President of the National Assembly of Armenia Ararat Mirzoyan received on May 31 the high-ranking delegation of the Council of Europe, comprised of Council of Europe Director General of the Human Rights and Rule of Law Christos Giakoumopoulos, Venice Commission Secretary Thomas Markert, Head of the Department of Justice and Legal Cooperation Hanne Juncker, Executive Secretary of the Group of States against Corruption(GRECO) Gianluca Esposito, Head of the Council of Europe Office in Yerevan Natalia Voutova and political consultant Maxim Longang.
As the press service of the parliament of Armenia reports, greeting the guests, the head of the legislative presented in detail the developments following the velvet revolution in Armenia, spoke about the reforms in various spheres, including electoral, judicial, taxation and the steps aimed at fighting corruption, future development of democracy and future strengthening of civil society. Ararat Mirzoyan also told the guests about his visions on transitional justice.
“For us it’s important that the reforms be institutional, which will ensure the continuity of the adopted policy”, Mirzoyan said.
Thanking for the warm reception, Christos Giakoumopoulos said that the goal of their visit is to discuss with the authorities and different partners issues such as the independence of the judicial system, right to a fair trial, fight against corruption, and protection of human rights. According to him, based on the assessment of the situation, the different bodies of the CoE will offer short and medium term support and the future directions for cooperation will be outlined.
The sides highlighted ensuring inclusiveness during the reform process with the participation of different political forces and the civil society,
The President of the National Assembly of Armenia expressed gratitude to the bodies of the Council of Europe for their support in different spheres, as well as their readiness for partnership in the future.