ARMENIAN GOVERNMENT PROPOSES REVISING SOME ISSUES OF PUNITIVE POLICY
YEREVAN, MAY 12, NOYAN TAPAN. The amendments to be made in the RA
Criminal Court Procedure Code, the RA Criminal Code, the RA Criminal
Executive Code and the RA Law on Criminal Executive Service are aimed
at making specifications in the punitive policy. Head of the Court and
Legal Reforms Department of the RA Ministry of Justice Nikolai
Arustamian told NT correspondent about it. It is envisaged to make the
main specifications in such punitive measures as fine, as well as
public and corrective labor. Particularly, according to N.
Arustamian, it is intended to replace 2 years’ imprisonment with
public labor at the request of a convicted person. The Criminal
Executive Code currently in force envisages such a possibility in case
of availability of a court act on up to 1 year imprisonment. It is
proposed abolishing corrective labor as a punitive measure, because
studies show that this measure is gradually losing its effect and is
not conducive to solution of the three major problems related to the
use of punishment: restoration of social justice, prevention and
correction of the convicted person. It is also envisaged to abolish
fine as an additional punitive measure: statistical studies indicate
that fine is seldom imposed as an additional punishment, while in case
of its use, some problems arise. In many cases the main punishment is
applied, while the additional one – fine is not. It was noted that
pursuant to the RA Law on the National Assembly By-Laws, the Armenian
government made a decision on May 11 to consider as urgent the package
of the following draft laws: on making amendments to the RA Criminal
Code, on making an addition and amendments to the RA Criminal
Executive Code, on making additions to the RA Criminal Court Procedure
Code, and on making amendments and additions to the RA Law on Criminal
Executive Service.