Ministry Denies Adoption of Armenian Child by Italian Citizen

Recently, certain media outlets, violating the presumption of innocence proclaimed by the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia, have accused foreign citizens in their publications or discussions of criminal activities that are still under the investigation of law enforcement.

Moreover, some media have assumed the right to present the names of specific individuals, attributing to them the commission of criminal acts without the publication of a court decision.

This situation is deemed unacceptable by the Ministry of Justice from both moral and legal perspectives.

Referring to the statement released on December 6, 2019, regarding Pierluigi Collina, a former football referee and current chair of the UEFA Referees Committee as well as an advisor to the Italian Association of Referees, which claimed that he adopted a child from the Republic of Armenia through illegal means, we officially inform that the Ministry of Justice has never received an application from the central authority of the Republic of Italy regarding the intent to adopt a child who is a citizen of the Republic of Armenia.

No Italian citizen by the name of “Pierluigi Collina” has adopted a child who is a citizen of the Republic of Armenia.

The dissemination of such misinformation is not appropriate for a civilized legal state and could be harmful to interstate relations. Therefore, we request all media outlets to exercise vigilance when discussing or covering the process of child adoption.

At the same time, the Ministry of Justice informs that the publication of adoption secrets against the will of the adopter is subject to criminal liability under the Criminal Code of the Republic of Armenia.