Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan today had a meeting with civil society representatives who represent several dozens of non-governmental organizations. The meeting was held as part of the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in Armenia Project.
Among the attendees were United Nations Resident Coordinator in Armenia Shombi Sharp and Head of the Cooperation Section of the Delegation of the European Union to Armenia Gonzalo Serrano De La Rosa who delivered their welcoming remarks.
The Prime Minister greeted the attendees and attached importance to such meetings. “The government had been seeking the right format for interaction with civil society representatives for a long time, and I am glad that we are experimenting in this format. I believe a major observation was made, according to which sometimes we try to give an assessment of democracy. This is perhaps the major dilemma in democratic countries, at least in democratic countries like Armenia that still need to specify and ascertain the main concepts. This means that democracy, particularly in the Republic of Armenia, has a long way to go. One thing is clear — the Armenian government is devoted to democratic values. I have declared several times that I view democracy as an endemic value for Armenia. I believe in this because I think the work that I have done and the work done by many people in this hall have proved that democracy is close to our hearts, but perhaps sometimes we need to stop and compare each other’s formulations of democracy, and I believe such meetings serve as a great opportunity to consider these issues,” Nikol Pashinyan stated.
The Prime Minister attached importance to the role of civil society in the enhancement and strengthening of democracy in the country and stated that, for this purpose, the government has engaged civil society representatives in the fight against corruption and the implementation of judicial and legal reforms.
The head of government went on to answer several questions from the civil society representatives and listened to their comments and suggestions. They particularly discussed issues related to human rights protection, increase of public oversight, the fight against corruption, the judicial-legal sector, etc.
The Prime Minister and the civil society representatives also exchanged views on the formats for organizing similar meetings and emphasized that those meetings will contribute to mutual cooperation in the effective implementation of the reforms underway in various sectors.
