Vetting not humiliating, it will make judges stronger and more confident: Karen Zadoyan

The proposal of the Armenian Prime Minister to subject the judges to vetting is not systematic, chairman of the Armenian Bar Association Karen Zadoyan stated at the discussion of transitional justice topic at the Armenian NA.

He said if vetting is to be applied it should be done in the judicial and law enforcement bodies.

“If we are choosing vetting, we must be able to apply it in law enforcement bodies as well,” the lawyer said.

Zadoyan added that vetting is more acceptable than lustration which is considered violation of human rights by the European Court of Human Rights.

“In this phase it is better to implement vetting,” Zadoyan said, adding that he does not share the opinion that vetting is humiliating.

“Just the opposite, our judicial legislation includes provisions, according to which the judges are subjected to assessment every five years. Moreover, it gives an opportunity to the judges to apply every year and be assessed. It means that it first of all is necessary for a judge as after vetting they will be more confident and stronger. Vetting gives an opportunity to keep judge’s kind image high among the people,” he said.