Ombudsman`s Office Representative: In 2025, there were 16 deaths  in  Armenian prisons, including 6 suicides

ArmInfo. In 2025, there were 16 deaths  recorded in Armenian prisons, 6 of which  were suicides, as reported by representative of the Armenian Ombudsman's Office  Hovhannes Ghukasyan on July 21 during a press conference in Yerevan  focusing on issues related to prisoners.

Referring to the reasons, he noted that based on the observations of  the Ombudsman's Office, there is a significant discrepancy between  punishments and incentive measures in institutions. Thus, in 2024,  there were 2,539 punishments recorded compared to only 14 incentive  measures. Ghukasyan specified that among the punishments, 142 were  classified as strict, including transfers to a punishment cell. He  also highlighted the disparity in the treatment of prisoners, noting  the duration of punishment cell stays can vary significantly for the  same infractions  without justified reasons.

He also connected  the high number of suicides to the lack of  sufficient number of psychologists in prisons, citing that with 2,700  prisoners, only 10 psychologists cannot provide adequate  psycho-emotional support.  Regarding the introduction of a suicide  and self-harm assessment risk tool, the representative of the  Ombudsman's office praised the initiative, but pointed out challenges  in its application. Ghukasyan clarified that psychologists are often  hesitant to use an unfamiliar tool, underscoring the need for  retraining programs.