AMENDMENTS TO NA REGULATIONS AIMED AT RAISING ROLE OF PARLIAMENTARY OPPOSITION ARE ONLY "SLIGHT RETOUCH," ZHARANGUTIUN IS CONVINCED

Noyan Tapan
Oct 23, 2008

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 23, NOYAN TAPAN. On October 23, the RA National
Assembly in the second reading and completely adopted a bill authored
by representatives of the coalition parties’ parliamentary factions,
according to which amendments and addenda were made to the NA
Regulations.

According to David Haroutiunian, bill’s co-author, the Chairman of
the NA Standing Committee on State and Legal Issues, the amendments
and addenda are aimed at expanding the powers of the parliamentary
opposition, raising its role. It was also mentioned that international
experience on opposition’s legal status and the approaches of principle
of PACE Resolution N 1601 of 2008 were taken into account when working
out the bill.

According to the amendments made, it is stipulated that, in
particular, "a faction is considered opposition if the faction head
or secretary makes a statement on being opposition at a NA sitting
and none of its members or persons proposed by it make part of the
government." Guarantees of opposition faction’s activity are also
fixed, in particular, on the day of convocation of the first NA
session the right of nominating candidates for posts of chairmen
and vice-chairmen of standing committees is distributed among the
factions. It should be mentioned that provisions regarding election
of chairmen and vice-chairmen of standing committees, as well as
election to these posts will come in force from the day of opening
of the first NA session of the next convocation.

An opposition faction by the order established by the law receives
a possibility to submit for discussion draft laws or decisions it
considers special, by the order of priority to address questions to
the government and to make statements.

In the opinion of the only opposition Zharangutiun (Heritage) faction,
the above mentioned amendments are not even "cosmetic," but only a
"slight retouch," therefore the faction, according to its decision
publicized in advance, voted "against."