Spotlight on Silence - June 15, 2025

In this episode of Groong: Spotlight on Silence, we speak with Rafael Ishkhanyan of the Armenian Center for Political Rights about Armenia’s sweeping new surveillance law. Passed quietly in March 2025, the law grants police 24/7 access to camera networks across public institutions and allows for real-time facial recognition, raising deep concerns about privacy, political targeting, and unchecked state power. We explore what the law says, what it leaves out, and why international silence—despite clear risks to civil liberties—has been so striking.

Topics:

• Armenia legalizes round-the-clock surveillance.
• Law enables political targeting, critics warn.
• No oversight, no privacy laws.
• Silence from Armenia’s new geopolitical allies.

Guest: Rafael Ishkhanyan

Hosts: 

• Hovik Manucharyan
• Asbed Bedrossian

Episode 446 | Recorded: June 12, 2025

SHOW NOTES: https://podcasts.groong.org/446

VIDEO: https://youtu.be/EvCc_ST2hPg

#Armenia #SurveillanceState #FacialRecognition #PrivacyRights #DigitalAuthoritarianism #ACPR #HumanRights

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