Vahagn Petrosyan was 36 years old when a court stripped him of his legal capacity in September 2015, claiming his psychosocial disability prevented him from being able to make his own decisions. For years he endured neglect and violence in institutions, without the right to control his life or access justice.
Armenian law obligates the state to ensure people with disabilities are fully included in public life, but the country lacks community-based support for persons with psychosocial disabilities and adequate assistance for their families. The state is also obligated to ensure equal access to justice but does not provide any procedural accommodations, such as remote hearings, personal assistance, or accessible documents.
In November 2023, Petrosyan managed to restore his legal capacity and attempted to restart his life, seeking acceptance, employment, and the chance to rebuild his social connections.
But his ongoing experience illustrates the exclusion that results from the state’s systemic failures.
Following a violent incident involving a family member in August 2024, Petrosyan was arrested and placed in a penitentiary hospital for two months. During that time, he participated in three court hearings.
A few months later, the state psychiatric commission declared Petrosyan “insane,” deemed him unfit for trial and in need of hospitalization in a psychiatric facility, where he remains involuntarily. The court excluded Petrosyan from four further hearings regarding his detention. Two hearings also took place without his state-appointed lawyer, a due process failure which the court didn’t address.
For eight months, the authorities held Petrosyan’s wallet and pension card, depriving him of his only source of income.
During Petrosyan’s two months in the penitentiary hospital, he did not receive sufficient care or support, and his conditions may have amounted to ill-treatment. Currently the absence of recovery services in the psychiatric hospital, which would support him in regaining and maintaining control over his life, may further trap him in prolonged institutionalization.
Armenia’s justice system should not reinforce discriminatory and punitive practices that strip people with psychosocial disabilities of personhood and dignity, as it has done with Petrosyan. It should guarantee their rights by providing them with due process safeguards on an equal basis with others, and the necessary procedural accommodations to enable them to defend their interests, including while in detention. Authorities should invest in community-based services and ensure that a person’s disability is not used as a basis for detention.
