryan Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government has faced a wave of resignations over the past two weeks, with several ministers and officials stepping down and some positions already filled. However, the circumstances surrounding these resignations have ignited controversy and raised serious constitutional concerns. In an interview with Public Television on […]

By Karena Avedissian The discourse around Armenian refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh in Armenia following the region’s ethnic cleansing by Azerbaijan in September 2023 highlights the troubling tendency for vulnerable refugee populations to be politicized. The plight of these refugees—marginalized by virtue of their displacement—has been overshadowed by how various actors in Armenia, from government officials to […]

By Tigran Grigoryan and Karena Avedissian Last week, an incident in Armenia’s National Assembly overshadowed proceedings when a heated exchange erupted between Argishti Kyaramyan, head of the Investigative Committee, and Hovik Aghazaryan, a ruling party MP. The altercation began during Kyaramyan’s speech when an individual sitting at the ruling party’s benches heckled him. Kyaramyan responded directly to […]