EU Ambassador to Armenia urges sides to refrain from inciting hatred and provocations

YEREVAN, June 8. /ARKA/. European Union Ambassador to Armenia Andrea Wiktorin urged today all sides in the country to refrain from inciting hatred and provocations, saying that any violence must be condemned, when speaking at a conference in Yerevan on judiciary as a guarantor of democracy.

On June 7 Armenian opposition activists and supporters protested outside the European Delegation’s office in Yerevan accusing the European Union of turning a blind eye to what they describe as ‘excessive use of force by police’ against protesters on June 3, who demanded Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s resignation, when dozens of protesters and police officers were injured in the clashes.

An MP from the opposition Hayastan alliance Anna Grigoryan demanded that Andrea Wiktorin decide whose interests she protects: that of democracy or that of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

“Armenia is facing numerous challenges, and we are very impressed that the authorities willingly continue moving on the path of reforms. There is currently big tension in the country, and it’s very important that all sides work together to protect the constitutional rights of the citizens of Armenia,’ Ambassador Wiktorin said today as quoted by Armenpress.

“We closely follow the domestic political situation and the protests in the country. It’s very important for the people to be able to voice their opinion freely, and the law enforcement agencies and police forces should refrain from using brute force. Some incidents that have taken place should be investigated, it already happens in some of the cases, the cases reach to the court and a ruling is being made. That’s how democracy works,” Andrea Wiktorin said.

The Ambassador said it’s very important that all sides in Armenia refrain from hate speech and provocations. Any violence must be condemned, she added. “In such situation, I think, promoting trust towards the Constitutional Court and the judiciary is more than important”, she said.

“We have always supported the implementation of justice reforms, and for this purpose we have provided long-term and short-term support. We highly value the efforts Armenia has made in recent years in terms of democratic processes. It’s also very important that the political leadership is committed to continue the constitutional reforms that are envisaged by the 2019-2021 judicial reforms strategy”, the EU Ambassador said.

The Ambassador said independent judiciary in a democratic country is the guarantor of human rights and freedoms, therefore, she said, the Constitutional Court has an important role to play to strengthen the public trust towards judiciary. -0-