Armenia failed to ensure the safety of transgender human rights activist Lilit Martirosyan

On April 18, 2019, the Joint Special Procedures of the UN Human Rights Council appealed to the Permanent Representation of the Republic of Armenia to obtain clarification on the steps taken by the Armenian authorities to ensure Lilit Martirosyan’s security following her speech in the Armenian Parliament.

The Permanent Representation of the Republic of Armenia responded that “Armenia has embraced unprecedented freedom of speech since the revolution and is considered a free country.”

Armenia also notes that there are draft laws on equal opportunities and hate speech, but it should be noted that they do not include gender identity and self-expression as aggravating circumstances and do not ensure the safety of human rights defenders. Details can be found in the links below.

It should be recalled that the Armenian authorities failed to protect transgender human rights defenders after Lilit Martirosyan’s speech in the parliament, and the employees of the “Iravunk Part” human rights NGO were evacuated from the Republic of Armenia with their family members.

Transgender human rights defenders were threatened with death received by military, far-right conservative groups. The police had refused to open a criminal case because the threats were “not real.” The decision was appealed to the prosecutor and the Human Rights Defender.

Armenia’s response

UN inquiry