The package proposes ending warnings, restricting house arrest for defendants who share a home with victims and limiting repeat questioning. It still needs final approval.
Armenia’s National Assembly approved a domestic-violence protection package in first reading with 62 votes in favour and 34 abstentions. The vote advances proposed changes to penalties, protective measures and investigations, but does not enact them: existing legal safeguards remain unchanged. Armenpress covered the vote.
In an October 27 announcement, Armenia’s Interior Ministry said Interior Minister Arpine Sargsyan had presented the government’s support in principle and proposals to refine individual provisions at a parliamentary committee meeting.
Civil Contract MP Zaruhi Batoyan, who presented the package, said it aims to improve protection for victims and make investigations more responsive to their needs. Alongside tougher penalties for domestic violence, the package would introduce three changes:
The ministry also described an approach that would prioritise considering the removal of the person responsible for violence from the home, rather than requiring the victim to leave. A victim would move to a shelter only when safety could not be ensured at their permanent home.
The package would let anyone report abuse to police, replace warnings with monitoring and require rehabilitation. The committee’s favourable conclusion advances it to plenary debate; the proposals are not yet law.
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Sargsyan called warnings ineffective and said their removal should be accompanied by preventive police registration of people responsible for violence, so police could continue monitoring them, and supported making rehabilitation programmes aimed at changing their behaviour an established part of the response, including alongside criminal punishment.
Sargsyan highlighted provisions that would exclude reconciliation or active repentance as grounds for release from criminal liability, citing the risk of repeated violence. Fear, social dependence and concerns involving children can lead victims not to approach law enforcement, or later to reconcile or decline to file a report.
She said the changes could increase reports of domestic violence, requiring more resources and greater capacity among the bodies and organisations handling cases.
Analysis
During the parliamentary debate, Sargsyan gave the following counts of repeated violence recorded as of September 29, 2026. She said the sector faces both legislative and law-enforcement challenges.
| Earlier protective measure | Recorded repeat cases |
|---|---|
| Warning | 93 |
| Emergency intervention order | 316 |
These totals alone do not establish which measure is more effective. A comparison would also require the total number of cases under each measure, the time over which repeat violence was tracked and differences between the cases in each group.
The opposition Armenia and Strong Armenia factions announced their abstentions before the vote, citing proposals and objections. Armenia faction MP Lilit Galstyan said she had submitted 12 proposals and wanted responses both to those proposals and to concerns raised by professionals and the public.
Strong Armenia MP Hasmik Yengoyan said the package was flawed, its implications were unpredictable and substantial revisions were needed. The package still awaits final approval. Yengoyan said her faction would submit proposals after first reading and decide its final vote based on the authors’ response.
