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On May 13, at the sitting of the RA NA Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs moderated by Hovhannes Margaryan in the second reading the RA Draft Electoral Code (EC) authored by the RA Government was debated with the package of the enclosed draft laws.

The key speaker, the Minister-Chief of Staff of the RA Government, the EC Draft Co-Author Davit Harutyunyan has informed that after being passed in the first reading the Draft has been reformed. According to Davit Harutyunyan, the main amendments have been made as a result of debates at the NA Standing Committee on State and Legal Affairs. Part of the recommendations has been received by the NGOs, and another part is conditioned by the report of the Venice Commission and the ODIHR, as well as the rectifications made by the UN technical experts.

Davit Harutyunyan in detail touched upon particularly the recommendations submitted by the Venice Commission on the Draft EC, which had been passed and were included in the Draft.

The Committee also proposed to make amendments in the provisions on the observers’ accreditation, the order of presentation of the national minorities in the parties, the suspension of the authorities of the district and territorial electoral committees, the pre-electoral funds and pre-electoral slogans.

By the Committee members’ decision the voting of the package was postponed until the coming Monday.

Afterwards the deputies debated the draft law on Amendment to the RA Criminal Code authored by Edmon Marukyan.

The RA Minister of Justice Arpine Hovhannisyan presented the endorsement of the Government.

By the Committee’s decision the draft law will be included in the draft law of the agenda of the ninth session of the NA fifth convocation.

On the same day the visiting sitting of the RA NA Standing on Science, Education, Culture, Youth and Sport moderated by Artak Davtyan was held. The visiting sitting was held in the building of the Public Television Company of Armenia. Before listening to the annual report the RA NA deputies took a tour in the territory, and got acquainted with the ongoing reforms and the constructions works. The Committee members listened to the annual report by the Chairman of the RA Public Television and Radio Company Council Ruben Jaghinyan on the activities of the RA Public Television and Radio Company for 2015. The Director of the Public Television Company of Armenia Margarita Grigoryan presented the report. After the presentation of the report Ruben Jaghinyan and Margarita Grigoryan in detail answered the questions concerning the NA deputies.

After presenting the work done, the current problems and programmes during the past year the Chairman of the Television and Radio National Commission Gagik Buniatyan answered the NA deputies’ questions.