Constitutional Reforms of Armenia: The Final Decision will be Made by the Public

• 10.07.2015, 13:11
•  Armenia

On October 5 the four-day-session of the National Assembly of Armenia kicked off. As planned, the main topic of discussion on the first day of the session was the Constitutional reforms. On the same day the draft project of the Constitution was put for voting and with the majority of votes the draft was approved.

As during the previous sessions, this time also the discussions were quite heated with representatives of the opposition expressing their concerns and talking against the reforms. And not only the representatives of the opposition… The front "NO", at the time, when the deputies were preparing for voting, held protests in front of the building of the RA NA against the adoption of the Constitutional reforms. However, 104 of 121 deputies voted "for", 10 "against" and 3 abstained. Thus the draft was adopted.

As NEWS.am reports, deputies of the faction Armenian National Congress, Stepan Demirchyan, Aram Manukyan, Levon Zurabyan, Nikol Pashinyan, Gagik Jhangiryan and Hrant Bagratyan voted "against," whereas Lyudmila Sargsyan from the same faction voted "for." Zaruhi Postanjyan from the faction Heritage, Heghine Bisharyan and Ishkhan Khachatryan from "Orinats Erkir," Tigran Urikhanyan from Prosperous Armenia also voted "against."

It is interesting that among the deputies of "Orinats Erkir," who have always expressed themselves against the Constitutional reforms, there were those, who voted "for." As Panorama.am reports, according to Bisharyan some of the suggestions of their party concerning the reforms, were included in the document, therefore it would not be correct to vote "for" or "against" the draft – here is the reason for the division of the opinions of OE.

The head of the opposition faction Heritage Zaruhi Posanjyan in her turn not only sharply criticized the results of the voting, but also called on the citizens of Armenia to concentrate their efforts and take the streets with mass demonstrations, ePress reports.

Tigran Urikhanyan from Prosperous Armenia refrained from commenting the results of the voting and only added: "The impressionism of Constitutional reforms is completed and the voting ended. I think that there is nothing to talk about, the moment for acting has come," a1Plus.am reports.

The reaction of the ex-President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan also did not come late. According to him there is no need for Constitutional reforms, especially of "such a radical nature."

"The published project exceeded my worst expectations. It is no longer a choice between a semi-presidential and parliamentary form of government. The draft Constitution contains significant risks for moving towards a de facto one-party system, so towards political monopoly and stagnation," Kocharyan said commenting on the process of the Constitutional reforms of the RA, 2rd.am reports.

It should be mentioned that according to the head of the Central Election Commission, Tigran Mukuchyan, the referendum on Constitutional reforms will be held within 55-65 days, RIA Novosti reports. "In accordance with the law the day of the referendum is appointed by the President within 21 days from the date of the approval of the National Assembly," Mukuchyan said.

The final version of the project of Constitutional reform, which will be put on referendum, is already published on the official website of the RA National Assembly.

Now it is the citizens of Armenia that should decide!!! But… Before using that right it would be better to once more carefully read the draft, analyze it and make our own decision…