Artak Zakaryan, a member of the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) Executive Body, wrote on his Facebook page that impeachment can be interpreted as a benchmark for democratic development, if the mechanism operates effectively in practice. The aim of impeachment is to oversee government actions through the people and democratic institutions.
Zakaryan noted that over the past 30 years, several world leaders have been removed from office through impeachment:
- On September 29, 1992, Brazil’s Chamber of Deputies approved the impeachment of President Fernando Collor de Mello over involvement in corruption schemes. He suspended himself from office in October and resigned in December before the Senate’s final vote.
- In February 1997, Ecuador’s Parliament declared President Abdalá Bucaram “mentally unfit” to govern and removed him from office. Bucaram fled to Panama, where he was granted political asylum.
- On November 13, 2000, the Philippine House of Representatives voted for President Joseph Estrada’s impeachment over corruption allegations. Following mass protests, Estrada resigned on January 20, 2001.
- In 2001, Indonesia’s Parliament unanimously voted to impeach President Abdurrahman Wahid for failing to overcome a severe economic crisis and losing political, religious, and military support.
- On April 6, 2004, Lithuania’s Parliament impeached President Rolandas Paksas for granting citizenship to a business sponsor, failing to protect state secrets, and abusing his official position.
- On June 22, 2012, Paraguay’s Senate voted to impeach President Fernando Lugo for improper execution of duties after deadly clashes between police and farmers that left 17 dead.
- On August 31, 2016, Brazil’s Senate voted to finalize President Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment, citing budgetary manipulation.
- On December 9, 2016, South Korea’s Parliament impeached President Park Geun-hye. She was officially removed from office by the Constitutional Court on March 10, 2017.
- On November 21, 2017, Zimbabwe’s Parliament initiated impeachment proceedings against President Robert Mugabe, leading to his resignation.
- On November 9, 2020, Peru’s Congress voted to impeach President Martín Vizcarra, citing incapacity to govern.
- On December 7, 2022, Peru’s Congress impeached President Pedro Castillo after he attempted to dissolve the legislature. In Peru, impeachment passes if two-thirds (87 lawmakers) vote in favor.
Separately, 107 individually addressed letters proposing a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan were submitted to the National Assembly's reception office by We Are Awake movement. Public figure Edgar Ghazaryan told reporters that no prime ministerial candidate was named, as selecting one is considered the participating MPs' right.