Human Rights Watch: Widespread video surveillance in Armenia will lead to an unreasonable violation of privacy and cannot be considered a necessary measure to improve security

The Armenian government’s bill for the mandatory installation of video surveillance systems with 24-hour police access throughout the capital, Yerevan, is unjustified and interferes with privacy and other rights, Human Rights Watch said.

The bill, which passed its first parliamentary review in June 2024, requires private entities in Yerevan to install the cameras and provide police with live feed and access to recordings on demand. Officials have also indicated they intend to use artificial intelligence (AI) video analytics to monitor the recordings.

“Widespread, indiscriminate video surveillance would inevitably lead to unjustified intrusions on privacy and cannot be defended as a measure necessary to improve public security in a democracy,” said Giorgi Gogia, associate Europe and Central Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Mass surveillance in public spaces would have a chilling effect on fundamental civil and political rights.”

The authorities should scrap the bill, or at the very least suspend consideration of it, until it is amended to comply with international human rights standards. They should also consider requesting the Venice Commission, the Council of Europe’s advisory body on constitutional matters, to assess the bill.

The bill, proposed by the Interior Ministry, envisages amendments to nine laws, nominally to “strengthen the security of public spaces.” The bill’s provisions require many private entities—including but not limited to financial, communications (electronic and postal), educational, pharmaceutical and retail facilities—to install CCTV cameras that cover the entrances and all sides of buildings and conduct continuous surveillance of people in their areas of operation.

These systems collect personal data related to individuals’ identities, movements, and associations, and therefore should be subject to clear limitations to protect the right to privacy and other rights, Human Rights Watch said.

The surveillance proposed in the draft amendments is indiscriminate, as it does not involve any form of targeting or selection and does not require the authorities to show reasonable suspicion or probable cause as a basis for tracking a particular person.

The government should publish the justification, purpose, and intended applications for widespread video surveillance and use of AI analytics, along with a clear plan to mitigate any human rights risks, and ongoing plans for oversight and accountability, Human Rights Watch said. Human Rights Watch wrote to the relevant Armenian authorities in August seeking clarifications and assurances over the proposals but has not received any replies.

The mere existence of video surveillance in public areas can have a chilling effect on fundamental rights, such as freedoms of assembly, association, and expression, as well as the right to privacy. Using artificial intelligence to review widespread surveillance would heighten those risks, Human Rights Watch said. States should refrain from using facial recognition and other AI analytics technology in public spaces, as it constitutes ramped-up mass surveillance.

Armenia is a party to a number of international and regional treaties enshrining the right to privacy and data protection rights. Restrictions on fundamental rights, in this case the right to privacy, must be provided for in law, necessary in a democratic society, and proportionately to achieve a legitimate purpose.