Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor

HCA Vanadzor, within the framework of the study of death cases of servicemen in the Armed Forces, observes all death cases of servicemen regardless of whether they are related to the service or not. 

The Organization's study of all cases of servicemen's deaths is based on the loss of a serviceman as a person possessing the necessary abilities and skills who held a military position—one that the defense department must replace with a new person.

Collecting data on death cases and maintaining statistics that are not related to military service is essential. According to the studies of the Organization, servicemen with health problems often die at home during their time off or when they are not on duty. In such cases, these deaths are officially classified as unrelated to military service. This suggests that the authorities responsible for investigating these deaths may not thoroughly examine the cause-and-effect relationship between the serviceman's death and their military service conditions. Additionally, when a death occurs due to a health problem or its deterioration, there is often a lack of investigation into the potential influence of military service on a person's health.

The statistics of death cases and its brief description

 In 2024, 40 death cases were recorded in the Armed Forces of the RA due to the following reasons;

13: car accident,

9: suicide or incitement to suicide,

5: health problems,

4: violation of the ceasefire regime,

3: murder,

3: accident (1 electrocution, 1 avalanche, 1 unknown)

2: plane crash,

1: fire (officially classified as murder)

The causes and the circumstances of the death cases of servicemen are concluded in the reference. The recommendations aimed at the prevention of the cases are presented below; 

In order to reduce the death cases due to suicide or murder; 

• To conduct effective investigations into all cases of non-statutory relations in the armed forces to clarify the circumstances of the cases and the drawbacks recorded during the organization of the service and to take steps to diminish their causes and prevent further cases
• To promote the increase of the role of the institute of officer-psychologist in the RA Armed Forces, involving qualified psychologists into service in all military units of the RA Defence Ministry, who will work more frequently with servicemen, including command staff, on a planned basis and as needed

In order to reduce and exclude death cases due to health problems

• to conduct full, proper, and comprehensive health examinations during military conscription,
• to adequately respond to complaints about the health of servicemen during military service, to organize their timely transfer to military medical institutions, and to ensure the organization of effective treatment,
• establish by law the procedure for providing compensation to servicemen and their families who have suffered from health problems related to military service, in the event of deterioration of the servicemen's health,
• to subject servicemen to proper and high-quality scheduled medical examinations during military service in order to detect health problems at an early stage and prevent their development,
• before the demobilization of conscripts from military service, ensure effective medical care for conscripts and conduct comprehensive and complete health examinations, to the same extent as is provided for in the framework of conscription for compulsory military service. The quality implementation of examinations during conscription and later, comparing the health status of the conscript with the health status of the conscript before demobilization, will make it possible to clearly record the cause-and-effect relationship of the health problem with military service. 

In order to reduce and exclude deaths due to car accidents

• To ensure timely and high-quality technical maintenance of vehicles purchased for the RA Armed Forces, based on the priority of preserving the safety, life, and health of servicemen.
• The date of removal from personnel and provisioning lists upon completion of military service shall, by law, be defined as the date of reporting to the military commissariat after discharge. Until the moment the individual reaches the military commissariat and is officially removed from the corresponding lists, they shall be considered a serviceperson who remains under the jurisdiction of the state.
• Allow the operation of a motor vehicle only after proper training of drivers. 
• "In practice, the provision stipulated by law should be observed and permission to drive a vehicle of category "D" and subcategory "D1" ... should be granted only to persons who have reached the age of 19 and who have a driving license for category "B" or "C" or subcategory "C1" vehicles, in the case of conscription into the RA Armed Forces and other troops."

This reference was prepared with the support of the National Endowment for Democracy. The opinions, interpretations, and conclusions stated herein are those of the author/s/ and do not necessarily reflect the views of the financing organization.