Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor

The draft law on making amendments and addendum to the law “On the detention of arrested and detained persons” was included in the session's agenda on March 25, 2025, and adopted at first reading on March 27, 2025. 

The draft law was developed to address the problems related to the provision of the right to medical examination, and the need to introduce a mechanism to record the alleged cases of torture and ill-treatment of the persons deprived of freedom. 

We propose that arrested and detained persons be subjected to mandatory medical examinations upon release from custody and detention, which will allow: 

• To document the fact of ill-treatment of a person during deprivation of freedom or the existence of injuries or illnesses sustained during and/or due to deprivation of freedom, thereby facilitating the subsequent establishment of a causal link.  
• The implementation of such an examination exactly before the release will also allow approving the fact of illness and injury sustained during the deprivation of freedom, in that way contributing to the investigation of cases of torture and ill-treatment. 

The proposal in full:  https://hcav.am/legal-01-04-2025/