Еuropean court obligates Armenia to pay € 3,600
The European Court of Human Rights has obligated Armenia to pay a fine of € 3,600 in the case Nikoghosyan vs Armenia. The applicant’s lawyer, Y Nikoghosyan, submitted the appeal in 2011, in accordance with Article 34 (Individual Application) of the European Convention on Human Rights. The applicant, a former employee of the State Revenue Committee, was dismissed from his job by an order of the Head of the Committee in February 2009. In March 2009 he brought an action against the Committee, requesting reinstatement in his job and payment for forced absence up to the day of his reinstatement. On 11 August 2009, the Kentron and Nork-Marash District Court of Yerevan ruled in favour of the applicant it ordered the applicant’s reinstatement in his previous position and awarded him compensation for lost earning. However, the court’s decision was not fully implemented and the applicant was paid only part (AMD 6 million) of the compensation. The applicant argued that the domestic authorities had not undertaken all necessary measures to enforce the District Court judgment. The Court found that the Armenia acted in breach of the Convention, particularly Section 1, Article 6 thereof (Right to a fair trial), and Article 1 of Protocol No.1 (“right to enjoyment of possessions”). “Until now, we have blamed the judges for laying down illegal judgments. The court decided to restore my rights at work and pay me compensation. But the corrupted head of the State Revenue Committee, Gagik Khachatryan did not execute the judgment for five years,” Robert Nikoghosyan said to A1+. He considers the ECHR decision to be a moral victory. At the same time, he wonders why the money should be paid from the state budget, rather than from the pockets of state officials.
