Wayzata World Factbook 1996/The World Factbook - 1996 Edition - Wayzata Technology (3079) (1996).iso/pc/text/humanrts/armenia.txt

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TITLE:  ARMENIA HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES, 1994
AUTHOR:  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
DATE:  FEBRUARY 1995


                            ARMENIA


After declaring its independence from the Soviet Union in
December 1991, Armenia began to establish the foundations of a
parliamentary democracy.  Legislative power is vested in the
Parliament, which, because no party or combination of parties
can consistently muster a majority or even a quorum, has been
unable either to approve a constitution or to pass crucial
legislation.  The President appoints the Prime Minister, who
presides over the Government.  The judiciary is not fully
independent of the other branches of government.  Parliamentary
elections are scheduled for May 1995, although Parliament has
yet to pass an election law.  Democratically elected President
Levon Ter-Petrosyan will face reelection in 1996 upon
completion of a 5-year term.  In December, President
Ter-Petrosyan temporarily suspended the activities of the
opposition Dashnak party on the grounds that a clandestine
terrorist organization subordinate to it was engaging in
political assassination, drug trafficking, and espionage.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs supervises the police, which
is responsible for maintaining order throughout the country.
Several police officers were charged with brutality in the past
year, and a number of cases go unreported.  The State
Directorate for National Security, while still responsible for
combating both external and internal threats, was reorganized
in January and is subordinate directly to the Office of the
President.

The 6-year-old conflict over the enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh in
neighboring Azerbaijan continues to dominate Armenia's
political and economic landscape.  After the hard-fought
offensive of the winter of 1993-94, which resulted in few
strategic gains despite thousands of casualties, the parties
reached an informal cease-fire agreement in May.  Formally
confirmed in July, the cease-fire was holding by year's end.

Landlocked Armenia has faced longstanding economic
strangulation due to instability in neighboring Georgia and
embargoes imposed by both Azerbaijan and Turkey as a result of
the conflict.  This, coupled with the economic chaos produced
by the breakup of the former Soviet Union, has devastated the
largely state-owned economy.  Critical shortages of fuel,
electricity, and raw materials severely reduced industrial
production, resulting in widespread unemployment.
Nevertheless, progress toward economic reform included moves to
privatize industrial enterprises and land and to liberalize
prices.  An agreement with the International Monetary Fund was
reached in November, calling for far-reaching economic reforms
in exchange for $395 million in international and bilateral
concessional loans.

In the absence of a new constitution, Armenia relies on the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, adopted
by a 1991 parliamentary resolution, and those parts of the
Soviet Constitution still in force to protect human rights.
The Soviet-era Criminal Code allows suspects to be detained for
up to 72 hours without charge; and judges do not appear to be
sufficiently insulated from political pressure.  Within this
framework, the Government generally respects human rights,
although the suspension of major opposition newspapers as part
of a suspension of the Dashnak Party's activities has tarnished
the Government's record on respect for freedom of the press.
There were several instances of police brutality toward
detainees, many instances of forcible conscription of draft-age
men, and suspected executions of Azerbaijani prisoners of war.

The law forbids proselytizing, and the Government further
restricts the activities of "foreign and unregistered"
religious groups.  Armenian citizens are free to emigrate, but
those wishing to travel abroad are required to secure exit
permits from the Ministry of Internal Affairs.  In addition,
deeply ingrained attitudes result in societal discrimination
against women.

RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

Section 1  Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including
           Freedom from:

     a.  Political and Other Extrajudicial Killing

The only known extrajudicial killings in 1994 were the probable
executions of eight Azeri prisoners of war being held in
Yerevan.  The report of the Armenian Special Investigator
claims that the prisoners committed suicide (seven with the
same gun) after their escape attempt failed.  An independent
British forensic specialist, who examined the bodies after they
were returned to Azerbaijan, said the evidence pointed
overwhelmingly to execution, but he admitted that the
possibility of mass suicide could not be absolutely ruled out.

