Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly-Vanadzor

HCAV continues to provide free legal support to conscripts during the summer draft. As in the previous years, during this conscription too, the problems of the majority of conscripts who applied to us refer to the improper examination of their health as well as the conclusions not corresponding to their health condition. The experience shows that not only those who encounter problems of improper examination when presenting to the draft commission for the first time but also those who have received deferment more than once in the past. 

Thus, during the 2023 summer draft, N. M., who was granted deferment in the previous two years, respectively 2021 and 2022, for the purpose of medical treatment, applied to the Organization.  

During the 2023 summer draft, as a result of an improper medical examination of N.M.’s health and due to the non-corresponding diagnosis of the latter’s health condition, he was found fit with limitations. N. M., disagreeing with the conclusion reached, for the protection of his rights has applied to HCAV. By representing the problem, the Organization has submitted a letter to the RA Defense ministry and the RA MoD Conscription and Mobilization Service to issue a referral for the conscript to undergo appropriate medical examinations. 

Though N.M. was provided a referral to undergo additional medical examination, due to the acute deterioration of the conscript’s health, the examination was not completed. As a result, no examination was carried out, and the decision about the conscript’s fitness for military service was left unchanged. N. M., disagreeing with the examination results and the reached conclusions of his health condition, decided not to appear at the Central Assembly Point of the RA Defense ministry and thus was not drafted to the mandatory military service. 

After the end of the 2023 summer draft, criminal proceedings were initiated. Within the proceedings, N.M. underwent forensic examination. According to the results of the examination, N.M. was submitted to the summer 2024 draft and found “in need of treatment” and was granted deferment for a period of up to one year. 

In fact, it turns out that if in the 2023 summer draft, N.M. had agreed to the results of the incomplete examinations, he would have to be drafted to the military service, having serious health problems, which could have been sharpened during the service and be the cause of more serious consequences. 

It is concerning that despite the conscript's health problems, he was not re-examined for some of these problems as part of the forensic medical examination.

The implemented medical examinations of some medical institutions are incomplete, as they were provided based on the health examinations of the 2023 year. It was not taken into account that the already confirmed problems could have been worsened. For some health problems, it is necessary to conduct further specialized examinations to confirm or deny them. 

As a problem, we also record the fact that the regional subdivisions of the Conscription and Mobilization Service refuse to provide the examinations of the conscripts’ health condition, reasoning that they are available in the ARMED electronic health system. However, the experience shows that not all the results of the examinations are uploaded in the system or are uploaded rather late, and the system itself is not always working promptly. For example, it was not possible to log into the system for 3 days last week.