Armenia`s Military Police to be delegated with new powers 

ArmInfo. The RA Ministry of Defense proposes toughening penalties for evading military training and granting the RA Military Police new powers. At its  September 26 meeting, the RA National Assembly Committee on Defense  and Security approved the second and final reading of amendments to  the Criminal Code and the Law "On Military Police" submitted by the  RA government.

According to RA Deputy Defense Minister Arman Sargsyan, military  police officers will be empowered to search for individuals evading  conscription and training. The draft defines the forms of evasion of  training, clarifies the description of the criminal act, and toughens  penalties for evading training under a number of unlawful  circumstances.

According to the Deputy Minister, the current legislation contains  certain problems. For example, the Criminal Code contained a concept  of "evasion" that was not clearly defined. It was unclear what  exactly was meant by this term. This, in turn, created various  problems in criminal proceedings. "The Military Police will be able  to provide support to military commissariats. For example, by  identifying individuals who failed to report for military service,  who were supposed to participate in training camps, or who evaded  military service," Sargsyan said. Furthermore, the provision was  tightened, defining evasion as committed through self-inflicted  injuries, feigning illness, document forgery, or fraud.

The Military Police will also be authorized, upon written request  from bodies conducting criminal proceedings, to provide  transportation and escort services to military personnel detained or  arrested during criminal proceedings to participate in necessary  investigative and procedural actions. The mere fact of evasion will  be punishable by a fine of 15,000 to 30,000 drams, or short-term  imprisonment for a term of no more than 2 months, or imprisonment for  a term of 1 to 3 years.