In June 2021, 2 trans sex worker women were at a place considered as a meeting point for trans sex workers. An acquaintance approached them, demanded that they leave, and threatened one of the victims to “bring his father”, thus wanting to reveal to the father of the victim the gender identity of the applicant and the fact that she is a sex worker. The offender also threatened that he would inform the neighbors of the victims about their gender identity, and the latter would be forced to leave the apartment they rent. In one of the situations described above, the one who disseminated a person’s private information was a representative of a government agency, the military commissariat, which means that the state directly violated its obligation to respect human rights. In the other cases, the state has failed to create a safe environment for LGBT people when it would not be possible to put pressure on individuals by disseminating or threatening to disseminate information about their private life. In this situation, LGBT people are not only afraid of information about their sexual orientation being disclosed and disseminated, but also do not see any effective means of legal protection to protect themselves from third-party harassment. In other words, the dissemination of one’s personal information by the state creates an atmosphere of impunity and insecurity. Naturally, persons who have been directly harmed by the actions of state bodies cannot view the latter as a mechanism to protect their rights from others.
Cases of domestic violence In 2017, the RA Law on Prevention of violence within the family, protection of victims of violence within the family, and restoration of peace in the family was adopted in the Republic of Armenia, hereinafter referred to as the Law on Prevention of Domestic Violence. It seemed that after its adoption, LGBT people would be more protected in their families, but, to this day, many individuals contact Pink NGO with complaints of being abused by their families. In cases of domestic violence, the provisions of domestic law have specific provisions,23 that is, if the applicant wants the offender to bear the punishment provided by the criminal legislation, then they should report to the police with two separate reports: one as domestic violence complaint and another report as a separate crime. In case of non-submission of a separate crime report, only the restrictions provided for in the Law on Prevention of Domestic Violence shall apply to the perpetrator. Exceptions are cases of domestic violence when the victim is unable to defend his or her rights on his or her own due to his or her helplessness or dependence on the perpetrator.24 And in cases of public accusation, for example, in cases of illegal deprivation of liberty, the law enforcement agencies are obliged to investigate, regardless of the victim’s complaint. In 2021, 17 cases of domestic violence were registered by the organization. In some cases, if a person suffers from certain mental and physical suffering, which is regular, it 23 The RA Criminal Procedure Code, article 183, part 1. http://parliament.am/law_docs/010998HO248eng 24 Ibid, article 183, part 4
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