Within the framework of the “Strengthening of Rights Protection Mechanisms of Forcibly Displaced Persons from Nagorno Karabakh” project (February 2024 – January 2025) implemented with European Union support, ALA’s legal team began working on cases of a group of forcibly displaced persons from Artsakh who had been unable to receive their due social assistance for months. The beneficiaries had found themselves in a dire situation, lacking means of subsistence and the ability to meet basic needs.
The lawyers, thoroughly examining each case, discovered that administrative bodies had committed several violations by refusing to include beneficiaries in social assistance programs, incorrectly calculating benefit amounts, or groundlessly terminating already assigned support.
Within the case framework, lawyers began active communication with state bodies, presenting facts of beneficiaries’ rights violations and demanding their immediate restoration. Despite initial resistance, persistent work led to positive results.
The beneficiaries’ cases were reviewed step by step, and as a result, they received their due amounts. For some, pensions were recalculated, for others, benefits were assigned, and in some cases, previously unpaid amounts were compensated.
In total, state bodies compensated around 17 million AMD directed at improving the social situation of dozens of families. This was not only a material success but also an important signal to the state system, showing that ignoring citizens’ rights can lead to serious consequences.
If this problem had not been resolved, forcibly displaced persons from Artsakh would have continued to remain in an extremely vulnerable situation. They would have had to face poverty, social isolation, and despair.
This story shows that systematic legal support can make significant changes in people’s lives.
Today, the beneficiaries of this case believe in justice again. Many of them have been able to restore their previous quality of life and regain hope for the future. This is exactly the result that every rule-of-law state should strive for.
“Strengthening of Rights Protection Mechanisms of Forcibly Displaced Persons from Nagorno Karabakh” Project is implemented by the “Armenian Lawyers’ Association” NGO in cooperation with partner “Harmony” Shushi Women NGO in the framework of the “Justice Reforms Monitoring in Armenia” (www.juremonia.am) program implemented with the financial support of the European Union.
The overall objective of the project is to contribute to the integration of FDPs from NK into their new communities of residence in Armenia, enhancing access to justice and raising the level of legal awareness by strengthening their rights protection mechanisms,
This publication has been produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the Armenian Lawyers’ Association and can in no way be taken to reflect the views of the European Union.