YEREVAN, MAY 25, NOYAN TAPAN. Armenian Ombudsman Armen Harutyunian on May 25 presented to the public his special Report on the Right to Freedom of Assembly in the Republic of Armenia. Based on an analysis of the legislation and law enforcement practice, A. Harutyunian came to the conclusion that in Armenia the current state of the freedom of assembly is not in line with international standards, in many respects. According to the ombudsman, although on the whole, since 2004 the law on assembly was brought into line with international standards, it has some vague formulations and provisions giving cause for different interpretations, which results in contradictory law enforcement practices. There is no single approach among the authorized bodies that discuss a notification, in many cases they display different approaches, which causes problems and leads to legal uncertainty in law enforcement practices. The fact that in 2008 Yerevan municipality made over 80 decisions on banning a mass public event also shows the existence of legislative gaps. The court protection mechanisms of this right cannot be considered effective either, with 6 main principles of the right to freedom of assembly being violated fully or partly. In many cases, the conduct of the authorities gives grounds for claiming that they do not fully acknowledge the importance of the freedom of assembly, in particular the fact that the right to assembly may be a way of solving the current problems in the country. A. Harutyunian said that his next report will examine the freedom of speech.

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