CEC President: "Not aware of the EC"
"Releasing the lists of voters is the release of confidentiality of personal data that may serve as a basis for threatening people," says expert of the CE Venice Commission Marianna Scopa. Her announcement caused a heated dispute during the conference on "Electoral Code and the International Perspective" being held in Yerevan.
"The Venice Commission expert's viewpoint sounds strange to me. Either the experts don't know the reality in Armenia or they are giving standard responses and it is not clear as to whether those responses are calls or wishes. The list of voters cannot be confidential. It is posted in the population registry with all voters' data besides their signatures and signatures are not confidential either," ARF MP Artsvik Minasyan told "A1+". According to him, the release of voters' lists is one of the grounds for holding free and fair elections in Armenia. "Voting for one another turned massive during the last elections in Armenia."
"Heritage" MP Armen Martirosyan is more than sure that the release of voters' lists will drastically change elections in Armenia. "We know how many people have emigrated from Armenia. Today schools are closed down due to lack of students, but on the contrary, there are more and more voters. According to experts' data, the authorities are given 300-400 votes as a gift and that makes up 30-40% of voters." Armen Martirosyan also doesn't share the view that the release of voters' lists is confidential. "If anyone wants to know whether the given person is taking part in the elections or not, he or she can stand 50 meters away from the polling station and watch. According to legislation, even proxies have the right to get acquainted with all the data."
The MP finds that everyone must definitely have access to the lists.
President of the Central Electoral Committee Garegin Azaryan said local representatives confuse experts of the Venice Commission by announcing that the lists of voters are not made public in Armenia.
"This refers to the lists with signatures which are not subject to release according to the Electoral Code, but that doesn't bother anybody from disputing that in court. Those lists are always open for the court. If voters have problems with the lists, they can present their evidence to the court." Does this mean that the representatives of the political parties speaking today are not aware of the law? In response, Azaryan said: "Yes, not only are they not aware of the Electoral Code, but the draft that has been posted on our website for over a month now and the international experience as well."
