Since ancient times Armenian codes and legal regulations provide indirect evidence that women were treated as equal members of the society. The Armenian famous public figure, writer and philosopher of 18th century Shahamir Shahamirian, whose work was to pursue his views on an independent Armenian nation, which is scholarly regarded as the first ever draft constitution of an independent Armenia has stated:
- “Every human being, whether Armenian or of some other race, whether man or woman, born in Armenia or from another country, shall live in equality and shall be free in all their occupations. Nobody shall have the right to enslave another person and workers should be paid like in any other kind of job, as is laid down in Armenian legislation”
The current constitution of the Republic of Armenia was adopted in 1991 and officially guarantees gender equality. This has enabled women to actively participate in all spheres of Armenian life. Armenian women have attained prominence in entertainment, politics and other fields.
Armenia’s legislative frameworks in support of ensuring gender equality and advancing women’s empowerment is relatively strong. Women’s Global SDG Database gives Armenia a scoring of 81.8% for overall legislative frameworks on gender equality and women’s empowerment 41.7% for overall legislative frameworks on GBV; 80% for overall legislative frameworks on Employment and Economic empowerment; and 81.8% for overall legislative frameworks on Marriage and Family.
While there is no stand-alone law on non-discrimination, the National Constitution prohibits discrimination of any kind, and an important step was taken in 2013 with the adoption of the Law on Guaranteeing Equal Rights and Opportunities for Women and Men.
The Prime Ministerial Decree (2019) on the Council Ensuring Equal Rights and Equal Opportunities for Women and Men is an important measure to ensure the Council is given greater authority and greater clarity to its role as a core mechanism to advance gender equality and the empowerment of women.
The Law on prevention of violence within the family, protection of victims of violence within the family and restoration of peace in the family which ensures preventive and protective mechanisms for the victims of Domestic Violence, as well as it guarantees the social assistance.
Family Code and Law on Civil Status Acts ensures the same legal age of marriage for both women and men.
The Law on reproductive health and reproductive rights of the person is relatively strong in support of women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights.
In 1993, Armenia acceded to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) and ratified its Optional Protocol in 2006.
In January 2018, Armenia signed the Council of Europe’s “Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence”, also known as the Istanbul Convention.
Women’s Right Center (WRC)
Women's Rights Center is a non-governmental, non-profit organization operating in Armenia. It is a voluntary union of people that have joined their efforts for the sake of accomplishing their shared goals to prevent domestic violence against women and their children, as well as to protect women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights.
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For more information please visit WRC website.
Association of Women Scientists
The Association of Women Scientists NGO is a voluntary union of stakeholders interested in activating the role of women scientists working in the scientific, social, political, and cultural spheres. The association is full member of the European Platform of Women Scientists (EPWS)
Currently the association has no webpage, they have a Facebook page which is in Armenian but you can find many posts in English.
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