Two important draft laws being in the domain of human rights were comprehensively and effectively debated during these days, in which representatives of different departments took part. I hope that in the foreseeable future the drafts will be completed and submitted to the legislative body for debate. The Deputy Chair of the NA Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rightsand Public Affairs Rustam Bakoyan said this.
The issues regarding the draft laws on National Minorities and on Ensuring Legal Equality and Protection from Discrimination were voiced at the debate in the outgoing sitting format. It took place in Tsaghkadzor on July 15-17 within the framework of the project Fostering Responsiveness, Effectiveness, Transparency and Inclusiveness of the RA National Assembly of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which is financed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Norway, the Governments of Sweden and Armenia with the cooperation of the RA National Assembly.
The draft law on National Minorities designs to adjust the relations connected with the exercise of the rights of the persons belonging to the national minorities, to define the functions of the state and local self-government bodies regarding them, as well as to regulate the organizational-legal bases of the formation of the council of the national minorities and its activity.
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The goal of the draft law on Ensuring Legal Equality and Protection from Discrimination is to ensure the equal attitude and the equal opportunities of exercising the rights, freedoms and duties towards each person, as well as the prevention of discrimination and the protection of the right not to be subjected to discrimination.
The RA Human Rights Defender Anahit Manasyan participated in the debate with the report on the draft law on Ensuring Legal Equality and Protection from Discrimination and the amendments of the related draft laws.
“I emphasize the adoption of the mentioned law. Moreover, I consider that in some respect we have been late from the viewpoint of the adoption of this law in different issues, taking into consideration the fact that the sphere of legal equality and the anti-discrimination field is rather problematic and is developed in Armenia in non-compliance way to the international standards. Definitely, at this moment the need of all structures in our society exists for changing the problems concerning the mentioned sphere, improving the situation. One of those tools is the adoption of the law, its implementation and the full realization of the structures provided by the law,” the Human Rights Defender particularly said.
The experience of Sweden on the national minorities was presented online to the participants of the debate.
Various issues related to the sphere were also debated.
National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia
