Police Practice Exhibiting Unacceptable Manifestations, Says Tatoyan

The actions of the police regarding the fines for not wearing masks or improperly wearing masks and the detention of individuals in police departments have become concerning and are systemically developing negative trends. This was stated by the Human Rights Defender of Armenia, Arman Tatoyan, on his Facebook page.

“1. It is evident that the requirement to wear masks, as a means of individual protection, aims to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus (COVID-19) or combat the virus itself. Any activity of state bodies or officials, which has legally defined functions in this area, should be directed towards this fundamental goal.

2. The police practice of detaining individuals for not wearing a mask or wearing it improperly has taken on unacceptable manifestations in terms of depriving individuals of their liberty and imposing administrative fines.

3. The minimum rights of a detained or deprived of liberty individual are not being ensured; the mandatory requirement to properly inform the individual of the reasons for their detention is being violated, and issues are recorded in the documents related to the detentions.

4. Cases have been recorded of police officers displaying behaviors not supported by the law when approaching citizens, exhibiting unnecessary force during illegal detentions, and creating uncertainty in their interactions with citizens. All cases where citizens have a mask but are subjected to police action for not possessing identification are unacceptable; the absence of an ID cannot serve as an autonomous basis for legal influence on a citizen.

5. Within the framework of existing systemic problems in the detention protocol, this new practice established since the state of emergency only deepens already existing issues. This, in turn, creates additional tension in a country already struggling with the challenges posed by the coronavirus.

6. It is obvious that administrative fines and deprivation of liberty for not wearing a mask or for improper mask-wearing have now taken a punitive nature. This approach is unacceptable and dangerous from the perspective of the human rights system.

7. On the other hand, it is clear that police officers themselves have become “legal victims” of the indefinite regulations in existence. The legislation in this area lacks the necessary degree of specificity, thereby failing to provide sufficient predictability for both citizens and police officers.

8. Police officers must have detailed rules or guidelines specifically designed for their work during the coronavirus pandemic.

9. Detention should, in fact, be a last resort, employed only in exceptional cases where the officer has exhausted all other means available under the law and where dictated by the specific circumstances of the situation. Officers should also demonstrate a personalized approach that takes into account the specifics of each case.

10. Every police officer must clearly understand that detaining someone constitutes deprivation of liberty, and he or she is the representative of the state who is obligated to guarantee the rights of the individual approached or subjected to legal influence (whether through detention or fines).

11. If necessary, police officers should provide citizens with masks rather than considering detention as the primary and only viable alternative.

12. Police must also clarify the essence of the mask-wearing requirement, as well as the consequences of not wearing a mask or wearing it improperly, in each required instance. Officers should be adequately informed about the characteristics of the offense for which they are applying legal measures. Police officers should undergo trainings that meet minimum requirements so that they can explain both the legal and health-related consequences of mask-wearing, and if necessary, provide the necessary assistance.

13. Finally, service investigations conducted in connection with police actions cannot yield real results without addressing the systemic issues described. Under these conditions, these investigations merely gain episodic and ineffective significance in terms of resolving issues raised in specific incidents and become illusory in addressing the systematically accumulated issues over the years.

14. All my observations are based on complaints addressed to the Human Rights Defender, visits to police departments, and the results of various observations. Specific actions are being taken within the framework of proceedings initiated by the Human Rights Defender’s office to protect citizen rights on a case-by-case basis.

15. I specifically note that this statement does not relate to the question of the preventive significance of wearing masks, nor is it intended to evaluate the necessity of wearing masks in closed or open spaces,” wrote Tatoyan.