ArmInfo. Armenia is going to criminalize an act aimed at enforcing campaigning or obstructing the conduct of such work. On March 21, the Armenian Parliament approved amendments to the Electoral Code of Armenia and a number of accompanying legislative acts in the first reading.
As the First Deputy Minister of Justice of the Republic of Armenia Artur Hovhannisyan stated, the package of legislative reforms is aimed at leveling the risks associated with the abuse of the administrative resource in the election process. According to him, first of all, the circle of people is being expanded, regarding which restrictions are imposed on participation in the election campaign, including the list of representatives of medical organizations and educational institutions. In addition, restrictions apply to employees of state and community institutions and organizations in which the state or community has 20% or more participation in the authorized capital.
The following innovation concerns the compulsion to pre-election agitation or obstruction of the conduct of such work. The Ministry of Justice considered that the act was "extremely serious and dangerous", as a result of which it criminalized the norm and burdened the responsibility for its commission, for example, when using the official and other dependencies of a person. It is also prohibited to use the state financial resource, including state budget funds, during the campaign.
The document also proposes to prohibit the use of financial, information resources, territories, transportation and communication, material and human resources in the course of carrying out their official duties.