Representatives of independent international agencies maintain
that many would-be prisoners of war on both sides in the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict are summarily executed at military
front lines.  Policemen who were awaiting trial in connection
with the 1993 death of a detainee in custody were released with
the understanding that they would not leave Yerevan.  All
subsequently fled and are now wanted.

     b.  Disappearance

There were no reports of disappearances.

     c.  Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading
         Treatment or Punishment

In 1994 the General Prosecutor's office officially charged
three members of the police force with brutality, although many
cases go unreported.  The General Prosecutor's office
investigates allegations of mistreatment and files criminal
charges if its investigation reveals evidence to support the
allegations and if there is a serious violation of the law.  It
refers less serious cases to the Ministry of Internal Affairs
for administrative action.  Two of the officers accused of
brutality were administratively disciplined, while the third
faces criminal charges.

Information on prison conditions is not available, but they are
believed to be harsh.  The International Committee of the Red
Cross had access to prisoners of war from the Nagorno-Karabakh
conflict until October.  At the end of the year, it was still
discussing with the Armenian authorities renewed and regular
access to all prisoners held in connection with the conflict.

     d.  Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile

According to the Criminal Code, much of which dates from the
Soviet era, suspects may be detained and held without charge
for up to 72 hours.  A suspect has the right to be represented
by a lawyer, and the police must notify the suspect's relatives
if requested.  After arrest, a suspect may be jailed for up to
3 months pending trial and completion of the investigation, or
up to 9 months by special order of the Prosecutor.  If no
indictment is handed down during that time, a suspect must be
released.  There is no provision for bail or for trial by jury
in Armenian law.

Once criminal or civil charges have been filed, the law
requires a trial within 1 month.  In practice, due to current
conditions in Armenia, the deadline often is not met.  In most
cases, however, pretrial detention will not exceed 3 months.

The Criminal Code permits the exile of citizens under certain
circumstances, but no one has been exiled since Armenia became
independent.

     e.  Denial of Fair Public Trial

Armenia's criminal justice system, including its courts, laws,
and procedures, follows the former Soviet model.  The courts of
general jurisdiction may hear criminal, civil, and juvenile
cases.  District courts try the overwhelming majority of such
cases, but a Supreme Court tries some.  Both may act as the
court of first instance, depending on the nature and
seriousness of the crime.

Prosecutors, like the courts, are organized into offices at the
district and republic levels and are ultimately responsible to
the Prosecutor General, appointed by the President.
Prosecutors and defense attorneys by law have equal status
before the courts.  In practice, prosecutors still are very
influential because court proceedings are not conducted in an
adversarial manner.  Prosecutors direct all criminal
investigations, which are usually conducted by the Ministry of
Internal Affairs.

Cases at the district court level are tried before a panel
consisting of one judge and two lay assessors.  Judges
frequently send cases unlikely to end in convictions back to
the prosecutor for "additional investigation."  Such cases may
then be dropped or closed, occasionally without informing the
court or the defendant.

In their work, judges are not fully independent of the other
branches of government.  The Ministry of Justice nominates
Supreme Court judges, whose candidacies are reviewed by a panel
of their peers before being forwarded to Parliament for
approval.

Trials are public except when government secrets are considered
at issue.  Defendants may confront witnesses and present
evidence.  The court appoints an attorney for indigent
defendants.  Defendants have the right of appeal.

There were no reports of political prisoners in Armenia.  A
former presidential aide and member of the opposition, Vahan
Avakyan, convicted of attempting to divulge state secrets, was
sentenced to a jail term of 4 years.  His sentence was upheld
by the Supreme Court.  The arrest and trial were controversial
both because of the circumstances surrounding the case and
alleged procedural irregularities.  Opposition leaders and some
members of Parliament claim that Avakyan is a political
prisoner and have called for the creation of an independent
commission to investigate the case.

     f.  Arbitrary Interference with Privacy, Family, Home, or
         Correspondence

Apart from the provisions of the International Covenant, there
is no legal protection for the privacy of citizens, their
communications, and their correspondence.  Procedurally, the
Directorate of National Security must petition the General
Prosecutor's office for permission to tap a phone or intercept
correspondence.  The General Prosecutor's office purportedly
must find a compelling need for a wiretap before it will grant
the agency permission to proceed.  One of the leading
opposition parties claimed to have discovered unauthorized
wiretaps on its office telephones, but there was no official
investigation of these allegations.

