The Removal of Hayk Marutyan and Other Council Members' Mandates to Be Challenged in Administrative Court

The illegal action of removing Hayk Marutyan and other members of the council from their mandates will be contested in the administrative court and subsequently in the Constitutional Court. This was announced by the "National Progress" faction of the Yerevan City Council.

The statement reads: "We call attention of the media, human rights organizations, and states and international organizations supporting the development of democracy in Armenia. On February 7, 2024, the Yerevan city administration, citing unfounded reasons of 'absence from meetings,' removed former mayor and leader of the largest opposition faction 'National Progress' Hayk Marutyan, along with two other opposition council members, from the city council.

Despite this, Hayk Marutyan had previously stated multiple times that his absence from council meetings was a political stance and the only political tool to oppose decisions initiated by the government, given the prevailing configuration in the council.

It is notable that the ruling majority removed only three members from the council based on absences, even though they admitted they could have removed many more people, thus revealing the purely political, rather than 'disciplinary,' motivation behind this action. This illegal act will be challenged in the administrative court and later in the Constitutional Court.

Nevertheless, just a day before the urgent discussion of the controversial decision to increase public transport fares in Yerevan in March, the municipality made yet another unlawful and anti-democratic decision. The essence of the matter is that, taking advantage of the opportunity provided in paragraph 7 of article 29 of the Law on Local Self-Government in Yerevan, Aram Torosyan, the leader of the 'National Progress' faction, applied on March 11 to the temporary official of the municipal staff, requesting to allow the actual leader of the faction, Hayk Marutyan, to attend the council meeting on March 12. The municipality rejected the application, referring to the joint order dated October 9, 2023, of the Yerevan Municipality and the Ministry of Internal Affairs which prohibits 'the entry of third parties' into the Yerevan City Hall on the day of council meetings.

However, this order contradicts the aforementioned provision of the law on local self-government, which takes precedence, and according to part 2 of article 5 of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, it cannot serve as a reason to prohibit entering the city hall for a person invited by the faction to the council meeting.

We declare that this latest unlawful and unconstitutional decision of the Yerevan municipality continues the arbitrary actions of the government to silence the voice of the opposition, which contradicts the principles of democracy and violates the rights of around 44,000 Yerevan residents who supported our faction. We strongly condemn this repressive behavior and call on representatives of civil society and states and organizations supporting the establishment of democratic institutions in Armenia to provide a clear assessment of the ongoing situation."