ACCORDING TO DEPUTIES, AMENDMENTS SHOULD BE MADE IN CURRENT
LEGISLATION ON BROADCAST SPHERE, WHEREAS IN OPINION OF GOVERNMENT, SOME
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS CONTRADICT CONSTITUTIONAL NORMS
YERVAN, OCTOBER 15, NOYAN TAPAN. The package of the following bills:
the bill on making amendments and additions to the RA Law on Television
and Radio, the bill on making amendments and additions to the RA Law on
the Rules of Procedure of the National Assembly, the bill on making
amendments and additions to the RA Law on the National Television and
Radio Commission, and the bill on making an addition to the RA Law on
State Duty was discussed at the October 15 sitting of the NA Standing
Committee of Science, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Issues. The
bills were prepared by National Assembly deputies Naira Zohrabian,
Heghine Bisharian, Lilit Galstian and Anahit Bakhshian.
In the words of N. Zohrabian, the amendments are aimed at ensuring the
independence of the National Television and Radio Commission – an
independent body regulating the public and private broadcast media, and
the Council of the Public Television and Radio Company. The purpose of
the amendments is also to establish the selection of the members of the
indicated bodies on a competitive basis. The amendments are mainly
related to the principles of formation of these bodies, the mechanisms
of their financial independence and the provisions on pluralism. N.
Zohrabian stated that in developing the amendments, the RA
Constitutional Court’s decisions, by which several articles of the RA
Law on Television and Radio were either suspended or recognized as
invalid, were taken as a basis, as well as the reforms proposed in the
PACE Resoluition 1609 were taken into account.
The RA minister of justice Gevorg Danielian took part in the sitting.
He presented a negative conclusion of the government, according to
which some principles stipulated in the bill contradict the norms of
the RA Constitition. After a dicsussion, it was decided to set up a
working group, in which representatives of the sphere will be included
as well, and to make the bills mutually acceptable.
According to the RA National Assembly PR Department, the chairman of
the standing committee Armen Ashotian said that all the proposals of
the government will be discussed. The package of bills with a positive
conclusion will be put on the draft agenda of the autumn session of the
National Assembly.