ARMENIA TO HOLD REFERENDUM ON CONSTITUTION NOVEMBER 27

Agence France Presse — English
October 4, 2005 Tuesday 5:05 PM GMT

Armenia will hold a referendum on November 27 on plans pushed by
the Council of Europe for constitutional reforms that would diminish
presidential authority, the president’s office said Tuesday.

In a statement, President Robert Kocharian’s office said that he had
signed a decree ordering “the holding on November 27 of a referendum
on the plan for constitutional reform.

The plan, drafted with direct participation of experts from the Council
of Europe, received final approval from the Armenian parliament in
a vote on September 28.

In addition to redressing the balance of power between the president
on the one hand and the parliament and government on the other, the
plan also calls for the abolition of laws banning Armenian nationals
from holding double citizenship.

That provision would permit millions of members of the Armenian
diaspora to obtain Armenian citizenship if they choose.

The proposed constitutional changes were described last month as
part of Armenia’s obligations to the pan-European Council of Europe,
a body that promotes democracy.

“During our meetings with representatives of the Council of Europe,
it was made clear to us that if the referendum fails we could face
severe sanctions, including the possible exclusion of Armenia from
this organization,” Rafik Petrossian, chairman of parliament’s legal
affairs committee, said on September 28.

The Council of Europe groups 46 states. Membership is open to all
European countries which accept the principle of the rule of law and
guarantee fundamental human rights and freedoms to their citizens.

Another senior Armenian lawmaker said the constitutional changes were
needed to ensure further democratic development in the former Soviet
republic in the Caucasus.

“The issue is not about avoiding sanctions from European bodies,”
Tigran Torossian, deputy speaker of the Armenian parliament, told
AFP last month.

“The adoption of constitutional changes is important for the country
as it marks the start of a second cycle of democratic development of
state bodies” in the country, he said.

The planned November 27 referendum would mark the second attempt
by the country’s leaders to win approval of the constitutional
modifications. A first effort in 2003 failed to win sufficient support
among voters.

To pass, the reforms must receive assent from at least half of the
voters who take part in the referendum, who must also number not less
than one-third of all eligible voters in the country.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress