ArmInfo. April 2 Parliamentary Elections in Armenia were conducted in constructive environment, which was promoted by new Electoral Code adoption and implementation of various tools of falsifications preventions. This was stated by Heidi Hautala, Member of the European Parliament who led the EP's delegation which was an integral part of the International Electoral Observation Mission (IEOM), during the briefing moderated by Diogo Pinto, Director of EuFoA, and attended by more than 30 representatives of the European Parliament, the European Commission, diplomatic corps and international NGOs.
It was noted that the elections were preceded by an extremely constructive and inclusive process, which led to a new, consensual Electoral Code, and reminded that the EU contributed financially to the success of the elections, namely through the introduction of Voter Authentication Devices (VADs) and web cameras, which helped identifying voters and preventing multiple voting, impersonation and fraud, significantly increasing the overall transparency. Ms Hautala added that despite the fact that the elections were well administered and fundamental freedoms were generally respected, observers were confronted with credible information about vote-buying and pressure on civil servants and employees of private companies, exerted by various candidates from different parties.
It was mentioned also that these elections confirmed that Armenia is on the right track to consolidate itself as a strong democracy, where both the government and the opposition are able to learn from mistakes and integrate criticism. In this context, the EU should continue to encourage reforms and support Armenia's sovereignty and independence, namely through assistance promoting the independence of the judiciary, transparency of the political process and good governance, but also training for journalists and continued empowerment of civil society. The event was attended by european law makers and diplomats