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PENSION DEBATE: PARLIAMENT MINORITY SPLIT ON GOVERNMENT-DRAFTED AMENDMENTS TO CONTROVERSIAL LAW
PENSIONS | 13.05.14 | 14:24
By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
This week at the NA extra sitting ARF (Dashnaktsutyun) party
expressed its positive opinion about the amendments to the law of
funded pensions, explaining that these changes omit the compulsory
element of the law.
Under Armenia's new pension law all citizens born after 1973 must
pay an additional five to 10 percent of their salaries to privately
owned pension funds. Dem.am civil campaign members claim that the
compulsory element of the law violates Armenia's Constitution and is,
therefore, unacceptable.
The fight against the new law speeded up ever since the Constitutional
Court on April 2 ruled that some portions of the law on funded
pensions were unconstitutional. The court, however, decided that
the unconstitutional provisions should remain valid until the end of
September, meanwhile the government and the National Assembly must
bring changes to the law.
Later the newly appointed Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan announced
that the government-drafted bill canceling penalties for failure to
make pension contributions at least until September 30 thereby de
facto suspends the compulsory element of the law.
According to ARF MP Artsvik Minasyan, in the new law a preamble is
added, which suggests canceling article 76, which means that there is
or there can be no responsibility for those who have not been paying
since January 1.
"In case of receiving a respective application from an employee the
employer is released from the responsibility to make pension payments,"
the newly amended version suggests.
Head of the parliamentary committee on social issues, republican
Hakob Hakobyan mentioned that the applications can be submitted by
the participants of the mandatory pension system. The state, however,
will continue paying the 5 percent set by the law regardless of it.
"The citizens who have deducted the money and changed their mind,
according to the new law, have to submit an application, thus their
money is not transferred, but the government continues paying. The
employers who have deducted their employees' money and haven't
transferred starting from the day they submit the application can
receive their money back," Hakobyan said, adding that by the suggested
changes the government doesn't, however, give up the compulsory
element and that the reform is still in force.
ANC faction head Levon Zurabyan thinks by the amended bill of the
law the government doesn't give up the compulsory element.
"Why do you think Hovik Abrahamyan attended the meetings of the
quartet [four minority factions] and tried to win all political
powers' support? It's an easy math: behind the public back he is
trying to sign a separate deal and receive a tool which will allow
them to win more time and to weaken the Dem.am campaign, as well as
other civil movements' and powers' pressure. And we announce that we,
ANC, will not share the responsibility for this fraud. We won't turn
to a separate deal, we will go till the end to realize the public's
justified demands."
PAP member Mikael Melkumyan demanded clarifications from the government
saying, "Is it constitutional to demand that a person come and submit
an application for receiving back his own property? Many portions in
the project are already unconstitutional."
Eventually, on Tuesday, the parliament passed the bill in its first
reading by a vote of 68 to 12, with 36 abstentions.
http://armenianow.com/society/pensions/54321/armenia_parliament_pensions_law_amendments
PENSIONS | 13.05.14 | 14:24
By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
This week at the NA extra sitting ARF (Dashnaktsutyun) party
expressed its positive opinion about the amendments to the law of
funded pensions, explaining that these changes omit the compulsory
element of the law.
Under Armenia's new pension law all citizens born after 1973 must
pay an additional five to 10 percent of their salaries to privately
owned pension funds. Dem.am civil campaign members claim that the
compulsory element of the law violates Armenia's Constitution and is,
therefore, unacceptable.
The fight against the new law speeded up ever since the Constitutional
Court on April 2 ruled that some portions of the law on funded
pensions were unconstitutional. The court, however, decided that
the unconstitutional provisions should remain valid until the end of
September, meanwhile the government and the National Assembly must
bring changes to the law.
Later the newly appointed Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan announced
that the government-drafted bill canceling penalties for failure to
make pension contributions at least until September 30 thereby de
facto suspends the compulsory element of the law.
According to ARF MP Artsvik Minasyan, in the new law a preamble is
added, which suggests canceling article 76, which means that there is
or there can be no responsibility for those who have not been paying
since January 1.
"In case of receiving a respective application from an employee the
employer is released from the responsibility to make pension payments,"
the newly amended version suggests.
Head of the parliamentary committee on social issues, republican
Hakob Hakobyan mentioned that the applications can be submitted by
the participants of the mandatory pension system. The state, however,
will continue paying the 5 percent set by the law regardless of it.
"The citizens who have deducted the money and changed their mind,
according to the new law, have to submit an application, thus their
money is not transferred, but the government continues paying. The
employers who have deducted their employees' money and haven't
transferred starting from the day they submit the application can
receive their money back," Hakobyan said, adding that by the suggested
changes the government doesn't, however, give up the compulsory
element and that the reform is still in force.
ANC faction head Levon Zurabyan thinks by the amended bill of the
law the government doesn't give up the compulsory element.
"Why do you think Hovik Abrahamyan attended the meetings of the
quartet [four minority factions] and tried to win all political
powers' support? It's an easy math: behind the public back he is
trying to sign a separate deal and receive a tool which will allow
them to win more time and to weaken the Dem.am campaign, as well as
other civil movements' and powers' pressure. And we announce that we,
ANC, will not share the responsibility for this fraud. We won't turn
to a separate deal, we will go till the end to realize the public's
justified demands."
PAP member Mikael Melkumyan demanded clarifications from the government
saying, "Is it constitutional to demand that a person come and submit
an application for receiving back his own property? Many portions in
the project are already unconstitutional."
Eventually, on Tuesday, the parliament passed the bill in its first
reading by a vote of 68 to 12, with 36 abstentions.
http://armenianow.com/society/pensions/54321/armenia_parliament_pensions_law_amendments