06.03.2007 - Source: US Department of State

Government did not allocate resources sufficient to fulfill protection of children's rights and welfare ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2006") [ID 20339]

"The government was committed to protecting children's rights and welfare, but it did not allocate resources sufficient to fulfill this commitment.[...]
Free basic health care was available to boys and girls through age eight but often was of poor quality, and officials often demanded overt or concealed payment for services.
Physical abuse of children was not believed to be a serious problem, and the prosecutor general's office did not report any cases during the year. UNICEF reported that psychological abuse was widespread and that in 2004 there had been a few registered cases of sexual abuse in special education schools.
Experts believed child marriage was a problem among the small Yezidi and Kurdish ethnic minorities, but there were no specific reports of this practice during the year."

Document(s): Open document

06.03.2007 - Source: US Department of State

There are laws and policies to protect children from exploitation in the workplace but the law is enforced unevenly ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2006") [ID 20380]

"There are laws and policies to protect children from exploitation in the workplace. The minimum age for employment is 16; children may work from age 14 with parental and labor union permission. The Armenian State Labor Inspectorate is responsible for child labor law compliance, but the inspectorate, community councils, unemployment offices, and, as a final board of appeal, the courts, enforced the law unevenly. Children under the age of 18 are prohibited from working overtime or in harmful and dangerous conditions, at night, and on holidays.
According to the Employment Service Agency, some children were involved in family businesses, as well as in other activities not prohibited by law. Observers also reported seeing children in Yerevan selling flowers and working in local markets after school hours."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

Situation regarding child abuse, child marriage and homeless children ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46111],  [ID 17233]

"Child abuse was not believed to be a serious problem and the prosecutor general's office did not report any cases during the year. However, international and domestic NGOs reported that in July, the director of a state-run education facility in Nubarashen was fired after numerous complaints that he physically abused and sexually exploited children under his supervision.

Experts believed child marriage was a problem in small Yezidi and Kurdish ethnic minority groups, but there were no reported incidents.

During the year a local NGO reported that nationally there were approximately one thousand homeless children and that the number continued to grow. Abuse of street children did not appear to be a serious problem."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

Minimum age for emplyoment is 16; from age 14 with partental and official permission; however, in practice children are involved in family business and other activities ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46111],  [ID 17313]

"There are laws and policies to protect children from exploitation in the workplace. The minimum age for employment is 16; children may work from age 14 with parental and labor union permission. The law was unevenly enforced by local community councils, unemployment offices, and, as a final board of appeal, the courts. Children under the age of 18 are prohibited from working overtime or in harmful and dangerous conditions, at night, and on holidays.

According to the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, many children were involved in family businesses, as well as in other activities, such as agriculture, which is not prohibited by law. Children were also observed in Yerevan selling newspapers and flowers, and working in local markets."

Document(s): Open document

28.02.2005 - Source: US Department of State

Child labour under law and in practice ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2004") [#29491],  [ID 3192]

"Under the law, the minimum age of employment is 16; however, in some cases, with the permission of the child's parents and labor union, children may work from age 14 in non-dangerous situations. The law was unevenly enforced by local community councils, unemployment offices, and, as a final board of appeal, the courts. Children under the age of 18 are prohibited from working overtime or in harmful and dangerous conditions, at night, and on holidays.

There were reports that children worked in family businesses and on family farms, which is not forbidden by law. Children were also observed on the streets of Yerevan selling newspapers, flowers and working in local markets.

According to the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, some children were involved in family businesses, as well as in other business activities, such as agriculture, where such activity is not prohibited by law."

Document(s): Open document

28.02.2005 - Source: US Department of State

Child abuse remains a problem as well as homeless children ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2004") [#29491],  [ID 3193]

"Child abuse was a problem; however, the Prosecutor General's office did not report any cases of child abuse during the year.

[...]

In 2003, the Ministry of Social Welfare estimated that there were 130 homeless children in Yerevan. In 2002, a local NGO reported that nationally there were approximately 900 homeless children and that the number continued to grow. Abuse of street children did not appear to be a serious problem."

Document(s): Open document

05.06.2003 - Source: Institute for War and Peace Reporting

Child prostitution is growing as increasing numbers of vulnerable young people end up living on the street ("Child Prostitution Taboo") [#13582],  [ID 3196]

Document(s): Open document

31.03.2003 - Source: US Department of State

Young women and girls from socially vulnerable groups were the primary targets of traffickers ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2002") [#11840],  [ID 3197]

