COVID Has Reached Prisons: What the Lawyer Proposes

Lawyer Levon Baghdasaryan writes: “According to the fourth estate, a death from coronavirus has been recorded in the RA Penitentiary Institution. The Council of Europe urged last year to replace detention measures for detainees in high-risk areas with bail.

The European Court of Human Rights rightly considers Armenia to be a leader in the unlawful detention of individuals. I note that no less than seventy percent of detainees in Armenia have been imprisoned based on abstract reasoning that, if released, they could hinder the investigation, go into hiding, or commit new crimes. This is unacceptable, it is a crime—systemic in nature.”

“In light of the scale of the coronavirus, it is essential to immediately reconsider the detention of many individuals, replacing it with bail or establishing house arrest through legal amendments. Tomorrow, it will be not only too late but also delayed, becoming a disaster for the authorities.”