Robert Amsterdam, an international human rights advocate, discusses one of the most fundamental human rights — the presumption of innocence. He noted that the state apparatus often attempts to create the appearance of "swift justice" for the public, which is a dangerous trend.
"Today in Armenia, we are witnessing this dangerous trend — noisy arrests of public and political figures, edited videos from investigative bodies, and the hasty publicization of unproven 'facts,'" Amsterdam stated.
He emphasized that Article 6, paragraph 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights states that anyone accused of a crime is presumed innocent until proven guilty by law.
"The presumption of innocence is not a dry law written on paper; it is the only protection for citizens against state abuses," Amsterdam concluded.
