Pashinyan urges serious debate on jury system

PanARMENIAN.Net - Armenia has yet to reach a point where justice truly means fairness, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said while presenting the government's 2024 performance report to the National Assembly. He stressed the government's determination to move toward this goal.

In this context, Pashinyan proposed that “Armenia should seriously consider introducing a jury trial system during discussions of a new Constitution.” However, he cautioned that “in a small country where social ties are strong and everyone knows each other, implementing such a system could risk further injustice.”

“But we already face this problem today,” he added. “The same close-knit connections that could affect jury members now influence police officers, investigators, prosecutors, and judges.”

Pashinyan rejected criticism suggesting the government missed the chance to vet judges. He pointed out that nearly 60 percent of Armenia’s current judges were appointed after 2018.

“We have literally created the Anti-Corruption Court from scratch—covering trial, appellate, and cassation levels,” he noted. “But we must admit that public perception of this court often mirrors that of the rest of our judiciary. This indicates our problems and their solutions are more complex than they seem.”

He attributed these problems primarily to entrenched legal thinking and educational norms in Armenia. “I’ve done everything from organizing blockades of courthouses to significantly increasing salaries for judiciary staff—which many considered illogical—and implementing all kinds of institutional reforms and personnel changes,” he said.

The idea of implementing a jury system in Armenia has been considered in the past. Authorities previously concluded it may not work effectively in a small country.