Human Rights House Yerevan

The Situation of Human Rights Defenders in Armenia: Annual Report 2025

humryadm — Wed, 25 Feb 2026 08:27:55 +0000

The report presents documents cases of violations and restrictions targeting human rights defenders (HRDs) in Armenia during the period from 1 January to 31 December 2025. It is based on the results of systematic monitoring conducted by Human Rights House Yerevan, as well as on verified data obtained from sectoral non-governmental organizations, international human rights mechanisms and organizations, open-source information, and media publications.

The monitoring focuses on identifying patterns, trends, and key developments affecting the safety, security, and operating environment of human rights defenders. In addition to direct violations, the report analyzes broader structural challenges, including financial pressure on civil society organizations, increasing levels of hate speech and disinformation targeting HRDs, and the growing use of Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) against journalists and human rights defenders.

By documenting individual cases and contextualizing them within wider political, legal, and social developments, the report aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the human rights defenders’ situation in Armenia in 2025, to raise awareness of existing risks, and to contribute to evidence-based advocacy at national and international levels.

Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation in Armenia

humryadm — Fri, 18 Jul 2025 17:21:05 +0000

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The number of strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) in Armenia is growing over the years. In 2023 and 2024, we documented at least 33 such lawsuits against environmental activists, human rights activists and journalists. These lawsuits are filed by public officials or large corporations to suppress public participation processes. The goal is to silence people who voice about questions and problems that significantly matter to the public. Normally, these lawsuits are based on claims that seek redress for damage inflicted upon the claimants’ honor, dignity or business reputation – a matter regulated by Article 1087.1 of the Civil Code of Armenia. The claimants pursue particularly large and disproportionate claims and use judicial tricks to prolong and make the trials more costly. As part of larger campaigns against criticism directed at them, the abuse of the judicial processes pursues the goal of terrifying, harassing or intimidating the defendants.

A number of important developments occurred in 2024 in the international law around the issue of lawsuits against public participation. In April 2024, the EU adopted the Anti-SLAPP Directive as well as the Anti-SLAPP Recommendation. The Directive sets out minimal measures that EU member-states have to take in order to counter SLAPPs. While Armenia is not a member of the EU, it has taken commitments under the Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement signed on November 24, 2017 to gradually approximate its legislation to that of the EU.

In 2024, the Council of Europe adopted a Recommendation[4] outlining more comprehensive measures for countering and eradicating SLAPPs. While the Recommendation is not a binding document, it mirrors the case law of the European Court of Human Rights according to which discussions around issues of public interest deserve special protection. The CoE Recommendation also sets out access to mechanisms which enable dismissal of abusive lawsuits at early stages. As a member-state of the Council of Europe, Armenia has to take this Recommendation into consideration.

The first section of this report provides a summary of the characteristic indicators of strategic lawsuits against public participation and discusses the specific issues related to such lawsuits. The report goes on to present the international regulations of SLAPPs and analyses the SLAPP cases in Armenia. The report concludes with recommendations addressed to various state and non-state actors in Armenia.

TARGETING OF CIVIL SOCIETY DURING THE JUNE 20, 2021 SNAP PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS: BRIEF ANALYSIS

humryadm — Mon, 26 Jul 2021 19:42:11 +0000

Committed to its mission to support and protect human rights defenders and to advance the protection of their rights, Human Rights House Yerevan (HRHY) has monitored the cases of targeting civil society during the elections. The monitoring was carried out before, during and after the pre-election campaign. In addition, the pre-election programs of the parties (alliances of parties) participating in the elections were analyzed in order to identify their approaches to human rights and fundamental freedoms, equality and discrimination.

Read the report here.

ABA ROLI – HRSM Rapid Response Intervention – Armenia

humryadm — Tue, 22 Dec 2020 07:54:53 +0000

With collaboration of American Bar Association Rule of Law Initiative (ABA ROLI) and HRH Yerevan and its member organizations the rapid response program was initiated to provide more effective and targeted support to vulnerable women and LGBTI persons in Armenia during the COVID-19 crisis.

The objectives of the program are to:

strengthen capacity of human rights organizations to offer safe heaven and support services to vulnerable women and LGBTI people affected by COVID-19.
provide urgent assistance to LGBTI persons and vulnerable women to enable their access to shelter, food, and medical, psychological, and legal services.
advocate for greater access by vulnerable women and LGBTI persons to basic health services and COVID-19 related government assistance programs.

H2H. International Human Rights School for young activists

humryadm — Wed, 16 Dec 2020 11:26:39 +0000

Human Rights House Foundation in partnership with Human rights House Yerevan, EHRH-Chernihiv, HRH-Voronezh, HRH-Tbilisi, HRH-Minsk, HRH-Belgrade implements an educational program focused on human rights.

Beginning from October 12 to December 25, 2020, about 60 young human rights defenders from Ukraine, Belarus, Russia, Georgia, Armenia, and Serbia take part in an intensive online human rights course conducted on the ILIA Online platform. More information about the International school will be published on the page – https://cutt.ly/0fCwaSN

The most motivated and active participants who successfully complete the online part of the school will be able to take part in the offline session next summer 2021 in Ukraine (in case of a favorable epidemiological situation for international travel) . Participants will need to attend webinars, take an active part in discussions, and pass the test after each stage in order to complete the course.

