Artak Zeynalyan: This law is secretly brought forward (video)
The amendments to the law on "Police of the Republic of Armenia" passed with 57 votes for and 31 against in the National Assembly today. The Yelk (Way Out) and Tsarukyan alliances were against the amendments. Edmon Marukyan, Deputy of the Yelk faction, addressing the NA Chairmanship, said, "There is a dispute with regard to this bill, especially in which committee it should be debated. If our Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs and Human Rights discussed this issue, many existing problems would be raised." "Very well, we will take that into consideration," said Ara Babloyan, the NA Chairman. And Nikol Pashinyan, Head of the Yelk faction, declared, "Since there have been numerous cases when the NA Chairman has appointed two Leading Committees, in that case, the immediate issue with human rights should have been discussed at the Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs and Human Rights. I do not think that there would be any dramatic changes, concerning the votes, but there is a question of attitude and thinking. " "Mr. Pashinyan, not with this issue, but with another issue, I have examined the NA Regulations, according to which appointing two commissions is not allowed to but they may be involved in the discussion as an initiative. From now on, we will be more careful not to be departmental, but to focus on the logical direction, taking into account which context the issue is being discussed in," said Ara Babloyan. Artak Zeynalyan, another member of the Yelk faction, once again stated that the law had been secretly brought forward and the MPs hadn't been able to study it properly. Ara Babloyan assured that it had been already put into circulation in 2017, since December 11, and then a planned discussion was underway. "There was no written proposal from any MP or any faction. There was no proposal to change the Leading Committee as well. The police field is included in the NA Standing Committee on Defense and Security," said Koryun Nahapetyan, the Chairman of the NA Standing Committee on Defense and Security Affairs. NA ChairmanAra Babloyan announced that the agenda of the NA session was exhausted but at 16:30, according to the NA Regulations, a question-and-answer session with the Government would take place.
