Hraparak: Obstacles to Ratification of the Istanbul Convention are Hrayr Tovmasyan and Constitutional Court Judges

Hraparak newspaper reports that on Friday, November 1, a delegation composed of Council of Europe members engaged in lobbying for the Istanbul Convention will arrive in Armenia. According to sources in the National Assembly, the delegation members will meet the same day at 1:00 PM with the members of the NA committees on human rights, legal affairs, and foreign relations to discuss the timelines for ratifying the Istanbul Convention in Armenia.

Our sources say that European officials will present options for nullifying the existing negative perceptions of the convention within Armenian society and aim to expedite the ratification process. Notably, this issue was also discussed during a meeting yesterday between NA President Ararat Mirzoyan and the President of the Venice Commission, Gianni Buquicchio.

Mirzoyan indicated that while society is largely against the ratification of the convention, he mentioned that if they manage to change the current composition of the Constitutional Court and remove Hrayr Tovmasyan, they will be able to ratify the Istanbul Convention easily. He noted that the most serious obstacle to ratification at this stage is the Constitutional Court and its president.

For more details, refer to today’s edition of the newspaper.