The project is implemented with the support of Human Rights House Foundation.

H2H. KinoHRonics

humryadm — Wed, 16 Dec 2020 10:55:56 +0000

Within the project it are selected select and demonstrated films of HR-related topics online with the involvement of several Houses (HRH -Yerevan, HRH-Minsk, HRH-Belgrade, EHRH- Chernihiv, HRH-Voronezh)– members of HRH network. Many of them have already used cinema methods, so far the project is aimed at further development of this competence, to widen the audience, to get more friendly with online work and raise the number of followers.

The project is implemented with the support of Human Rights House Foundation.

H2H։ STRENGTHENING THE STATE – CSOs COOPERATION ON HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP

humryadm — Fri, 21 Aug 2020 15:13:06 +0000

TOOLBOX FOR A MEANINGFUL PARTNERSHIP TO FOSTER NATIONAL LEVEL HUMAN RIGHTS CHANGE

The general aim of this project is to contribute to the development of a comprehensive model of consistent and meaningful State – CSO cooperation on utilizing UNHRC membership, with specific aims:
– to support and build capacities of CSO’s in Croatia, Georgia, Ukraine, and Armenia to foster and engage in a structured dialogue with the State on setting up their country’s UNHRC membership priorities, and to monitor and report on State’s fulfillment of both domestic and international voluntary pledges and other obligations arising from membership at the UNHRC; and
– to support States’ efforts in better fulfillment of their commitments on HRC membership, and to work closer and more strategically with their domestic CSO on HRC priorities.

The project is implemented with the support of Human Rights House Foundation.

House Support 2020

humryadm — Tue, 19 May 2020 11:41:45 +0000

2020 will be an important year for HRH Yerevan, mainly because of the renovation of the premises to be started and completed in 2020. At the same time, HRH Yerevan will implement activities towards continual empowerment and protection of HRDs and advancement of human rights in general.

The project is implemented with the support of Human Rights House Foundation. HRHF supports Houses by providing – where possible and there is needed – core funding for premises and operational costs, as well as funding joint projects implemented by two or more member organisations of a House.

Human Rights House Yerevan։ Annual Report, 2019

humryadm — Mon, 27 Apr 2020 05:52:13 +0000

The report presents cases of violations against human rights defenders as of November 1, 2019. The report is based on the results of monitoring conducted by the Human Rights House Yerevan, interviews with individual human rights defenders, and data published by sectoral NGOs.

The report was prepared in line with principles and norms set out in the Booklet “Rights of Defenders: Principles and Standards Protecting and Empowering Human Rights Work”. The report refers to 10 of the mentioned 16 principles and standards, which reflect the violations occurred.

The cases of violations against human rights defenders in the report are presented in a combination of the following two primary criteria: (1) the nature of public benefit of one’s action aimed at protecting human rights and fundamental freedoms, ensuring the rule of law and democracy, and (2) being committed to human rights and fundamental freedoms, in particular respect for the human rights of all, the recognition of equality and the elimination of discrimination.

The report provides a summary of each of the mentioned principles and standards, cases of violations against human rights defenders, as well as recommendations to the State and other public entities. The international experience presented in the aforementioned Booklet was also taken into account when making the recommendations. Human Rights House Yerevan will persist for the recommendations made in this report to be taken into consideration in the process of developing human rights-related policies and laws and their implementation.

Read the report here.

Human Rights House Yerevan։ Interim Report, 2019

humryadm — Thu, 05 Dec 2019 10:37:08 +0000

Monitoring of the conditions in which human rights work was carried out during the first 6 months of 2019, and more specificallyin which human rights defenders worked, indicates of an increased rate of online threats of violence, hate speech and misinformation. The target of such online assaults were primarily women human rights defenders and defenders of LGBTI persons. The increase in targeting these human rights defenders is primarily related to manipulative tactics employed by groups and individuals affiliated with the ousted authorities, as well as by the Armenian Apostolic Church (its servants) engaging wide circles of the society around sensitive issues. More specifically, these groups and individuals have been portrayingactivities aimed at increasing human rights sensitivity as anti-national, against traditional family values, while at the same time portraying the current authorities as advocates of “unacceptable” values. At the same time, we had already noted in our 2018 report that attorneys who had taken up defense of high profile former officials charged with criminal offences, experienced a surge of hatred and intolerance, a phenomenon that carried on in the first 6 months of 2019 as well, and resulted in even more adverse manifestations, such as physical stalking and harming the property of one such attorney. We have also documented for 2019 that environmental activists continued to be sued by a mining company for alleged defamationwhich created unfavorable conditions for their environmental work. In addition to this, without sufficient grounds one of the environmental activists was taken to the police station for an alleged suspicion of significant fraud. The subject of the suspicion was the fundraising event organized publically for the individuals carrying out protection of Amulsar Mountain. Aside from targeting individual human rights defenders, activists and NGOs, the first half of 2019 was notable by an overall organized campaign against human rights work, most remarkably by a campaign against the Open Society Foundations –Armenia and its beneficiaries. Parallel to presenting violations of the rights of human rights defenders, the report also touches upon the actions taken up by human rights defenders to protect their rights and the outcomes thereof. The report also features statements and recommendations published by Human Rights House Yerevan and other NGOs.