The term of office of Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan has ended. Let me remind you that according to a survey conducted by the International Republican Institute in November-December last year, 68% of the respondents were satisfied with the activities of his office, and no other state institution has such a rating today. The ombudsman’s office is a really well-established institution in our country, and not only Arman Tatoyan, but also the previous three ombudsmen, Larisa Alaverdyan, Armen Harutyunyan, and Karen Andreasyan, have made a great contribution to it.
Since this structure has always worked well, it is clear that the executive branch and its parliamentary majority should have always been dissatisfied with it. This was the case with four ombudsmen and three Armenian leaders. Let’s remember Robert Kocharyan’s assessment of Armen Harutyunyan’s work: “he is my most unsuccessful staff.” It is ironic that the RPA deputies stoned the ombudsman Karen Andreasyan, just as the Minister of Justice Karen Andreasyan expressed his strong dissatisfaction with Arman Tatoyan. As they say, noblesse oblige. The Civil Contract members also, even today, when Tatoyan is no longer the Human Rights Defender, continue their “struggle” by inertia.
By the will of the parliamentary majority, Kristine Grigoryan became a human rights defender, who is suspected of being too close to the government. Such suspicions are not new either: those doubts existed for the previous 4 ombudsmen, but fortunately, they later dispelled all concerns through their conscientious work. So, will the newly appointed ombudsman be independent or will she depend on her work? It would be desirable for her, like his predecessor, to pay special attention to the rights of our citizens living in border areas.
It is difficult to say whether Arman Tatoyan will enter politics or not. Here, too, I can express my wish that I would not want such a thing to happen. Politics in Armenia kind of “crushes” people (if we avoid a foreign word), and it makes their minds shorter and more primitive, their souls smaller, poorer, their passions more mundane. So if I were asked, I would not advise any decent, thinking person to be part of that colorless world.
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Aram Abrahamyan
