HCA's Vanadzor office criticizes Armenian constitutional reforms

The draft constitutional amendments are contrary to fundamentals of democracy, Arthur Sakunts, the head of the Vanadzor Office of the Helsinki Civil Assembly (HCA), said at the today's press conference in Yerevan. In the opinion of the lawyer Yke Alumyan, citizens will lose the capability to govern their state.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that currently the draft constitutional reform, approved by the President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan on March 13, is in the Parliament.

Mr Sakunts said at the press conference that the proposed amendments contradict to the concept of constitutional reforms, published last year. He accused the authors of inconsistencies and deviation from their original position.

The draft of constitutional amendments has provisions that infringe human rights and freedoms, the lawyer Alumyan said at the press conference. In particular, he noted that it is assumed to deprive citizens of their right to property without a court sanction.

The lawyer asserts that the authorities, by manipulating the public opinion, under the guise of draft amendments, are lobbying the concept of a new Constitution, the adoption of which will deprive citizens of their participation in governing the state.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.