Epress.am News from Armenia
Armenia's National Assembly just now adopted the revised bill on the funded pension with 68 votes in favor; 12, against; and 36, abstentions.
Before the vote, Prosperous Armenia Party MP Naira Zohrabyan said her party will abstain because though the draft law is a step forward, it is incomplete — it does not resolve all the issues and does not meet the demands of citizens. Rule of Law (until recently, a member of the ruling coalition) also abstained.
Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) MP Artsvik Minasyan said his party too will abstain. Yesterday, however, Minasyan said his party would vote in favor of the bill.
The Armenian National Congress (HAK) and Heritage Party voted against the bill, though HAK MP Hrant Bagratyan said he will abstain.
"You are taking a half-step forward, but, in my opinion, this step will turn into two steps back in September," he said.
Recall, according to the new law, which came into force on Jan. 1, 2014, employed citizens in Armenia born after 1973 are required to pay 5–10% of their monthly gross salaries to one of two private pension funds determined by the government. They would be able to access their funds when they turn 63 (the age of retirement for both men and women in Armenia). In December 2013, 36 MPs from the four non-ruilng parties in parliament filed an application with the Constitutional Court, arguing that several provisions of the new law were unconstitutional. The plaintiffs asked the Court to revoke the mandatory component of the law.
On April 2, the Constitutional Court ruled that the mandatory component was unconstitutional, and the Government of the Republic of Armenia and the RA National Assembly were given until September 30 this year to revise the law to comply with the requirements of the Constitutional Court ruling.