Opposition: Amending Electoral Code two months before elections to   have rather serious political consequences

ArmInfo.  Amendments to the Electoral Code proposed by Armenia's ruling Civil Contract faction have provoked a sharply negative reaction from the opposition.

As a reminder, the amendments to the Electoral Code, which were  discussed at an extraordinary session of the National Assembly on  April 7, prohibit the monitoring of the voting process on election  day and the use of first and last names in the names of parties and  blocs. NA MP Arusyak Dzhulakyan, who co-authored the legislative  initiative and presented it, made no secret that the need to amend  the Electoral Code arose only a few days ago. For this reason, a  decision was made to expedite the discussion of the bill. "We  submitted the issue for urgent consideration because the acceptance  of participation documents from parties and blocs begins on April 13.  We wouldn't have been able to discuss it at the regular session,"  said Arusyak Julhakyan.

The authorities' initiative has sparked confusion and indignation  among the parliamentary opposition.  Artsvik Minasyan, secretary of  the Armenia faction, noted that the authorities are justifying the  proposed amendments with an omission. "If the bill had been submitted  much earlier, it would have been received positively, but in this  case, two months before the elections, this omission will have more  than serious political consequences," the opposition member said.

In turn, Gegham Manukyan, an MP from the same bloc, noted that the  opposition members of parliament came to the extraordinary session  unaware of the proposed changes. "There is international practice,  including the Venice Commission's recommendation to Armenia,  according to which the rules of the game are not changed at least a  year before the elections. Now it's no secret what exactly these  changes are aimed at. There are only two months left until the  elections." "You call this an oversight that needs to be corrected,  but the changes you propose are more than fundamental," Gegham  Manukyan emphasized.  Opposition MP Hayk Mamijanyan, a member of the  Republican Party of Armenia, stated in his speech that it was simply  pointless to discuss the content of this draft. Therefore, the  faction decided to vote "no." As a reminder, on March 31, it was  announced that the Strong Armenia party would participate in the  upcoming parliamentary elections as part of the Strong Armenia with  Samvel Karapetyan bloc.