March 1 not proper day for debating State of Emergency law - Alexander Arzumanyan.

Bringing the State of Emergency law to the parliament’s vote on the anniversary of the March 1 political turmoil is like sacrilege, according to Alexander Arzumanyan, a fromer member of the opposition Free Democrats party.

At a news conference on Friday, the activist said that putting the bill to vote on March 1 is like a pre-electoral message warning population to avoid protests in order not to meet violence by oligarchs, as well as the army.

Mkrtich Minasyan of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) called for putting aside coincidences, adding that any clause, if found unconstitutional, is always subject to amendments.

“Countries all over the world use their tools to breach the constitutional order through violence,” he said.

Arzumanyan noted in response that the authorities will this time too, resort to violence while implementing the law “because they attacked the peaceful crowd, slaughtering people in an attempt to reproduce themselves.”

Arzumanyan, who is a former member of the opposition Armenian National Congress (ANC) said the legal measure could be debated after the formation of the new parliament, not two months before the scheduled polls.

But the Republican lawmaker argued his point, noting that the bill not only applies to demonstrations and marches but is also intended to ensure mechanisms of resisting external threats in emergencies.