RA NATIONAL ASSEMBLY IN FIRST READING ADOPTS BILL ON MAKING AMENDMENTS AND ADDENDA TO CRIMINAL CODE

Noyan Tapan

F eb 26, 2009

YEREVAN, FEBRUARY 26, NOYAN TAPAN. On February 26, the RA National
Assembly with 92 votes "for," 3 "against" and 1 "abstained" in the
first reading adopted a bill on making amendments and addenda to the
Criminal Code. The Zharangutiun (Heritage) faction voted against.

The main goal of the amendments is to clarify the formulations
of Articles 225 (mass disorders) and 300 (seizing the power) in
consideration of the criteria established by the precedent practice of
the European Court of Human Rights and the necessity to correspond
to Code’s legal definiteness principle. The current measures of
punishment have been kept unchanged.

The main amendment to Article 225, RA Criminal Code, proposes
considering invalid the latter’s second part, according to which a
punishment of 6-12 years is envisaged for organizing mass disorders
accompanied by a murder or directly committing them.

A necessity to stipulate new articles has emerged as a result of the
amendments made to Article 300: 300.1 (overthrowing the constitutional
order), 300.2 (breaking the territorial integrity). Liability for
the last two kinds of crimes is currently envisaged by Article 300.

Besides, amendments were also made to a number of other articles,
in particular, Article 225.1, Criminal Code (organizing and holding a
public event with violation of the order established by the law) and
301 (appeals of seizing the power, overthrowing the constitutional
order or breaking territorial integrity). After the latter a new
article, 301.1 (obliging country’s President, National Assembly,
government, Constitutional Court) was added.

From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress