Dr. Gor Hovhannisyan, an associate professor in international law, and German and European Constitutional law at the University of Hagen, as well as the Berlin School of Economics and Law (Department of Police and Security Management), has shared his concerns over the proposed constitutional reforms, which he said was also discussed with European colleagues.
The lawyer elaborated on his remarks in a public post on Facebook.
″Every citizen of the Republic of Armenia has a right to an effective remedy in seeking a protection of violated rights; hence the state is obliged to offer those effective remedies also to judges sacked [based on the early retirement scheme]. Since they are being relieved of duties through a constitutional change, the issue is not subject to the jurisdiction of an ordinary court – which it is deemed insufficient for validating constitutional norms. Only the Constitutional Court has the authority to do that. Hence, given the absence of an exhaustible judicial remedy, the judges may – directly and individually – apply to the Constitutional Court and the European Court [of Human Rights]. Due to their dismissal, though, there will not be a Constitutional Court having the possibility to consider their application. That is to say, the Republic of Armenia will not offer any remedy to this judges, the
potentially amounting to a gross violation of Article 63 of the Constitution [Right to Fair Trial].