Raising their voices: HRDs respond to the human rights crisis: The Situation of Human Rights Defenders in Armenia

This report examines the increasingly restrictive environment for human rights defenders in Armenia, with a particular focus on the rise of strategic lawsuits (SLAPPs), hate speech, and coordinated smear campaigns. Based on first-hand monitoring by civil society organizations, it highlights how defenders—especially those working on environmental, reproductive, and LGBT+ rights—face legal harassment, public stigmatization, and institutional obstacles that undermine their work and wellbeing. The report underscores how both state and non-state actors contribute to a climate of intimidation, while the lack of effective safeguards and accountability mechanisms allows such practices to persist. It concludes that these trends are shrinking civic space and calls for urgent legal reforms, stronger protection measures, and increased international support to ensure a safe and enabling environment for human rights advocacy in Armenia.