ArmInfo.With all due respect, whether Armenia is democratic or not is not decided by Freedom House (an international human rights organization - ed. note). This was stated by secretary of the ruling "Civil Contract" party, Artur Hovhannisyan, commenting on the deterioration of Armenia's position in the Freedom House ranking.
"On a daily basis we work to strengthen and develop democracy. We value the reports of international partners, take note and continue to strengthen democracy. Armenia is one of the most democratic countries among the world, and it will always be so," he emphasized.
Notably, according to the "Nations in Transit 2024" annual report by the international human rights organization Freedom House, Armenia's democracy rating decreased from 3.11 points to 3.07 points. Thus, Armenia is ranked 35th on a 100-point system, where 0 corresponds to the lowest level of democracy and 100 to the maximum. "The National Democratic Governance Score dropped from 2.50 to 2.25 due to the consolidation of executive power, the long-standing tendency of central authorities to abuse their powers and impeach opposition mayors, and the lack of transparency in the finances of the ruling party," the explanation says.