SERGEY GHAZINYAN

Lecturer at the Chair of European and International Law,

Yerevan State University (YSU) and the American University of Armenia (AUA),

Expert at the YSU Center for European Studies

DOI: https://doi.org/10.59546/18290744‑2026.1‑3‑59

Annotation.

The article presents a constitutional‑law understanding of human trafficking, examining it as a systemic violation of human dignity and fundamental rights and, simultaneously, as a threat directed against the value foundations of the constitutional order. Trafficking is analysed not exclusively through criminal‑law categories but within the logic of constitutional protection of human rights, emphasizing that exploitation undermines legal subjectivity by transforming a person into an object of control and ownership. The article advances the thesis that, at the constitutional level, the anti‑trafficking framework is grounded in the inviolability of human dignity, the rule of law, and the interconnection of a number of absolute or reinforced guarantees (personal liberty, prohibition of torture and forced labour, non‑discrimination, and the right to effective judicial protection).

The study develops the constitutional dimension of the State’s tripartite structure of positive obligations — to guarantee, to ensure, and to protect — demonstrating that prevention of trafficking, early identification, protection and rehabilitation of victims, as well as effective investigation and inevitability of accountability constitute a unified system of continuous obligations. The article further highlights the interaction between international and constitutional law, particularly the influence of the case‑law of the European Court of Human Rights and the standards established by the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings on national legal interpretation. It ultimately proposes an approach according to which the fight against trafficking functions as a benchmark of constitutional governance, reflecting the State’s practical capacity to recognise and manage exploitation risks, reduce vulnerabilities, and secure real and effective protection.

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