There were many instances of interference with privacy during
waves of army conscription in 1994.  Military recruiters
appeared at houses where draft-age men were reported to live
and often threatened or detained the occupants or inflicted
material damage.  They seized draft-age men in public places,
such as markets, theaters, and the subway.  There are credible
reports that Armenian and Nagorno-Karabakh officials forcibly
conscripted refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh and Azerbaijan.

Section 2  Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:

     a.  Freedom of Speech and Press

The Law on Information provides for freedom of speech and the
press, and the Government generally respects these rights.

The press is generally free and contains a wide variety of
political opinion and criticism of the Government.  However, as
a result of a December 28 presidential directive, the
publication of Dashnak Party newspapers and journals has been
halted.  The Ministry of Justice registers all publications and
broadcasting organizations, which must state their general
subject matter.   It is required to act on applications for
registration within 1 month of receipt.

There is no prepublication censorship.  However, the Government
reportedly supplies all mass media editors with a list of
forbidden subjects, including sensitive military information in
categories such as the draft and army recruitment, information
on military structure, civil defense arrangements, finance,
communications, transport, and science and technology.  There
were no known prosecutions in 1994 for violations of this
injunction.

Shortages of fuel, paper, electricity, and other supplies
sometimes delayed or prevented the publication or distribution
of the print media.  There was no indication that the
Government used such problems to control or influence the
media.  On October 21, the offices of the Ramkavar Party's
newspaper were firebombed.  Investigations by the Ministry of
Internal Affairs into this and a series of other attacks on
journalists and media offices in late 1994 turned up no
suspects.  Attacks targeted both government-sponsored and
opposition media outlets.

The Government controls broadcasting almost entirely.  There is
one functioning independent radio station, one independent
television company, which rents air time from a state channel,
and several small independent cable television companies which
are only licensed to show films.  In December the Government
voided a contract with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty to
provide local rebroadcasts of Radio Liberty programming.  It is
widely assumed that the contract was canceled for political
reasons.

The Ramkavar Party newspaper AZ6 was able to register bylaws
for a second independent radio station on November 16, but the
station is not yet operating.  State television provides a
total of 15 minutes of broadcast time per week for all
opposition political parties.  However, the opposition NDU and
Dashnak Parties reportedly were both recently denied their time
slots.  Representatives of other opposition parties appeared
regularly on political discussion programs.  A shortage of
electricity limited television time to about 6 hours per day.

     b.  Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association

In the absence of an Armenian law, the International Covenant
provides for freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
Public demonstrations, meetings, and marches occurred
frequently in 1994 without any apparent interference by the
authorities.  The Soviet-era Law on Meetings remains valid and
requires those wishing to stage marches or demonstrations to
obtain a permit.  The procedure for obtaining a permit is not
onerous, and there were no known instances of its arbitrary
abuse.

The Ministry of Justice registers social and political
organizations, but the Government does not attempt to control
the opposition through the registration process.  The Ministry
has registered some 661 organizations to date, among them many
political parties and groups.

     c.  Freedom of Religion

The 1991 Law on Religious Organizations provides for freedom of
conscience but imposes some restrictions on religious freedom.
It establishes the separation of church and state and
recognizes the Armenian Apostolic Church, with which over 80
percent of the population is at least nominally affiliated, as
the predominant denomination.  The law forbids proselytizing
and refuses registration to organizations whose doctrine is not
based on "historically recognized holy scriptures."  An
unregistered religious organization may not own property,
publish a newspaper or magazine, rent a hall or other
meetingplace, sponsor television or radio broadcasts, or
officially sponsor the visas of visitors to Armenia.

