YEREVAN. – When receiving grants from the international donor organizations, several conditions are imposed which deprive the ombudsman from his independence.   

Armenia’s Human Rights Defender, Karen Andreasyan, noted the aforesaid during Thursday’s National Assembly session devoted to the initial discussion of the 2012 Budget performance.

Specifically, as per the ombudsman, when providing grants the donors require that the Human Rights Defender’s statements be concurred with them.  

“It is inappropriate for the ombudsman to fine-tune his statements with any other body,” Andreasyan said.

He confirmed that there are pressures from the international organizations in terms of content and the political aspect, but, according to Armenia’s ombudsman, the concurrence of statements is unacceptable in the technical sense, too.

“When I am funded by the state, I am fully independent, but when the international donor does the funding, this impacts my independence,” Karen Andreasyan maintained.  

Photo by Arsen Sargsyan/NEWS.am