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On March 22, the National Assembly debated in the first reading the legislative package on Making Addendum to the Criminal Code and on Making Addendum to the Criminal Procedure Code authored by the deputies of the NA Armenia Faction Ishkhan Saghatelyan, Aram Vardevanyan and Aghvan Vardanyan at the regular sitting. The authors considered it as extraordinary.

The authors propose to criminalize public expressions aimed at renouncing or limiting the sovereignty of the Republic of Armenia not stipulated by the Constitution towards the RA territory or its part, publicly justifying or propagating the mentioned crime, questioning or denying that the RA territory or its part belongs to the Republic of Armenia, publicly justifying or propagating the committed mentioned crime. “The current Criminal Procedure Code does not consider such expressions as a criminally prosecuted act, it considers calls as a criminal act to some extent, but not by the logic by which we propose,” the co-author Aram Vardevanyan clarified.

According to him, this is a draft law that has no political component and corresponds with the principle of legal certainty.

“The draft was not endorsed,” the member of the NA Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs Vahagn Hovakimyan informed about it.

The reason for not endorsing the package is that the territorial integrity of the country is fully protected by the current legislation, the co-rapporteur said.

“The problem proposed by the package had long been resolved by the RA criminal legislation. From the point of view of legal certainty, this draft cannot be failed,” Vahagn Hovakimyan said.

The Deputy Minister of Justice Yeranuhi Tumanyants presented the endorsement of the Government.

The NA factions expressed their viewpoints.

The NA Vice President Ishkhan Saghatelyan presented the positive position of the Armenia Faction and the necessity for the adoption of the package.

With Honor Faction did not express any position on the legislative package.

The Head of the Civil Contract Faction Hayk Konjoryan informed that the faction will vote against the legislative package.

At the last sitting of the day, according to the Constitutional Law the NA Rules of Procedure, the deputies made statements.