Transitional justice must be linked to revolutionary demands and expectations, says international expert

The model of transitional justice, which the Armenian authorities are going to adopt in the process of their current judiciary reforms, must be linked to the demands and expectations of last year's ''Velvet Revolution'', according to an international expert.

At a parliament hearing entitled "The Perspectives in the Application of Transitional Justice Instruments in Armenia", Ruben Carranza, Director of the Reparative Justice Program at the International Center for Transitional Justice, said their idea is to help the country to at least exit the hell (if not bring the paradise).

He called for the policymakers, civil society representatives and international organizations drafting the concept to buid on the demand of those citizens of Armenia ''who were barred from being vocal about the existing challenges and abuses in the country''. The expert also called attention to victims of torture, as well as the families of people who were killed in the wake of the March 2008 post-electoral turmoil in Yerevan.

Elaborating on the advantages of transitional justice, Carranza highlighted the urgent demand for re-establishing public confidence in the three branches of power, emphasizing especially the extreme importance of ensuring the independence of the judiciary.

He also cited different world countries' best practice of judicial purge, noting that the most recommendable model for Armenia ''would be the precedents of regional neighbors from the Council of Europe's perspective''.