Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan attended the event dedicated to the 28th anniversary of the founding of the Constitutional Court. The President of the Republic Vahagn Khachaturyan, Chairman of the Constitutional Court Arman Dilanyan, Minister of Justice Grigor Minasyan, Prosecutor General Anna Vardapetyan and other officials also participated in the event.
Nikol Pashinyan congratulated those present on the occasion of the 28th anniversary of the formation of the Constitutional Court and noted that it is one of the important state institutions. “Underlining and emphasizing the principle of separation of powers, which I believe is an important prerequisite for the accomplishment of any state, however, the Government is responsible for ensuring the conditions for the operation of all levels of government.
I think the Government has taken all the necessary measures, or has at least made sufficient changes, which are necessary for the formation and operation of the Constitutional Court and the independent judicial system in general. Those decisions have been made, of course, the processes and reforms, in my understanding, never end. In other words, there is no point when any government and state can record: that’s it, the reforms are over. And there I want to emphasize the political will of the Government and the parliamentary majority to do everything possible for the normal operation of the Constitutional Court, and independent judicial system in general.
The Constitutional Court is, of course, a body that implements constitutional justice, but I want to share with you an idea that I think is relevant for our time, which has been relevant throughout the entire history of the existence of our republic. Justice is an institution and justice is a feeling. In other words, justice is largely laws, bodies implementing these laws and ensuring equality before the law. Of course, the bodies providing justice in the Republic of Armenia are fully functioning, but I must also share my impression as the head of the government, who has various opportunities to interact with people, that our institutions of justice still do not instill a sense of justice in the citizens of the Republic of Armenia. This is a very interesting phenomenon. If, for example, we conduct a survey among state institutions, whether our activities fit within the framework of justice or not, I think the answer of state institutions and judicial institutions will be positive, but the answer of the public will not be so positive. What is the reason for this? I think the reason for this is that the institutions’ and the public’s understanding of justice do not match.
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And this is a serious problem that we have to face and address. By and large, in our country we talk about standards on various occasions, but I think we should also talk about the standard of justice and what it means in practice. The following question is also important: what must happen for the state institutions’ and the public’s understanding of justice to coincide? I think that the platform where that conversation takes place is the debate on the Constitution and, ultimately, the decision-making based on that debate during the Constitutional Referendum. I have thought about this topic for a long time and I think that the characteristics of the meeting that took place at this intersection are that the ideas of the institutions and the public do not match about justice and fairness. In other words, it is at this stage that this conversation, this consensus has not been formed, and I think that this is now clearly a most important issue for the accomplishment of our state institutions and the state in general, which we should address at least on our agenda. And here, of course, I will be grateful if the Constitutional Court, without violating the principles of separation of powers, creates an opportunity for the Government to communicate on this topic, because these are issues that are very important.
Once again, I want to congratulate all of us on this occasion, emphasize my deep respect for the institution of the Constitutional Court, and express hope that we can create an opportunity for interaction and dialogue between the institutions seperated by the Constitution, for the formation of mechanisms for the harmonization of the institution of justice and the sense of justice, because I think it is very important. Due to the circumstances we all know, the tragic circumstances, there is a very deep sense of dissonance in our society. And the feeling of that dissonance, I think, is mostly expressed, or the boiling point of that dissonance is precisely in the gap between the institution of justice and the sense of justice. We will be grateful if the Constitutional Court and our other state institutions wish to contribute to solving this dilemma,” the Prime Minister said in his speech.
The President of the Constitutional Court, Arman Dilanyan, also made a speech during the event.
INFORMATION AND PUBLIC RELATIONS DEPARTMENT OF THE OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
