Ministry of Internal Affairs to be reestablished in Armenia

ArmInfo. The Ministry of Internal Affairs will be reestablished in Armenia. As reported by the press service of the National Assembly, The issue will be discussed  at the parliamentary hearings to be held on July 12.

Topic of the hearings: <Establishment of the Ministry of Internal  Affairs. The Importance of Civil Control>. Minister of Justice Karen  Andreasyan and Chairman of the NA Commission on Defense and Security  Andranik Kocharyan will make keynote speeches. As part of the  hearings, the model of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the  fundamental principles and functional and structural directions of  its activities will be considered, as well as foreign experience will  be presented.

Earlier, at the April 23 meeting, the Government of the Republic of   Armenia approved a reform strategy and  an action program for   2020-2022.  One of the reform areas will be the establishment of the   Ministry of Internal  Affairs, which will develop policies and bear   political  responsibility for the reform process. The initiative   proposes to  maintain the position of chief of police, provided that   he will be  appointed by the Prime Minister at the proposal of the   Minister.  It is envisaged to distinguish between civil service in   the police  and military, for example, the administration of visas   and passports  and the registration center of investigations. It is   also planned to  create a Patrol Service and a single operational   management center.  This will happen as a result of the merger of the  Traffic Police and  the Patrol Service. It is also proposed to    include the Central Bank's Financial Monitoring Center in the    structure of the ministry, as well  as to include the functions of   the Migration Service in the new organizational and legal structure   of the police. As part of the  reforms, it is envisaged to reorganize   internal troops into the National Guard. The National Guard may, in    appropriate cases,  participate in maintaining public order and   ensure the protection of strategic facilities (the functions of the   Main Directorate of State  Guard are transferred to the National   Guard). It is envisaged that  the National Guard will participate in   the prevention and suppression  of mass riots, in the implementation   of anti-terrorism measures, in  ensuring the legal regime of martial   law and in emergency situations,  in assisting with search and rescue  operations in the event of  natural or man-made disasters, and in    ensuring the safety of transportation special cargo.  

It should be noted that as part of the reform program, a new Patrol  Service and a single operational control center are already operating  in the country. This happened as a result of the unification of the  traffic police unit and the patrol service. Earlier it was  reported  that the goal of the reform was to transform  the police  into  modern, specialized and technically equipped,  respected and   trustworthy law enforcement forces, to create the image  of a   policeman inherent in a democratic law and order. To achieve  this   goal, it is proposed to solve a number of issues, in particular,  to   review and reform the system of training and advanced training of    police officers in terms of both the content of the program and the    training method, to create an executive body with mechanisms for the    development and implementation of policies, accountability and    civilian oversight, and also conduct a structural and functional   analysis of the police service in accordance with changes in the main    directions of reform.