A 1993 Presidential Decree according the right to "restore and
develop the spiritual life of the Armenian people" to the
Armenian Apostolic Church supplements the 1991 Law.  By
enjoining the Council on Religious Affairs to investigate the
activities of the representatives of registered religious
organizations and to ban missionaries who engage in activities
contrary to their status, the decree called into question the
legitimacy of all other religious groups.   Some religious
groups were obliged to reregister in the wake of the decree,
often on condition that they alter their statutes to include a
ban on proselytizing.  Some groups, such as the Mormons, were
quietly discouraged from applying for registration and have
kept a low profile.  The Hare Krishnas, in particular, were
victims of harassment and several attacks; the authorities were
neither responsive nor sympathetic.  The Government refused to
release 30 tons of religious literature to the Krishna group,
claiming that receipt of the books was tantamount to
proselytizing.

     d.  Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign
         Travel, Emigration, and Repatriation

The Government does not restrict internal or international
travel for political reasons.  Armenians may not obtain travel
passports, however, if they lack invitations from the country
that they wish to visit, if they have knowledge of state
secrets, or if their relatives have made financial claims
against them.  The Soviet-era Office of Visas and Registrations
(OVIR) continues to impede travel and emigration through delays
and the creation of various bureaucratic obstacles, including a
requirement for "exit permission."

Some 200,000 people, virtually the entire ethnic Azeri
population of Armenia prior to independence, took refuge in
Azerbaijan.  After the 1988-89 anti-Armenian pogroms in
Azerbaijan connected with the conflict over control of
Nagorno-Karabakh, the Government discriminated against these
ethnic Azeris and allowed the local population to intimidate
them, often violently, as a way to drive them out of the
country.  The Government forcibly deported many, and the rest
fled.  It appears increasingly unlikely that these people will
be able to return, as is also the case for the nearly 400,000
Armenian refugees who fled Azerbaijan after the pogroms.  There
have been unconfirmed reports of ethnic Armenians resettling in
territories occupied by Nagorno-Karabakh Armenian military
forces.  Such actions, if true, would hamper peaceful
settlement of the conflict and the return of refugees.

The Government does not in any way actively hinder emigration.
In fact, it is estimated that as much as one-third of Armenia's
population has temporarily or permanently left the country
during the last 6 years.

Section 3  Respect for Political Rights:  The Right of Citizens
           to Change Their Government

Although democracy is not yet firmly rooted in Armenia,
citizens exercised their right to change their government
peacefully in 1990 when the Armenian National Movement (ANM)
defeated the Communist Party in relatively free parliamentary
elections.  As Parliament began to function, its members
affiliated themselves with new parties being formed.  At
present, 12 parties and associations are represented in
Parliament, and many others are active.  The ANM, which
supports the President, lacks a majority of deputies in
Parliament.

In the absence of a new constitution, the Government's
legitimacy rests on the 1990 Law on the Presidency and the 1991
Law on Parliament.  The Law on Parliament established a
multiparty system.  The large number of seats won by those
occupying full-time jobs in local government offices around the
country and Armenia's economic problems have frequently made it
difficult to muster a quorum, thus limiting the effectiveness
of Parliament.  On December 21, 46 opposition and independent
deputies resigned their parliamentary commissions in protest
over what they called government ineffectiveness.  Their action
appears to be serious and will make it almost impossible for
the Parliament to muster a quorum prior to new elections in May
1995.

On December 28, President Ter-Petrosyan temporarily suspended
one of the largest opposition parties, the Armenian
Revolutionary Federation (ARF, also known as "Dashnaks"), on
the grounds that the party was operating a clandestine
terrorist organization involved in drug smuggling,
assassination, and espionage.  Several party members were
arrested in conjunction with these activities, and Dashnak
newspapers were closed.  Armenian government officials
indicated that the Dashnaks could reorganize and the ARF could
again be registered as a political party if it purged itself of
criminal elements.  Leaders of the Dashnak party have denounced
the suspension.  The question of what requirements the Party
will have to fulfill in order to reconstitute itself was under
review in early 1995 by the Ministry of Justice.

Women and members of minority groups play a very limited role
in government and politics.  Currently, there are no women or
minority group members in Cabinet-level positions, and only 9
of the 240 deputies in Parliament are women.

Section 4  Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
           Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations
           of Human Rights

There are several fledgling human rights groups, which operate
freely and openly criticize the Government's human rights
policies.  The Government generally cooperates with human
rights investigations and supports the presence of
international human rights groups.