"Young women and girls from socially vulnerable groups all over Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh were the primary targets of traffickers. Trafficked persons often were lured by jobs abroad offered through recruiters and informal channels, tourism firms and some media. Reportedly, there were cases in which older girls from orphanages and poor families were sold to wealthy men in Dubai. An orphanage run by a religious group reported that older girls have been approached by relatives urging them to "earn their share" for the family by engaging in prostitution. However, most parents and relatives were convinced that they were sending such children to work in the UAE or elsewhere as models, dancers, waitresses, or domestic servants. Traffickers themselves were often ex-prostitutes or pimps who have already established "good working contacts" in the country of destination. They were well organized, have connections with local authorities and were supported and protected by criminal gangs. Most potential victims were approached by persons whom they personally know (friends of friends, relatives of relatives, neighbors, etc.), or by travel agencies. Most often, recruiters told victims that they would be working as babysitters, waitresses, or cleaning ladies. Only a few of the victims knew before departure that they would work as prostitutes, but even these did not realize that they would have their documents and money confiscated and that they would be pressured to receive numerous clients every day to maximize their employer's profits. To tighten control over their "staff" procurers threatened to burn victims' passports or to informed police about their "business."
There is no specific law prohibiting trafficking in persons, although traffickers may be prosecuted under different articles of the Criminal Code: For example, illicit seizure of non-property documents (passports or other personal documents), as well as illicit use of these documents, may be punished by imprisonment up to a year; falsification and selling of documents, by imprisonment up to five years; pandering, by imprisonment up to five years; bogus marriage and bogus divorce with mercenary ends or other reasons, by imprisonment up to a year; extortion (coercion of a person, or coercion by publishing compromising information about a person), by imprisonment from two to four years; and coercing of a woman to perform sexual intercourse by a person on whom this women is financially (or economically) dependent by imprisonment up to seven years. By year's end, legislation pending before Parliament would ratify the U.N. Protocols on International Crime and Trafficking in Persons and would provide for prosecution of those engaging in such practices for profit. The criminal code specifically prohibits keeping brothels, although prostitution itself is legal.
There were also some women's NGOs that raised public awareness of this problem and obtain funding for assistance programs. However, as of midyear there were no NGO-sponsored assistance programs to provide counseling and assistance for victims. The Government's Office of Refugees and Migration operated a hotline and produced a journal giving information on traveling abroad, and a gender-working group chaired by the Minister of Social Welfare participated in discussing methods of prevention. There were also public service announcements aired on national television."

Document(s): Open document

31.03.2003 - Source: US Department of State

16 years is the minimum age for employment ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2002") [#11840],  [ID 3198]

"According to the law, 16 years is the minimum age for employment. Children may work from the age of 14 with the permission of a medical commission and the relevant labor union board. The law was enforced by local community councils, unemployment offices, and, as a final board of appeal, the courts. Children under the age of 18 are not allowed to work in difficult or dangerous jobs, night labor, or jobs that require over six hours of work per day, although children 16 years of age or older may apply for waivers in the latter two cases.
According to the Ministry of Social Welfare, some children up to the age of 12 years were involved in family businesses, as well as some other business activities such as agriculture where such activity is not forbidden by law. Children are forbidden specifically from engaging in arduous, or dangerous employment, even if it is their family's business, without permission by the Ministry of Social Welfare. The Ministry granted such permission only on a case-by-case basis and only for children 12 years of age or older."

Document(s): Open document

31.03.2003 - Source: US Department of State

Despite social programs, the number of street children increased ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2002") [#11840],  [ID 3199]

"Despite social programs, the number of street children increased. A local NGO reported that there were approximately 900 homeless children during the year and that the number was growing every year; however, government officials estimated the number of children to be between 600 and 700 (including 300 homeless children in Yerevan). Child abuse of street children did not appear to be a serious problem. Trafficking in girls continued to be a problem (see Section 6.f.)."

Document(s): Open document

31.03.2003 - Source: US Department of State

The Government did not have the economic means to provide fully for the welfare of children ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2002") [#11840],  [ID 3200]

"The Government did not have the economic means to provide fully for the welfare of children. Education is free, universal, and compulsory through age 14, then optional through age 16 (complete secondary education). Girls and boys received equal educational opportunities. However, many facilities were impoverished and in poor condition, and teachers were forced to tutor pupils privately to supplement salaries that were low and paid irregularly. Some teachers were known to demand bribes from parents in return for good or passing grades for their children. Free children's health care was available for all children through the age of eight for treatment of some diseases and for emergency care, but often was of poor quality, and the practice of demanding overt or concealed payment of fees for medical service continued. In the Yezidi community, a high percentage of children did not attend school, partly for family economic reasons and partly because schools lack Yezidi teachers and books in their native language."

Document(s): Open document

10.2002 - Source: Sakharov Armenian Human Rights Centre

A great number of parents cannot afford sending their children to school for the lack of money, especially in rural areas ("Analytical Report (period covered: 1 September 2001 to 30 September 2002)") [#9949],  [ID 3201]

"The general elementary education of children is hampered by a
very low standard of living. A great number of parents cannot afford
sending their children to school for the lack of money, especially in
rural areas.
Most of school-leavers cannot afford the higher education due to its
expensiveness. [...] According to independent experts over 5 thsd. children are not
able to go to school for lack of shoes, clothes and money for school
necessities and text-books."

Document(s): Open document

10.2002 - Source: Sakharov Armenian Human Rights Centre

Survival of children in mountain villages during winter season threatned by lack of food ("Analytical Report (period covered: 1 September 2001 to 30 September 2002)") [#9949],  [ID 3202]

"At the meetings with villagers in mountain villages some parents
told that their children would not be able to survive for lack of food
during the coming winter season."

Document(s): Open document