On 18 October, 2017, the Chamber of Advocates of the Republic of Armenia initiated a discussion on the RA Draft Law “On the Prevention of Domestic Violence and the Protection of Domestic Violence.” The round-table discussion was attended by representatives of the Chamber, as well as the police, the Ombudsman’s Office, and invitees from various public organizations.
Ara Zohrabyan, the Chairman of the Chamber of Advocates, expressed concern over the problematic issues included in the draft law and informed that a working group was established and will try to present practical proposals jointly by involvement of all stakeholders.
Advocate Mariam Zadoyan, from the Armenian Lawyers’ Association, noted that there is a need to adopt the law, since the current legislation does not have leverages through which it will be possible to prevent domestic violence. On the other hand, the advocate shared the concern raised by her colleagues that a number of provisions in the draft are imperfect, thereby causing discretion and corruption risks. Mariam Zadoyan also raised the issue that “psychological violence” that is the forced abortion of the woman against her will, including sex-selective abortion, should be considered as well.