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On October 8 the RA National Assembly continued the work of the four-day sittings.

The deputies welcomed the students and lecturers of Yerevan State University of Economics, who visited the parliament within the framework of the NA Open Doors programme.

The parliament continued debating the report of the Public TV and Radio Company Council on the activity of the Public TV and Radio Company (PTRC) for 2014.

The NA deputies Naira Zohrabyan, Tigran Urikhanyan, Ruzanna Muradyan, Zaruhi Postanjyan, Hovhannes Margaryan, Aram Manukyan, Lernik Alexanyan and Artak Davtyan delivered speeches on the report. In their speeches they touched upon the cultural, educational programmes and their content, positively assessed, the increase of the educational programmes, highlighted the approach of screening the Armenian films, considered necessary the allocation of additional resources for covering the speeches of the deputies working on the international platforms. They have noted that the PTRC has a key role in the development of the public life. The NA deputies opined that the PTRC does not provide unbiased, exhaustive and reliable information. They proposed to allocate financial means for the digitalisation of the archive materials.

The NA Deputy Speaker Eduard Sharmazanov delivered an extraordinary speech. According to him, everybody wants the PTRC to give a complete picture of the society. In the NA Deputy Speaker's opinion, the Public Radio Company has recorded progress. Highly assessing the works of the Public Radio, Eduard Sharmazanov has noted that the cultural, educational and information programmes are rather open, public, and provide pluralism.

Touching upon some deputies' viewpoints that the PTRC news programmes do not provide pluralism, the NA Deputy Speaker has assured that all this is an issue of subjective perception, and in his opinion, the H1 Channel manages providing that pluralism.

Talking about cultural, spiritual and educational programmes, Eduard Sharmazanov has opined that the PTRC should also implement educational function.

Highlighting the transmitting of spiritual, church programmes, the NA Deputy Speaker proposed to include a programme on the history of the Armenian Apostolic Church by the PTRC from the next year with the assistance of the Holy See.

Eduard Sharmazanov agreed with Naira Zohrbayna's viewpoint and as NA Deputy Speaker proposed to discuss and find recommendations during the debate of the RA Draft State Budget for 2016, in order the PTRC could provide a cameraman and a journalist at the most important international conferences and international forums to make audible the word of the representatives of the parliament not only abroad, but also in Armenia.

The NA Factions: the Rule of Law (Heghine Bisharyan), the ANC (Levon Zurabyan), and the RPA (Vahram Baghdasaryan) also presented their viewpoints on the report.

The member of the NA Standing Committee on Science, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Rubik Hakobyan delivered a final speech, highly assessing the work done by the PTRC and also presented the gaps and shortcomings recorded by him.

The Chairman of the Public TV and Radio Company Council Ruben Jaghinyan in his final speech thanked the attendees for debate of concern and proposals and expressed readiness to consider all the proposals.

Afterwards the parliament began debating the report on the activity of the National Committee on Television and Radio for 2014, which presented the Chairman of the National Committee on Television and Radio Gagik Buniatyan.

Numerous questions were addressed to Gagik Buniatyan, which related to the total budget of the Committee, the licenses to be provided, the activity of the Committee, the quality of the commercials, the cooperation of the RA and the NKR appropriate Committees, etc.

The member of the NA Standing Committee on Science, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Karine Atshemyan has informed that the Committee has positively assessed the activities of the structure and accepted the report for information.

The parliament debated the bill “On Amending the RA Law on Guaranteeing the Compensation of the Physical Entities’ Bank Deposits.”

The Chairman of the NA Standing Committee on Financial-Credit and Budgetary Affairs Gagik Minasyan conveyed the endorsement of the Committee to the parliament.

The RA Human Rights Defender Karen Andreasyan submitted for debate the report “On the Activity of the RA Human Rights Defender and the Violation of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms in the Country During 2014.” 10 deputies were registered to address questions to Mr Andreasyan.

The debate of the issue will continue at the NA next sittings.

The parliament ended the work of the four-day sittings.