Pashinyan’s election in May (by Armenia’s old parliament) and reelection in December (by the country’s new parliament) allowed for a de jure transition of power and paved the way for necessary reforms to the governmental system in the year to come. [...] Due to political pressure from the government, the George Soros-funded Open Society Foundations and the Central European University, left the country that year. [...] The country’s press freedom situation deteriorated in 2018, a year which saw the government smear independent journalists and interfere in the operations of the state broadcaster. [...] After the opposition revealed that the government’s ministers awarded themselves massive bonuses last year, the ministers neglected to return the money to the state, donating it to a charity run by the Catholic Church instead. [...] The February murder of investigative reporter Jan Kuciak brought tens of thousands to the streets in a series of protests, energizing the country’s NGO scene in the process.
- Pages
- 9
- Published in
- Hungary
