Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor

On 26 September 2022, the Government of the Republic of Armenia made decree N 1484-Ն on “Declaring a drill call-up and engaging transport means of bodies with military transport obligations to ensure the drill call-up”, which entered into force the next day. 

According to the aforementioned decree, 

• drill call-up of reservist privates, non-commissioned officers and officers of the first and second ranks of the first group of the reserve is declared from 27 September 2022 until 22 November 2022;
  
  

• up to 3680 citizens will be involved in the drill call-up, 3310 of whom will be private and junior non-commissioned reservists, 80 will be senior non-commissioned reservists, 290 will be officer reservists with the professions of all-arms, motor-rifle, communication, intelligence, engineering, rocket-artillery;
  
  

• according to the annex, up to 320 transportation means will be involved from the bodies with military transportation obligations from 27 September 2022 until 22 November 2022 to ensure the drill call-up;
  
  

• it was established that the drill call-up is declared in order to develop military abilities of the reservists, conduct their professional training and ensure professional preparedness, prepare officers out of non-commissioned officers who have higher education, involve in combat duty according to the contract signed.  

After issuing the aforementioned decree, those enlisted in the reserve raised various issues, regarding which HCAV made a statement on 4 October 2022.

We hereby record that in addition to the fact that reservists receive the notice on being involved in the drill call-up by violation of the relevant procedure, they also do not undergo medical examinations and expert examinations as prescribed by law, which is inadmissible and directly violates the right of the mentioned group to proper administration and health safeguarded by the RA Constitution, by making illegal the administration aimed at involving citizens in drill call-up at the very outset.

In addition, the legislation does not establish criteria for involving citizens in the drill call-up that would take into account priorities of involving citizens with the same profession, such as family status (two or more underage children, existence of a person with disabilities in the family, the fact of being the sole breadwinner, the nature of the work of the person involved in the gathering, etc.) and other conditions. The lack of such criteria can generate corruption risks conditioned by the arbitrary approach to involving persons in drill call-ups,  kinship or other conditions. 

We find that

• A relevant legal act must enshrine priorities in terms of choosing citizens to be involved in the drill call-up according to professions, taking into account their family status, nature of their work and other conditions.
  
  

• Before legislatively enshrining the aforementioned, it is necessary to organize the process of choosing the citizens to be involved in the declared drill call-up according to the above-mentioned principles.

  
  
  

Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor

Union of Informed Citizens

Lakmoes NGO