Human Rights Defender Calls for Sobriety and Distinction Between Primary and Secondary Issues

The Human Rights Defender of Armenia, Arman Tatoyan, has stated:

“Recently, the realm of our public discourse has been almost entirely filled with topics of power disputes, overshadowing the real issues of human rights in the country and neglecting the actual priorities concerning people.

The political system of the state is not meant to engage in power disputes. The political system, with its ruling and opposition parties and forces, should serve the people, addressing their problems and the actual priorities of human rights protection, thereby providing predictability for individuals.

We must correctly identify these priorities and steer public discussions in that direction, regardless of political developments or prospects.

Both the government and the opposition, as state institutions, should base their initiatives or actions on current, pressing human rights issues that are concerning to the public, each within their respective spheres of influence. In this case, public discourse will move in that direction.

This way, the authorities demonstrate to the public their actions regarding actual problems, while the opposition ensures proper oversight over the government on these matters using the same principles.

Ultimately, society will see that both the government and the opposition are engaged with everyday, real problems, rather than mere narrow topics of power disputes, and that issues concerning their rights are at the forefront of everyone's genuine attention, rather than being overlooked and remaining on the fringes of public discussion.

Therefore, I urge everyone to become sober.

Our country is facing serious challenges: the vital rights of border residents have been violated or are seriously endangered, their predictability in the matters concerning them is not ensured, and the Azerbaijani authorities threaten Armenia with a new war, speaking in a language of threats about our population. We must apply accountability procedures for the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Azerbaijan against our compatriots, and we need to guarantee the socio-economic rights of the people, and so on. These and other priorities should be the foundation of every party's initiative or program, regardless of any political view or status.

Ultimately, this way we will affirm that everything in our country is done for the benefit of the individual and the supremacy of rights, and that the primary is always distinguished from the secondary.”