The European Court of Human Rights will deliver an advisory opinion (No. P16-2019-001) in writing on 29 May 2020 at 11 a.m. , in response to a request from the Constitutional Court of Armenia.

The case concerns the interpretation of a provision in the Criminal Code of Armenia of 2009 on the overthrow of the constitutional order and its application in the light of Article 7 (no punishment without law) of the European Convention on Human Rights in the context of a case against former President Robert Kocharyan.

Mr Kocharyan has been charged under Article 300.1 of the 2009 Criminal Code (entitled “Overthrow of the Constitutional order”) with offences which were alleged to have been committed in relation to events which took place in February and March 2008, when protests broke out over a disputed presidential election. At that time, a different provision of the former Criminal Code, Article 300 (“usurpation of power”), was in force.