The Central Electoral Commission (CEC) today, July 22, officially registers the newly elected deputies. Within the 8th convocation of the National Assembly will be the blocs of acting Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and former presidents Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan.
“I congratulate the “Armenia” alliance and the “I Have Honor” alliance on entering parliament,” the acting prime minister said today at the start of the government meeting.
In addition to congratulating the alliances of Kocharyan and Sargsyan, Pashinyan today at the government meeting called for working together in a constructive atmosphere of mutual respect.
“We are determined to fully fulfill our commitments to the people and are ready to work cooperatively, free from hate speech, violent rhetoric, insults, and language that demeans dignity, with both parliamentary and extra-parliamentary forces,” the acting prime minister declared.
From the opposition “Armenia” and “I Have Honor” alliances, statements have already been made that there will be radical opposition within parliament and that they will not cooperate with Pashinyan’s government.
107 deputies will work within the new National Assembly. From “Civil Contract,” which received the majority of voters’ votes, 17 candidates have submitted self-withdrawals, including the former president of parliament, Ararat Mirzoyan. From the “Armenia” alliance, three candidates, including Robert Kocharyan. Kocharyan had earlier stated that he is a man of the executive branch.
Two deputies elected from the “Armenia” alliance are under arrest, and another, Armen Charchyan, was released from custody on bail yesterday.
Days after the elections, the mayor of Meghri, Mkhitar Zakaryan, and the mayor of Sisian, Artur Sargsyan, were imprisoned on various criminal cases. They have not renounced their parliamentary mandates and today become deputies. Lawyer Armen Melkonyan told Radio Free Europe that after official registration they will have parliamentary immunity, which is a requirement of the Constitution.
“By force of law, of course, they receive it; the person has become a deputy of the National Assembly,” said Melkonyan.
According to the lawyer, they must be released, and if the prosecutor general considers that there is a need to arrest the deputies after that, he must submit a motion to the National Assembly to strip them of their immunity.
