Ex-President against constitutional reforms in Armenia

PanARMENIAN.Net - Former President Robert Kocharian commented on the constitutional reforms in an interview with 2nd.am.

“My point of view remains unchanged: there is no need for constitutional reforms,” Kocharian said. “All the challenges that the country currently faces, are completely solvable in the framework of the current Constitution, the functionality of which has never been questioned. The published draft Constitution surpassed my worst expectations.”

According to him, it is no longer a choice between a semi-presidential and parliamentary form of government. “The draft constitution contains significant risks of slipping into a de facto one-party system, and consequently to political monopoly and stagnation. The “heavy” draft Constitution enriched with beautiful phrases about human rights and social objectives of the state serves as a camouflage for the totally unacceptable method of forming the National Assembly, emasculating the essence of parliamentary government,” Kocharian said.

The ex-President said the draft constitution will turn the political monopoly into a constitutional norm.

“I clearly oppose these reforms. This is a huge mistake, the consequences of which are extremely dangerous for the future of Armenia,” Kocharian stated.