BY THE “100 ARMENIAN WOMEN” INITIATIVE
WHEN DIPLOMACY REMAINS SILENT, CIVIC DUTY DEMANDS A PUBLIC VOICE: AN OPEN CALL ON INTERNATIONAL COMPLICITY AND THE COLLAPSE OF THE RULE OF LAW IN ARMENIA
One week ago, the 100 Armenian Women initiative—comprising academics, lawyers, cultural figures, entrepreneurs, and civic leaders—transmitted an urgent, confidential appeal to foreign diplomatic missions and international institutions in Armenia and beyond, including the US Embassy, the EU Delegation, the EU High-level Representatives, EU Member States Embassies, the UN, the Council of Europe, and the OSCE.
Our appeal detailed a dangerous, accelerating reality in Armenia:
- The total structural subjugation of the judiciary to the executive branch,
- The selective criminal prosecution and prolonged, arbitrary pretrial detention of political critics and women leaders,
- The deployment of excessive physical force and state-sanctioned intimidation, and
- Unconstitutional corporate takeovers and mass economic reprisals targeting dissenters.
To protect our members from state-sponsored retaliation—including arbitrary arrest, professional termination, and institutional pressure—we initially submitted our appeal under strict confidentiality protocols.
Seven Days of Deafening Silence from International Community
Seven days have passed. Seven days of continued judicial overreach, arbitrary detentions, and civic degradation in Armenia. And from the diplomatic representatives and international bodies who position themselves as guardians of democratic governance, we have received deafening silence.
This passivity is not neutrality—it is a pattern of diplomatic acquiescence that emboldens state abuse and signals total impunity to the executive branch.
Today, we refuse to allow this silence to stand. We are stepping into the public eye.
We take this step fully aware of the grave personal, legal, and professional risks involved. However, when privacy serves only to shield state abuses from international scrutiny, anonymity becomes a constraint we can no longer accept.
If any participant of this initiative faces state retaliation, arbitrary prosecution, or professional pressure following this declaration, the responsibility rests not only with the Government of Armenia, but equally with the international institutions whose silence enables these abuses.
Our Demand
We call on international partners, accredited embassies, and multilateral bodies to:
- Break Your Silence Publicly: Issue clear, objective assessments regarding the independence of the judiciary, the misuse of pretrial detention, and the state’s targeting of political opponents and civic voices in Armenia.
- Acknowledge Formal Communications: Cease the practice of quietly shelving urgent civic appeals and establish transparent, accountable channels for engaging with independent civil society.
- Condition Support on Human Rights: Ensure that diplomatic, financial, and political partnerships with the Government of Armenia are strictly conditioned on compliance with binding international treaties (ICCPR, ECHR, CEDAW and others), rather than political expediency.
We did not build our professional careers to watch the democratic foundations of our country be systematically dismantled while international observers look away. Armenia’s democratic future cannot be sacrificed for diplomatic convenience. We step forward today because silence is no longer an option.
The 100 Armenian Women Initiative