Section 5  Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion,
           Disability, Language, or Social Status

The International Covenant prohibits discrimination.  Since
independence, Parliament has passed laws to protect against
discrimination based on religion or language, and the
Government generally respects these rights.  Societal
discrimination against women continues.

     Women

Armenia remains a male-dominated society.  Women are typically
expected to do the housework and raise the family even if they
have a full-time job.  In the workplace, they are generally not
afforded the opportunities for training and advancement given
to men.  The 1992 Law on Employment, however, prohibits
discrimination in employment.  The extremely high unemployment
rate makes it difficult to gauge how effectively the law has
been implemented to prevent discrimination.

Violence against women does exist.  Between January and October
1994, there were 21 reported rape cases; there were no reports
of spousal abuse.  It is likely that many more incidents go
unreported.  For those convicted of rape, the average prison
sentence is from 5 to 10 years.

     Children

The Government has taken steps to insulate large families (four
children or more) from current difficult economic
circumstances, and foreign humanitarian aid programs have also
targeted large families.  However, Armenia does not have the
means, given the current economic situation, to provide fully
for the welfare of children.  Child abuse does not appear to be
a serious problem.

     People with Disabilities

In 1993 Parliament passed a law on invalids that in principle
provides for the social, political, and individual rights of
the disabled.  The law does not mandate the provision of
accessibility for the disabled, however, and public concern
about the rights of the disabled remains very limited.

Section 6  Worker Rights

     a.  The Right of Association

The 1992 Law on Employment guarantees employees the right to
strike and to form or join unions of their own choosing without
previous authorization.  The vast majority of existing trade
unions, holdovers from the Soviet period, were not freely
chosen by workers.  About 80 percent of Armenia's work force
are members of unions.

A 1993 Presidential Decree prohibits the Government and other
employers from retaliating against strikers and labor leaders,
and the Government enforces its provisions.  A number of
strikes occurred in 1994; the Government did not appear to
hinder them.

Unions are free to affiliate with international bodies and to
form federations.

     b.  The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

The 1992 Law on Employment provides for the right to organize
and bargain collectively.  However, most enterprises,
factories, and organizations remain under state control.
Therefore, voluntary, direct negotiations cannot take place
between unions and management without the participation of the
Government.

Collective bargaining is not practiced.  The Government sets
wages in state-owned industries with reference to the
prevailing minimum wage.  It encourages profitable factories to
establish their own pay scales.  The factory's management
generally sets wage scales without consulting the employees.
Arbitration courts adjudicate wage and other labor disputes.
These courts have acted in the past to compel the reinstatement
of employees fired because of their labor activism.

Armenia has no export processing zones.

     c.  Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

The 1992 Law on Employment prohibits forced labor, and it is
not practiced.  Local councils of deputies, unemployment
offices, and, as a final board of appeal, the Arbitration
Commission enforce this prohibition.

     d.  Minimum Age for Employment of Children

According to the 1992 Law on Employment, 16 is the minimum age
for employment.  Children may work from age 14 with the
permission of a medical commission and the relevant labor union
board.  Child labor is not practiced.  Local councils of
deputies, unemployment offices, and, as a final board of
appeal, the Arbitration Commission enforce the law.

     e.  Acceptable Conditions of Work

The minimum wage is set by governmental decree and was
increased periodically during 1994.  The minimum wage in
September was about $0.50 per month.  Employees paid the
minimum wage cannot support either themselves or their
families.  Almost all enterprises are either idle or operating
at only a fraction of their capacity.  Workers still on the
payrolls of idle enterprises, who have not been put on
indefinite, unpaid leave status, continue to receive two-thirds
of their base salary.  As a result of the economic dislocations
caused by the breakup of the Soviet Union, the 1988 earthquake,
the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh, and the resultant disruption
in Armenia's trade, the overwhelming majority of Armenians live
below the officially recognized poverty level.  The standard
legal workweek is 41 hours.

Soviet-era occupational and safety standards remain in force.
Labor legislation from 1988 places responsibility on the
employer and the management of each firm to ensure "healthy and
normal" labor conditions for employees, but it provides no
definition of "healthy and normal."