Under new Constitution President will become headless horseman in wartime (video)
Debates on the December 6 constitutional referendum which envisages Armenia’s switch from a semi-presidential system to a parliamentary republic are underway in the country. Gurgen Yeghiazaryan, a former deputy head of the National Security Service of Armenia, and Khosrov Harutyunyan, a lawmaker of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK), today met media representatives to express their positions on the planned changes. In his speech, Mr Yeghiazaryan asked everyone to imagine for a moment what might happen to Armenia if, God forbid, Turkish troops enter Armenia. “We shall need to have operational leadership which is not enshrined in the new Constitution. If a war starts, it will be impossible to call up a special session of the parliament to take a drastic decision. The new Constitution says the president is the head of the state, but in case of possible war he turns into a headless horseman,” he said. Khosrov Harutyunyan disagreed with him saying, “Decisions in wartime are taken by the head of the headquarters and the defense minister. They say there is not such a thing as a commander-in-chief. Then why should we need him in peaceful times.” “The new Constitution hits in two directions at a time. The first blow is targeted at families. All those rights given to children and adolescents which are imposed on us by Europe will ruin our families. Russia immediately said “no.” but they want to fill our little Armenia with gays. There are six sexes in Europe and five in America. Under the new Constitution, children in Armenia may be allowed to select their sex after becoming 16. Also, our Church may be forced to wed LGBT couples,” said Mr Yeghiazaryan. The Republican lawmaker said it can never occur in Armenia. “We shall never adopt such a law,” he said.
