Hrair Tovmasyan: Offering bribe is already a crime.

 In an interview with Armenia's Public TV, Armenia's Minister of Justice Hrair Tovmasyan spoke of the planned legislative reforms.

Specifically, reforms envisage criminalization of demand for or offer of a bribe, whereas only an accomplished fact of bribery was considered a penal act before, the minister said. Tovmasyan said that a record of a conversation can from now on serve as a basis for prosecuting a corrupt official. Under the law, political parties are to carry out more transparent activities and present financial statements. "It is in conformity with Article 7 of Armenia's Constitution. According to the reforms, a number of entities have no right to donate to political parties - charities, religious organizations or government agencies," Tovmasyan said. Political parties are supposed to present their annual financial statements to Armenia's Central Electoral Commission, he added.