By its decision of 9 March in the Virabyan group of cases the Committee of Ministers welcomed the adoption by Armenia in 2021 of the new Criminal Code and Code of Criminal Procedure which will enter into force in July this year.

This new legislation addresses multiple issues raised by ECHR judgments in cases concerning notably torture in law enforcement and unlawful detention. It eliminates statutes of limitation for torture, provides for additional procedural guarantees against ill-treatment and unlawful detention, as well as for fair trial safeguards.

The importance of rapid adoption of this legislation had been highlighted by the Committee of Ministers on several occasions in its decisions related to the Mushegh Saghatelyan, Virabyan and Muradyan groups of cases. The Council of Europe supported the preparation of the new codes with legal expertise in order for them to be aligned with the ECHR standards.