Armenia Needs a New Constitution Approved by the People to Truly Belong to Them, Says PM Pashinyan

YEREVAN — A ceremonial event marking the 30th anniversary of the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia was held at the Alexander Spendiaryan National Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, President Vahagn Khachaturyan, President of the Constitutional Court Arman Dilanyan, as well as representatives of the legislative and executive branches and heads of diplomatic missions accredited in Armenia, attended the event.

Congratulatory speeches were delivered by Prime Minister Pashinyan, President Khachaturyan, and the President of the Constitutional Court.

In his remarks, Prime Minister Pashinyan congratulated everyone on Constitution Day and the 30th anniversary, presenting the concept of the “Real Armenia.” He emphasized how the topic of the Constitution has become deeply intertwined with this ideology over the past year. According to him, the vision of Real Armenia cannot be fully realized without addressing the Constitution, as these themes are inherently connected.

“This is linked to the slogan, ‘The homeland is the state — if you love your homeland, strengthen your state.’ And that slogan is rooted in 500 years of our people’s history. Why do I bring this up on Constitution Day? Because for 500 years, we’ve loved our homeland — sometimes even while resenting the state. Perhaps our civic subconscious still hasn’t overcome the reflex to resist the state, even as we love the homeland,” he said.

Pashinyan continued, “Through discussions, I’ve become convinced that resistance to the state has become an ingrained reaction — a reflex we must overcome.”

He argued that over the past 35 years, the legal order established in Armenia has not been fully embraced by the people. Instead of viewing it as a set of rules they themselves created, citizens perceive it as something imposed by others without their meaningful participation.

“In my view, the Constitution should be a mutual agreement among citizens — between individuals, between citizens and communities, and between communities and the government. It should embody a collective agreement on the legal order of the country, expressed through the Constitution itself,” Pashinyan explained.

He noted that the lack of a sense of ownership among citizens stems from the fact that, starting with the 1995 Constitution, it remains unclear whether these constitutions were genuinely adopted through the free and fair expression of the people’s will. “At the very least, this is a question without a clear answer,” he said.

The Prime Minister acknowledged that Armenia’s Constitutions have been crafted by skilled experts, but argued that the essential element — the people’s free and authentic endorsement — has been missing. “That is why many people still view the homeland as a platform to resist the state. They don’t feel that the legal rules governing their lives were created by their own will.”

He stressed that the ultimate constitutional authority must be the people themselves. “No matter how eloquently a Constitution is written, if it lacks the indisputable imprint of the people’s will — through a referendum with free and fair participation — the homeland will continue to be seen as a space to resist the state.”

“The solution,” he emphasized, “is clear: the Republic of Armenia needs a new Constitution, adopted through a free and democratic vote by the people, so that citizens feel that the Constitution belongs to them — that it’s theirs, a set of rules they created for living in their homeland-state.”

According to Pashinyan, this new Constitution must reflect a clear objective — to express the reality that now exists in Armenia:

“This reality is as follows: the Republic of Armenia tells its citizens — the homeland and the state are now one and the same. Unlike in the past, our message today must be crystal clear, and its practical embodiment must be a new Constitution adopted through the free expression of the people’s will. That Constitution must declare: ‘Citizen of the Republic of Armenia — the state is you. You are the Republic of Armenia.’”