The
Chamber of Advocates of the Republic of Armenia has issued a statement, titled
“Statement regarding the publications made by the Human Rights Defender
regarding the institute of advocates”.
It
should be recalled that the Human Rights Defender's Office of the Republic of
Armenia issued a statement stating that it is important for advocates to uphold
rules of ethics and professional conduct, and for the bodies representing
advocates to counteract all cases where the aforementioned rules are violated,
with special reference to the serious manifestations of hate speech by
advocates and issues related to the rights of the child. Moreover, the
statement addressed to the Chamber of Advocates has a partnership context.
In
her interviews, the Defender also referring to the widespread manifestations of
the use of prohibited forms of speech by various actors, emphasized the fact
that, unfortunately, such speech is not only disseminated by officials exercising
public authority, but also by professional communities, specifically
emphasizing the large number of cases of hate speech disseminated by advocates,
its inadmissibility, the importance of counteracting these phenomena by the
bodies representing advocates, and reforming the aforementioned bodies in this
regard.
In
response, the Chamber of Advocates has issued a statement that effectively
justifies violations of the rules of ethics and conduct of advocates and the
dissemination of hate speech.
The
statement released by the Chamber of Advocates attempts to create the
impression that the Human Rights Defender’s institute has referred the
advocates’ criticisms against it as a basis to propose reforms within the
advocates’ community.
We
consider it necessary to emphasize that in all of the Defender's interviews,
there was no reference whatsoever to the speech made by the advocates regarding
the Human Rights Defender institution.
The
Defender has repeatedly referred the various forms of hate speech and other manifestations
of prohibited speech spread by advocates on a daily basis.
We
emphasize once again that the dissemination of hate speech, which unfortunately
has serious consequences in Armenia, by advocates based on the gender, gender
identity, religious beliefs or lack thereof, ethnicity, and other grounds is
unacceptable. Not only do we consider the dissemination of such speech by
advocates unacceptable, but also the attempt of the Chamber of Advocates to
silence the Human Rights Defender’s statements on this prohibited behavior in
this manner.
The
bodies representing advocates should be the first to combat against the
mentioned phenomena, not only by formalizing the existing procedures, but also
by conveying a clear message to advocates that the forms of prohibited speech
and behavior, violations of ethical norms are not acceptable to the community.
We
note that with such a statement, the Chamber actually justifies the
aforementioned phenomena, damaging the general system of human rights
protection and promotion and the existing public perceptions in this sphere.
The
logic behind the message conveyed in the statement by the Chamber of
Advocates—that there is no need for reform—is unclear, as all institutions
require reform, whether they are state, international, private, or of any other
form. Therefore, reforms of the legal community, like all other institutions,
are always necessary and at their core should be the promotion of human rights
and an effective combat against prohibited forms of conduct, and not merely the
formalization of their mechanisms.
Moreover,
advocacy is a human rights activity not only in name, but by its power to
uphold the values and principles underlying human rights activity. This is
possible only if there is due respect for the most important fields related to
human rights, including equality and anti-discrimination, the rights of the
child, and other spheres. Moreover, let us emphasize again that the combat
against problems does not imply the implementation of purely formalized mechanisms,
but implies the need to form a general atmosphere related to the phenomena in
the community.
We
emphasize once again that many advocates communicate with representatives of
the Human Rights Defender’s Office on a daily basis that contradict the principles
of ethics. And if the Chamber of Advocates considers that advocates may violate
the boundaries of decency while carrying out their activities, and considers
it only as an acceptable form of
criticism, then the Human Rights Defender’s Office emphasizes that the basis of
any rules of conduct and ethics are also rules of not crossing the boundaries
of decency, and before presenting this as criticism, it would be necessary to
revise the international standards on ethics and conduct.
Moreover,
international partners have recorded human rights problems in relation to all
states, and in most cases, they are extremely serious. However, we have never
encountered a situation where a professional community publicly uses such
concerns as justification for violating standards of decency and ethics, or
justifications for manifestations of hate speech.
We
consider it necessary to emphasize once again that in relation to all these
problems, the Defender and the representatives of the Human Rights Defender’s
Office have had constant discussions with the Chamber as an important partner,
and have never violated the mandate and ethical norms of the Human Rights
Defender’s Office in any of their contacts. We expect adequate constructive
communication and cooperation from the Chamber of Advocates.
At
the same time, we once again express our gratitude to the numerous advocate
colleagues who, with their good conduct and professional activity, contribute
to the resolution of the many existing human rights problems in Armenia.
Your
work is invaluable in shaping proper perceptions regarding human rights in
Armenia and ensuring the rights of many individuals.
It
should be recalled that the Defender constantly refers the numerous problems
existing in the sphere of effective activity of the legal community and,
together with colleagues, tries to find their solutions.
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