AMMENDMENTS TO ARMENIAN CONSTITUTION CAME

UNCLAS YEREVAN 002125

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPT FOR EUR/CACEN AND DRL

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL AM
SUBJECT: AMMENDMENTS TO ARMENIAN CONSTITUTION CAME
INTO FORCE DECEMBER 8


Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect
accordingly.

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SUMMARY
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1. (SBU) Armenia formally adopted its amended
constitution December 8, following the closure of the
seven-day window for filing legal challenges to the
November 27 constitutional referendum. According to
Armenian law, only the President or one-third of the
Parliament have standing to challenge the results of a
national referendum. End Summary.

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NO FORMAL LEGAL COMPLAINTS FILED
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2. (SBU) Amendments to the Armenian Constitution
(endorsed by the Council of Europe's Venice Commission)
adopted via national referendum on November 27, entered
into force December 8. The new text of the
Constitution was published in the special issue of the
"Official Bulletin" on December 7, following the seven-
day time limit for considering all possible legal
complaints questioning the legitimacy of the
referendum.


3. (SBU) According to the spokeswoman for the Central
Electoral Committee (CEC) of Armenia, Tsovinar
Khachatrian, the Central Electoral Commission of
Armenia received no complaints or formal appeals
regarding the conduct of the referendum from citizen
groups, political parties or individuals. Khachatrian
told us that all appeals regarding the referendum
outcome should have been submitted within seven days
after the referendum, but that the CEC did not receive
any.


4. (SBU) In an interview with Mediamax, Deputy Chairman
of the Constitutional Court of Armenia, Volodia
Hovanesian, noted that during the seven days following
the referendum, the Constitutional Court also did not
receive any appeals contesting the outcome of the
referendum. Hovanesian stated that "the amendments to
the Constitution have already come into force and their
content is not subject to appeal."

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COMMENT: UNREALISTICALLY BURDENSOME APPEALS PROCESS
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5. (SBU) Despite widespread opposition and NGO protests
about what they alleged to be a rigged vote November
27, no one filed a formal, legal complaint to either
the Central Election Commission or the Constitutional
Court contesting the referendum's outcome. A legal
appeal contesting the vote's outcome could have been
made either by the president or by one third of the
National Assembly deputies. (Note: The governing
coalition controls more than two-thirds of the seats in
the National Assembly. End Note.) In the end, there
was no one with legal standing who also had an interest
in contesting the referendum results, thus the results
stand.
EVANS