The Only Way is the Removal of Nikol Pashinyan from Power: Statement by the Republican Party

The Executive Body of the Republican Party of Armenia has issued a statement, which we present below.

“The Republican Party of Armenia, analyzing the events of a new phase of power seizure that began in Armenia in April 2018, emphasizes that democracy is impossible without respect for and preservation of the rule of law (just as the people constrain their power by the Constitution, so is any public authority constrained by the Constitution).

It is noted that the gross disregard and violation of the country’s supreme law is not only a retreat from the values of a legal state but also a dangerous path leading to lawlessness. The Party reaffirms the European Commission's (Venice Commission) assertion that constitutional courts are the guardians of constitutional order and that the irremovability of constitutional court judges is intended to serve as a bulwark against a political majority on that day from influencing constitutional court judges.

The Party considers it unacceptable for any new authority to change existing judges. It is stated that the term of office for judges, especially the retroactive reduction of that term, is directly related to the principle of judicial independence and affects it. They argue that the proposed model of constitutional changes will not only allow one political force to form the Constitutional Court but will also politicize the Constitutional Court for many years to come.

It warns that tolerance of encroachments on the independence of the Constitutional Court jeopardizes and will entirely endanger the independence of the entire judiciary.

It reminds that the automatic, immediate, and unconditional termination of the powers of judges who have served on the Constitutional Court for 12 years contradicts both the positions of the Venice Commission and the European Court of Human Rights.

The statement notes that before any constitutional changes, it is the National Assembly's constitutional duty to appeal to the Constitutional Court (the deliberate circumvention and violation of the constitutional imperative norms in the name of the People is a gross violation of the Constitution, which makes the entire process of constitutional changes illegal and lays a bomb under the foundation of the legal state).

It states that depriving the President of the Republic of the authority to sign draft constitutional amendments through the “Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly” is an encroachment on the powers of the President and aims at the excessive concentration of power in the hands of the ruling political majority (such aspirations pose a threat to the fundamental principles of democracy and the legal state).

In conclusion, it declares:

1. What has happened in the Republic of Armenia is a usurpation of power, as the majority in the National Assembly has seized the powers of the Constitutional Court and the President of the Republic in a manner not provided for by the Constitution.

2. The entire criminal and political responsibility for this flagrant encroachment on the state lies personally with Nikol Pashinyan and the members of the National Assembly who voted in favor of the presented package.

3. With this step, the Armenian authorities have also violated the international obligations undertaken by the country and have further harmed Armenia’s reputation.

4. The process of state disintegration will inevitably lead to irreversible losses, the only way to avoid which is the removal of Nikol Pashinyan from power.”