Elections in Armenia must be platform for responsibility and  dignified dialogue, not a space for division – CEC

ArmInfo.  Parliamentary elections in Armenia must not become a space for division, but rather a platform for responsibility and dignified dialogue, as stated by Arusyak Terchanyan, a member of the Central Electoral Commission (CEC) of Armenia, during a training session in Yerevan on "Combating Hate Speech and Sexism Ahead of Parliamentary Elections in Armenia."

In this regard, she emphasized that elections should be more than  just a form of political participation; they must also reflect  societal values. "Ahead of the parliamentary elections,  manifestations of hate speech and sexist rhetoric are increasingly  being heard. It is vital to understand what values society is  embedding into the process of forming a new government. Free and fair  elections are not merely a legal procedure, but also the creation of  an atmosphere of dignified public dialogue. To achieve this, it is  essential to maintain mutual respect, ensuring that individuals do  not become targets because of their views," Terchanyan noted.

However, she regretfully noted that today it's quite common to see  individuals expressing an opinion in a public space—be it a public  transport, a school, or  a store—become  target of attacks simply  because their position differs from those around them, regardless of  their political preferences. This rhetoric, she noted, has  significantly intensified recently, reaching a level of hostility  capable of negatively impacting societal values. "At the same time,  the responsibility for preventing incitement to hatred lies with  everyone—public figures, politicians, the media, and every citizen. A  dangerous atmosphere has developed in society, where strength is  associated with insults: to appear strong, one must insult. Such  phenomena directly impact the state of democracy. And in this sense,  each of us chooses what kind of social environment to live in and  what kind of state to build," the representative of the Central  Election Commission of Armenia emphasized.

She went on to stress the importance of recognizing that freedom of  speech does not mean permissiveness, and shouting a particular  position does not make it true. "I want to urge the citizens of  Armenia to make the elections a platform for responsibility and  dignified dialogue, rather than a space for division. In recent  years, elections have increasingly become a factor of societal  fracture. Therefore, it is crucial to foster an environment where  everyone can freely express their thoughts and beliefs—because  democracy triumphs where there is no room for hatred," the Armenian  CEC member concluded.

It should be noted that in the lead-up to the parliamentary elections  in Armenia, scheduled for June 7, 2026, the Armenian public has been  facing numerous episodes of hate speech and the spread of  disinformation, coordinated, according to experts, by the current  authorities. Recently, the authorities have targeted the people of  Artsakh. On May 18, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan showed  footage of masked men speaking "with a Karabakh accent" and  threatening to harm him. Pashinyan called them cowards and promised  to "take off their masks himself." Several political forces in the  country have questioned the authenticity of this video.  Furthermore,  during the election campaign, the Armenian prime minister grabbed the  arm of a woman who dared to express dissatisfaction with his  policies, shouting at her, threatening her, and declaring that he  would destroy the Karabakh clan. And the day before, the prime  minister accused Samvel Karapetyan, the leader of the Strong Armenia  party,  of  being an agent of the Russian FSB.