Armenian parliament adopts bill on seizure of illegally acquired property
16.04.2020,
17:01
By a vote of 99 to 1 and 15 abstentions Armenia's National Assembly has approved today in the second and final reading a package of amendments to the bill on confiscation of illegally acquired property and related laws.
YEREVAN, April 16. /ARKA/. By a vote of 99 to 1 and 15 abstentions Armenia's National Assembly has approved today in the second and final reading a package of amendments to the bill on confiscation of illegally acquired property and related laws.
When signed into law, it will allow authorities to confiscate private properties and other assets deemed to have been acquired illegally.
Justice Minister Rustam Badasyan said the bill had been evaluated positively by several international organizations. According to him, confiscation of illegally acquired property could be carried only on the basis of a court verdict, and the defendant will be able to provide evidence justifying the lawful acquisition of property.
Badasyan said an investigation into illegally acquired property may be launched as part of other corruption-related criminal cases.
According to the adopted amendments, prosecutors are allowed to investigate individuals in those cases where the market value of their assets exceeds their legally declared incomes by at least 50 million drams ($105,000). The previous threshold was 25 million drams. The opposition criticized this provision arguing that it must be at least doubled .
According to the minister, the proposals of the opposition were incorporated into the bill before it was passed in the second reading.
Earlier, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that from the position of the European Court of Human Rights, the seizure of illegally acquired property is a normal practice in the fight against corruption and is not considered a restriction on human rights. -0-
When signed into law, it will allow authorities to confiscate private properties and other assets deemed to have been acquired illegally.
Justice Minister Rustam Badasyan said the bill had been evaluated positively by several international organizations. According to him, confiscation of illegally acquired property could be carried only on the basis of a court verdict, and the defendant will be able to provide evidence justifying the lawful acquisition of property.
Badasyan said an investigation into illegally acquired property may be launched as part of other corruption-related criminal cases.
According to the adopted amendments, prosecutors are allowed to investigate individuals in those cases where the market value of their assets exceeds their legally declared incomes by at least 50 million drams ($105,000). The previous threshold was 25 million drams. The opposition criticized this provision arguing that it must be at least doubled .
According to the minister, the proposals of the opposition were incorporated into the bill before it was passed in the second reading.
Earlier, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that from the position of the European Court of Human Rights, the seizure of illegally acquired property is a normal practice in the fight against corruption and is not considered a restriction on human rights. -0-
