International lawyers urge EU to suspend Armenia`s funding  until  politically motivated prosecutions are stopped

ArmInfo. The EU is accused of breaking international law to swing elections, as  stated by lawyer and international human rights activist Robert Amsterdam on his Facebook page. 

 His statement reads as follows: " EU accused of breaking  international law to swing election. Legal experts warn EU backs  Armenian 'despot' despite democratic and human rights abuses ahead of  June 7 election Brussels hands over 300 million euros to counter  ‘disinformation’ about government critics Brussels bureaucrats  slammed for twelve breaches of EU law.  The European Union’s  intervention in elections in Armenia has breached its own rules and  laws on election interference, according to a damning new report. 

The new report, Interference by design, by law firm Amsterdam &  Partners, warns that “the EU has moved from silence about the  Armenian government’s democratic backsliding to active, non-neutral,  and structurally one-sided engagement in Armenia’s pre-election  environment.” It goes on to accuse the EU of crossing the line “from  legitimate cooperation into indirect electoral interference and  violation of international and EU law.”

The report says that the European Union’s actions before the  election, including over ˆ300 million in financial support, sending a  Hybrid Rapid Response Team, running “counter-disinformation efforts”,  and holding a summit of 44 European leaders in Yerevan a month before  the vote, amount to sabotaging Armenia’s electoral process.  It  continues: “The criticism is not about engagement itself, but about  engagement that is one-sided when inclusivity is required, lacks  transparency where openness is needed, is unconditional when  conditions are expected, and remains silent on democratic abuses when  the EU should speak out for democracy, the rule of law, and human  rights.”

The international lawyers say that instead of making its support  conditional on meeting democratic standards set by CEPA (the  Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership) and the Strategic Agenda, the  European Union instead increased its cooperation with Pashinyan’s  administration. They argue that its involvement in Armenia “is not  neutral support for democracy. Instead, it is one-sided, working only  through the current government”. 

Their analysis reveals five main areas which demonstrate the EU’s  work amounts to electoral interference.  • Branding all opposition as  Russian propaganda – which Pashinyan’s government has exploited to  crack down further on political opponents • The EU’s lack of  transparency on what it regards as “foreign interference” • Claiming  to have been invited by a would be authoritarian is not a valid  reason under international law • There is no way to hold the EU  accountable for its role in Armenia • Double standards and the  consistency obligation when comparing EU actions against Hungary and  its blind eye to Pashinyan’s abuses Armenia will go to the polls on  7th June, with many Armenians set to vote out the ruling Prime  Minister, Nikol Pashinyan, who has presided over serious violations  of Armenian law and international human rights standards.  This  report is the second in a series by Amsterdam & Partners on the  perilous state of democracy in Armenia. The first report, Armenia's  Authoritarian Turn, reported how Pashinyan was routinely flouting  democratic norms and setting himself up as an effective dictator. It  was updated in February to reflect how these patterns were becoming  more severe. 

These allegations, noted by the Organisation for Security and  Co-operation in Europe’s Office for Democratic Institutions and Human  Rights, are emphasised by opposition parties and major Armenian civil  rights organisations.  The latest report notes how “the International  Observatory for Democracy in Armenia, which included Kenneth Roth,  former head of Human Rights Watch, found evidence of politically  motivated arrests, misuse of vague laws, andgovernment interference  in the Church’s independence.”

Against this backdrop, the report asks the EU to apply its rules  correctly and to “follow its own legal requirements” over its  involvement in Armenia. However, it warns that instead of being  neutral the EU is only demonstrating “selective support” that gives  Pashinyan everything he needs to strengthen the ruling party and  ignores any attempt to protect opposition groups. 

The law firm highlights sixteen recommendations to resolve this clear  problem, with several immediate measures including:  • Suspension of  the Hybrid Rapid Response Team pending an independent review •  Publish the classified Political Framework for a Crisis Approach with  Armenia • Engage with rights groups such as the International  Observatory for Democracy in Armenia • Publicly condemn the recent  Electoral Code Amendments • Apply conditionality to remaining EU  funding, dependent on the cessation of politically motivated  prosecutions.”