Wednesday, May 24 2023 14:41

ArmInfo. Armenia has improved its score in the " Nations in Transit 2023" ranking of democracy in  the world according to the reputable international human rights organization Freedom House.

Armenia took 35th place in the ranking, having improved its  performance by one position, and is among the countries with a hybrid  regime.  Armenia's civil society rating improved from 4.50 to 4.75:   "Armenia has yet to apply for EU candidacy, but it continued to make  democratic gains in 2022, becoming the only country in Nations in  Transit 2023 with improvements on more than one indicator. The NGO  and independent media sectors made strides, particularly as their  objections persuaded the government to backtrack on controversial  2021 legislation that had criminalized defamation. The potential for  deterioration remains, however, as evidenced by arrests of opposition  candidates before local elections last August. With its dependence on  authoritarian Russia for military protection against Azerbaijan, its  openly hostile and equally authoritarian neighbor, Armenia's  democratic project faces uniquely powerful headwinds."

The Independent Media rating improved from 2.75 to 3.00 due to  greater involvement of civil society organizations in government  decision-making and policy-making, demonstrated by civil society to  influence public policy change, and institutionalized relationships  between civil society organizations and branches of government. As a  result, the rating of democracy in Armenia improved from 3.04 to  3.11.  Among the countries with a hybrid regime is also Armenia's  neighbor Georgia, which is located on the 34th line, having worsened  its performance by one line.  Another neighbor of Armenia -  Azerbaijan occupies the first line in the rating and is ranked among  the countries with a consolidated authoritarian regime. For two more  neighbors of Armenia - Iran and Turkey, data is not provided.

"The poor performance of Georgia's government stands in contrast to  the progress of its fellow Hybrid Regimes in Armenia, Moldova, and  Ukraine. The country's toxic political polarization-a problem that is  listed as the first "key priority" in the EU's opinion on its  qualified candidate status-has seeped into every public institution.  The media ecosystem is diverse only in the sense that it is  thoroughly politicized and outlets are reliably biased in favor of  the ruling party or the opposition. In early 2023, the government  proposed a Russian-style "foreign agents" law, which would have  forced local NGOs and media outlets that receive more than 20 percent  of their funding from abroad to register as "agents of foreign  influence." The move triggered angry protests and police violence  before the legislation was withdrawn."

Armenia's ally, Russia, is on the second line, also adding to the  list of countries with a consolidated authoritarian regime.  The  report's summary notes that Ukraine (rank 39), Moldova (rank 36) and  Armenia have steadily improved their democratic institutions in  recent years, driven forward by civic activism and consequential  elections.  " Even as authoritarian aggression and skullduggery have  threatened their basic security, the people and their freely elected  leaders have fought to improve governance through close collaboration  with local NGOs and professionals.," the report says.  At the same  time, it is stated that the Russian invasion of Ukraine has alerted  the whole world, but a similar scenario is unfolding in the Caucasus,  and receives much less attention.

"The Russian invasion of Ukraine alerted the entire world to the  existential threat that a hardening dictatorship can pose to  neighboring states with democratic aspirations. But a similar  scenario is unfolding in the Caucasus, and receiving far less  attention.

In 2020, Azerbaijan's military recaptured parts of Nagorno-Karabakh,  a region of the country held by local ethnic Armenian forces since  they defeated Azerbaijani troops in 1994. After its 2020 victory, the  regime of President Ilham Aliyev in Azerbaijan continued to pursue  its territorial ambitions by military means. It launched a major  incursion into the Republic of Armenia in 2022, and in early 2023 it  further isolated the ethnic Armenians who remained in  Nagorno-Karabakh by blocking a crucial road link under the guise of  "environmental protests." Moscow's seizure of Ukrainian territory in  2014 and 2022 resulted in a dramatic loss of rights and physical  safety for residents, and there are abundant indications that an  expansion of Baku's control over Nagorno-Karabakh and parts of  Armenia would eliminate the freedoms and security of local people in  much the same way.  Democratic governments must not ignore the  danger. They should take every possible step to bolster Armenia's  democracy and ensure the protection of all those living under or  fleeing Azerbaijani rule or occupation," the message says.

Attention is also drawn to the fact that "Armenia has yet to apply  for EU candidacy, but it continued to make democratic gains in 2022,  becoming the only country in Nations in Transit 2023 with  improvements on more than one indicator.  The NGO and independent  media sectors made strides, particularly as their objections  persuaded the government to backtrack on controversial 2021  legislation that had criminalized defamation. The potential for  deterioration remains, however, as evidenced by arrests of opposition  candidates before local elections last August. With its dependence on  authoritarian Russia for military protection against Azerbaijan, its  openly hostile and equally authoritarian neighbor, Armenia's  democratic project faces uniquely powerful headwinds."

At the same time, it is emphasized, in 2023, Democracy Scores  declined in 11 out of the 29 countries in the report, and 7 countries  earned improvements. Yet civic activists and democratic leaders  continued to strive for better governance across the diverse region.

The report evaluates democracy in countries on a scale from 1 to 100,  where 1 is the worst result, and 100 is the best.