Representatives of the Armenia faction told representatives of the IODA mission about political persecution in the country.

ArmInfo. Head of the Armenia faction Anna Grigoryan and faction secretary Artur Khachatryan at a meeting with representatives of the independent fact-finding mission of the International Observatory of Democracy in Armenia. (IODA) spoke about the situation with political persecution in the country.

According to the faction's press service, during the meeting, specific facts of such cases, the human rights situation, and the consistent erosion of democratic institutions in Armenia were presented.

According to the source, special attention was paid to the abuse of pretrial detention and its use as a tool to punish political opponents.

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) report on the results of the parliamentary elections in Armenia held on June 7, 2026, recorded a number of violations by the Civil Contract party.

According to the published report, widespread public polarization and mass protests during the elections created a tense domestic political situation in the country. According to the source, additional factors contributing to the polarization were the unusually tense relations between the government and the leadership of the Armenian Apostolic Church, as well as criminal prosecutions, including pretrial detention, of several prominent opposition figures and religious figures. Attention is drawn to the hastily adopted amendments to the Electoral Code by the ruling party, which contradict the recommendations of the Venice Commission regarding the stability of electoral legislation. It is noted that the election campaign period was characterized by sharp polarization, aggressive rhetoric, and repeated accusations of violations, including direct threats against opposition candidates and coercion of government officials at rallies held by Nikol Pashinyan's ruling party.

It is also noted that in recent years, there has been a broader use of law enforcement mechanisms against opposition candidates and activists, as well as a massive influx of criminal cases for vote-buying, almost all of which involved the opposition or business representatives associated with the opposition. It should be noted that at the time of preparation of the report, there were practically no guilty verdicts in such cases.