Prosperous Armenia split over shift to proportional systemFebruary 28, 2012 - 15:56 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Member of the Prosperous Armenia party Naira Zohrabyan said at parliamentary debates on the shift to 100 per cent proportional system of elections that there are different positions on the issue within the party. Though the party program refers to move to fully proportional system, some MPs believe “one can’t change the rules 60 days prior to the elections," she said. Zohrabyan said she and some other deputies think rules can be changed anytime, if necessary. In this regard, the party decided to hold free voting “in line with one’s views and conscience”, she said. The Armenian parliament held hearings on February 15 on transfer to 100 per cent proportional system of elections. The opposition Heritage and ARF Dashnaktsutyun parties came up with a joint statement on December 27, 2011 calling on the authorities to cancel the majority electoral system and move to 100 per cent proportional system of elections. The Armenian National Congress (ANC) and a number of other opposition forces backed this initiative. ANC also declared they plan to organize a rally during parliamentary discussions to support the idea. The coalition Prosperous Armenia party together with the opposition Heritage and ARF Dashnaktsutyun parties addressed the speaker of the National Assembly Samvel Nikoyan on January 26 to organize parliamentary hearings on the issue of moving to 100 per cent proportional system of elections. Top stories President of the Armenian parliament Alen Simonyan met with the Speaker of the Azerbaijani Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova. Achieving stable peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan remains a priority of the OSCE, said Ian Borg. The Cabinet of Ministers decided on Thursday, November 9 to allocated AMD 120 million to arrange the gathering. Michael Roth believes sanctions must be put on the table after Baku‘s ethnic cleansing in Nagorno-Karabakh. Partner news | Iran’s Red Crescent sends aid to Armenia’s flood-hit regions The Iranian Red Crescent Society has sent humanitarian aid to the victims of deadly floods that hit northern Armenia on May 25-26. Putin congratulates Pashinyan’s birthday Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan on his birthday on June 1. Opposition motorcade en route to Gyumri for large rally A motorcade of protesters headed by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan is heading to the city of Gyumri. Russia: Armenia’s frozen membership weakens CSTO position in Caucasus A Russian envoy said any step that could alienate the CSTO member states from each other is “deeply wrong”. |