Baghdassaryan: Stronger Parliament, Stronger Democracy

Festivities marking 15th anniversary of the National Assembly of Armenia are held in Yerevan. November 1 Prospects of Development of Parliament and Parliamentarism in Democracy international forum opened in the Armenian capital today. Armenian National Assembly Speaker Artur Baghdassaryan addressed the forum participants with a welcoming speech. He specifically noted the participation of parliaments in solving contemporary global issues was a demands of the times. “A stronger parliament has a greater role in promoting democracy,” he said. “As of the constitutional reforms in Armenia, these are aimed at decentralization of power, creation of independent judicial system, free market, protection of human rights and forming strong local self-government bodies,” Baghdassaryan remarked. The reform of the Constitution of Armenia is a requirement of the Council of Europe, he reminded. Resulting from the implementation of the reform the Parliament role will increase, which is “very important from democratic point of view,” Mr. Baghdassaryan said. “The stronger the Parliament, the stronger the democracy,” the Armenian Parliament leader supposes, reported IA Regnum.