By Karena Avedissian For the last few years, many Armenians have felt alone — left to contend with increasingly belligerent threats and the consequences of ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh. But, paradoxically, the country is receiving more interest from Western capitals than it has in its entire history, with hundreds of millions of dollars being spent […]
Tigran Grigoryan In Democracy Watch’s previous report my colleague Karena Avedissian and I referred to remarks by Gagik Melkonyan, a ruling party lawmaker, who said, “The people of Karabakh should conduct themselves as guests in Armenia.” Melkonyan’s statement, which has not been condemned by the ruling party, is not just a case of an irresponsible […]
By Tigran Grigoryan and Karena Avedissian Local Level Political Suppression An opposition member of Yerevan’s city council Grigor Yeritsyan was relieved of his duties last week, with ruling “Civil Contract” party cited repeated absences from the meetings of the Standing Committee on Legal Affairs of the Council as the reason for his removal. Yeritsyan has […]
By Karena Avedissian In online Armenian spaces, it is not uncommon to see political forces labeling people they disagree with “Turks,” “traitors,” or “Russian agents.” Some degree of polarization is typical in any society, but at a certain point, when it becomes about “us versus them,” it becomes toxic and signals something more troubling — […]
By Tigran Grigoryan and Karena Avedissian The state-run Corruption Prevention Commission has fined the heads of Hrazdan and Artashat towns 300,000 drams (approximately $776) each for failing to submit required written statements about conflicts of interest. These community leaders signed contracts with relatives and politically connected individuals without notifying the Commission, as mandated by law. […]
By Tigran Grigoryan Armenia has been lauded for its democratic progress in the years following the 2018 Velvet Revolution. The promise of a more transparent, accountable, and inclusive government ignited hope among its citizens and caught the attention of the international community․ However, alongside notable advancements in electoral processes and freedom of speech, concerning trends […]
By Tigran Grigoryan and Karena Avedissian Police violently suppressed a Tavush for the Homeland protest with stun grenades and beatings last week, injuring dozens of demonstrators and journalists. While some protestors displayed violent behavior, the majority did not, making the police’s response excessive and disproportionate. Both Amnesty International, and over a dozen Armenian civil society organizations and […]
By Tigran Grigoryan and Karena Avedissian The Armenian National Interests Fund (ANIF) is set to be dissolved, with its management transitioning to the State Property Management Committee. ANIF is a governmental organization established in 2019, with a mandate “to consolidate and effectively manage the ownership of Armenian state-owned enterprises, to promote export growth and investments in Armenia by […]
By Tigran Grigoryan and Karena Avedissian Ruling party links protesters to Russia on social media accounts Leaders of the protest movement opposing the transfer of four Tavush villages to Azerbaijan are demanding the resignation of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. And in recent days, they have become targets of a coordinated social media disinformation campaign. A […]
