Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan today attended a solemn meeting on the occasion of the 5th anniversary of the formation of the Investigative Committee and the Investigative Committee Staff Day.

The meeting was attended by members of the Armenian government and heads of law enforcement agencies, guests from the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus - Chairman of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation Alexander Bastrykin and Chairman of the Investigative Committee of Belarus Ivan Noskevich.

Addressing the meeting, the Premier said:
“Dear Chairman of the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia,
Dear members of government,
Dear heads of bodies subordinate to the Prime Minister,
Dear Prosecutor General of the Republic of Armenia,
Dear Head of the Special Investigation Service,
Dear Human Rights Defender.
Dear Chairman of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation,
Dear Chairman of the Investigative Committee of Belarus,
Dear Investigative Committee officers,
Dear guests,

Congratulating all of us on the Day of Investigative Committee Staff, I wish to note that any discussion in this room has to do with justice, which is of paramount importance to our country. While analyzing the root causes behind emigration, perhaps the saddest phenomenon in the history of the Third Republic of Armenia, we conclude that emigration is not directly related to people’s welfare status.

I can agree with the analysis that in many cases people leave their homeland not only and not so much because of social difficulties, but because of an atmosphere of injustice, and also because they do not feel protected in their homeland - not only physically, but and in terms of law, in terms of dignity, in terms of their access to the rules of civil coexistence in general.

And I do believe that the Investigative Committee of the Republic of Armenia and the law enforcement agencies, as a whole, have the primary mission to enforce the law and inspire confidence in justice, foster a sense and atmosphere of justice. And in this regard, I believe that in the context of the work of the Investigative Committee, this sense of justice should be based on three fundamental principles.

Firstly, it is the sincere belief of Investigative Committee’s staff and leadership in the principles of legality, the rule of law and justice, because talking about law and legality will not make any sense if we happen to assume that investigators and the Investigative Committee are not loyal to the aforementioned values.

Secondly, I mean the investigators’ belief in their own mission and work, since this is not just a job, but a mission, and it implies their ability to exercise and administer justice in Armenia and in the world, as a whole.

Thirdly, I mean our citizens’ confidence in law enforcement agencies, in general, and in the Investigative Committee, in particular.

On this holiday day, I wish that the Investigative Committee, all of its employees should adhere to these three principles on a daily basis, so that you could support, strengthen and foster such faith and inspire the citizens of the Republic of Armenia in their work and mission. And this is an approach to work that will bring chain results to our country, our homeland and lay the foundation for its long-term sustainable development.

The Investigative Committee of Armenia is the largest investigative body in our country, which investigates about 95 percent of all criminal cases in the country. Thanks to our recent strategy, the work of the Investigative Committee will be expanded. And, of course, in parallel, we are discussing what we can do to increase the effectiveness of the Investigative Committee and investigators.

We have made some organizational decisions, which, in our opinion, will make the work of the Investigative Committee, the work of each investigator more effective.

Of course, it is very important for us to state how important it is for the Investigative Committee to be able to ensure the legal security of the country or a significant part of it; it is equally important that the Republic of Armenia and the government consistently develop a system of social guarantees for the employees of the Investigative Committee and the law enforcement system as a whole, so that they gradually began to meet the requirements and conditions imposed by the Government of the Republic of Armenia, the public and the people of the Republic of Armenia to the Investigative Committee and law enforcement agencies, in general.

Dear attendees,
Dear Investigative Committee employees,

Reiterating my congratulations, I wish you productive work. Also, I would like to bid a vote of thanks to your family members for putting up with the fact that you have to work under pressure everyday, sometimes around the clock. The Investigative Committee officers, the Special Investigation Service staff, and all investigators are today working under hyper-heavy conditions in our country.

However, I want to state the following: if we manage complete this overloaded work to the end; if we are principled and fair in our work and faithful to the principles of legality, the rule of law, our efforts will yield specific results, namely a free, happy and powerful homeland. This is the greatest mission that should be implemented tirelessly. I wish you strength and vigor. I wish you would never get tired of your service to the Motherland and the nation.

Congratulations on your professional holiday!”

Remarks were also delivered by Investigative Committee Chairman Hayk Grigoryan.

Then, a ceremony of presenting state awards and letters of appreciation to the staff of the Investigative Committee took place. The awards were presented by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

On Investigative Committee Staff Day, and for valuable contribution to strengthening the rule of law through the mediation of the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia, Mkhitar Gosh medal was awarded to the Deputy Chairmen of the Investigative Committee Arman Poghosyan, Arsen Ayvazyan and Artak Krkyasharyan.

For conscientious and efficient work, Secretary General of the Investigative Committee Aram Nikoyan and Deputy Head of the Department for the Investigation of Cybercrime and High Technology Crimes of the Main Directorate for Investigation of Particularly Important Cases of the Investigation Committee Hovhannes Hambaryan received letters of appreciation from the Prime Minister of the Republic of Armenia.