The ‘Independent Observer’ Coalition Sues Anna Hakobyan

The ‘Independent Observer’ coalition has announced three significant developments. 1. The coalition claims to have identified alleged violations in the recent activities of the ‘My Step’ foundation and has filed a lawsuit in the Administrative Court, seeking to hold the foundation’s executive director, Anna Hakobyan, accountable on 15 counts. This information was shared by Daniel Ioannisyan, the founder of the civic organization ‘Informing Citizens.’

2. The coalition views the concerts scheduled in Gyumri on April 19 and in Yerevan on April 23 as a promotional activity for the ruling Civil Contract party, stating that the costs must comply with the law on Political Parties. However, the funding for these concerts does not align with the restrictions set by that law. The coalition has submitted a request to the Anti-Corruption Commission for a legal assessment of this issue.

3. The coalition believes that the torch-lit march on April 23 is also a party event of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), and its funding should adhere to the stipulations of party legislation. They are currently investigating the facts and may file a complaint with the commission as well.

On April 22, the Independent Observer sent one request to the Administrative Court and one report to the Anti-Corruption Commission.

The coalition is also examining the expenses related to the torch-lit march organized by the ARF on April 23, focused on the management, content, and visibility improvements of the event. They will assess whether these expenses should be included as party campaign costs or as in-kind donations in the party's accounts, as well as whether the expenses of the party should be declared.

The application submitted to the Administrative Court is based on 'My Step’ foundation's charitable activities. Formally, representatives of the ‘My Step’ foundation could be subjects of Article 232 of the Criminal Code (Prohibition of Charity) if they are members of the Civil Contract party, about which the Independent Observer is unaware. However, it is clear that Article 40.16 of the Administrative Offenses Code states that during the period from the day the decision on the appointment of elections or referendums enters into force until the results are summarized, organizations associated with the names of participating parties or led by candidates in those elections are prohibited from conducting charity in the communities where elections are held, leading to penalties for the organization’s officials of a fine ranging from two hundred to four hundred times the minimum wage.

It is well-known that the name of the ‘My Step’ foundation is associated with the Civil Contract party, and therefore the events held by the foundation since the appointment of the elections should at least become subjects of administrative proceedings.

2. The report submitted to the Anti-Corruption Commission concerns a concert organized on Citizen's Day in Yerevan. On April 25, 2026, a concert titled ‘Voice of Peace’ will take place in Republic Square, sponsored by businessman Vigen Badalyan. Another concert under the same title was held on April 19 in Gyumri. Given that the concert title aligns with the pre-election slogan of the Civil Contract party, these events can be perceived as in-kind donations to the party. In this case, the organization of the event may violate the maximum donation limits established by the law on Political Parties and may imply liability under Article 235 of the Criminal Code.

This means exceeding the legally established maximum donation amount to the party, which is punishable by a fine of up to twenty times the amount or imprisonment for a maximum of two years, or short-term imprisonment for a maximum of two months. The Independent Observer has also noted the need to investigate whether the donation was made by a physical person (Vigen Badalyan) or a legal entity (Fast Bank owned by Vigen Badalyan) or from other illegal sources since any type of legal entity is prohibited from making donations to parties, and Article 234 of the RA Criminal Code provides liability for making a significant donation to a party from a legal entity's name, with penalties including a fine of up to twenty times the amount or imprisonment for a maximum of two years, or short-term imprisonment for a maximum of two months.