US Department of State’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor has published “Armenia 2018 Human Rights Report”, which announces that human rights issues in Armenia in 2018 also included crimes involving violence or threats thereof targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) persons.
The report states that antidiscrimination laws do not extend protections to LGBTI persons on the basis of sexual orinetation and gender identity․ There are no hate crime laws or other criminal judicial mechanisms to aid in the prosecution of crimes against members of the LGBTI community. Societal discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity negatively affect all aspects of life, including employment, housing, family relations, and access to education and health care. Transgender persons are especially vulnerable to physical and psychological abuse and harassment.
There is a notice also about Shurnukh village case and the cancellation of the Forum of LGBT Christians of Eastern Europe and Central Asia in the report.
According to the report, openly gay men are exempt from military service. An exemption, however, requires a medical finding based on a psychological examination indicating an individual has a mental disorder; this information appears in the individual’s personal identification documents and is an obstacle to employment and obtaining a driver’s license. Gay men who served in the army reportedly faced physical and psychological abuse as well as blackmail.
The report includes section on discrimination against people living with HIV. It says, that persons who are vulnerable to HIV/AIDS, such as sex workers (including trans sex workers) and people who use drugs, face discrimination and violence from society as well as mistreatment by police.
Stigma and discrimination in health-care settings are major barriers to accessing treatment and services for people living with HIV.
