New European Court of Human Rights ruling supports conscientious objectors in Armenia

In October, the European Court of Human Rights in a ruling on the case of in the case of Adyan and others v. Armenia, criticised the state's alternative service system (which was in place until 2013), arguing that it was not genuinely civilian, and amounted to military service - albeit an unarmed one. The court ordered the State to pay the applicants compensation.

The Court unanimously held that there had been a violation of article 9 of the European Convention on Human Rights, which provides a right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion.

Read this write up for more background to the case.