Back Council of Europe provides continuous training for investigators of Armenia

Council of Europe provides continuous training for investigators of Armenia

Article 3 of the ECHR enshrines one of the most fundamental values of democratic societies. The prohibition of torture and inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment is a value of civilisation closely bound up with respect for human dignity. The prohibition in question is absolute, no derogation from it being permissible. The problem of effective investigation of alleged ill-treatment and deprivation of life cases is present in several ECtHR judgments against Armenia.

Therefore, the CoE tackles this issue through targeted capacity building for investigators of Armenia as well as through the improvement of the legal framework and practice. More specifically, on 23 and 30 April the CoE in coordination with the Justice Academy organised training seminars for 42 investigators on effective investigation of ill-treatment cases in the light of the national legislation and practice, as well as ECtHR case-law. It aimed at discussing the issues deriving from Virabyan v. Armenia group of cases that concerns ill-treatment, torture in police custody and lack of effective investigations in this respect (substantial and procedural violations of Article 3 of the ECHR).  This activity will strengthen the capacity of the investigators to carry out effective investigations of alleged ill-treatment cases and will contribute to the general measure under the Virabyan v. Armenia group of cases.

 

The event was organised by the Project “Support to the effective execution of the judgments of the European Court of Human Rights in Armenia”, funded by Human Rights Trust Fund and implemented in the framework of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Armenia for 2023-2026.

 

YEREVAN, ARMENIA 23 and 30 APRIL 2024
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What is the goal and objective of the project?

The Project is a part of the continuous endeavor of the Council of Europe to support Armenia in the effective implementation of the European human rights standards with a specific focus on the problem of excessive length of proceedings, late or non-execution of national courts’ judgments, effective judicial control over the pre-trial stage of the proceedings, right to freedom assembly, and effective investigations into allegations of ill-treatment and deprivation of life. 

The Council of Europe Action Plan for Armenia for 2023-2026 explicitly underlines the importance of the effective ECHR implementation as well as the need to enhancing the effectiveness of the ECHR system at national level. 

  Start date: January 2023

  Duration: 36 months

 Funding: EUR 800,000

Donor: Donors contributing to the Council of Europe Action Plan for Armenia 2023–2026 and Human Rights Trust Fund

Contact person: Ms Gayane Hovhannisyan, Senior Project Officer

Who benefits from the project?
  • Office of the Representative of Armenia on International Legal Matters
  • Ministry of Justice
  • Court of Cassation
  • Supreme Judicial Council
  • Prosecutor General’s Office
  • Ministry of Internal Affairs
  • general public
How does the project work?

Building on the constructive co-operation established with the national partners, the Council of Europe will continue strengthening their capacities through the legal expertise, workshops, seminars and training on leading case-law of the European Court of Human Rights, as well as relevant study visits so that the institutions are able to effectively play their role in the process of execution of European Court of Human Rights judgments by Armenia and that the case-law of the European Court of Human Rights is applied in a more harmonised way at national level.

What do we expect to achieve?
  • The national legislation and practice regarding the pre-trial detention, effective investigations of the alleged deprivation of life and ill-treatment, as well as freedom of assembly cases is further revised and aligned with the European standards.
  • The national legislation on the Compulsory Enforcement Service of the Ministry of Justice is improved to ensure proper regulatory framework and safeguards against late or non-execution of national courts’ judgments.
  • National authorities’ efforts on overseeing the execution of the ECtHR judgments are further enhanced and coordinated.
Reference documents