The Armenian National Assembly is to ratify the European...

The Armenian National Assembly is to ratify the European Convention on Human Rights and the provision of its sixth protocol to unconditionally abolish capital punishment, as the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe decided that all member-countries must sign the agreement. If earlier war crimes were the only acceptable instance for the application of capital punishment, this is no longer the case. All member-countries must sign the agreement at the 110th meeting of the Committee of Ministers in Vilnius, Lithuania on 3 May 2002.
Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Tigran Torosyan said that the perpetrators of the terrorist act of 27 October 1999 [parliament shooting] could be qualified as war criminals and consequently sentenced to death.
However Armenian socialists oppose the abolition of the death penalty.
In a statement, the Socialist Armenia union said: "Armenian society is not ready for the abolition of capital punishment. Unresolved felony cases over the last few years and overly lenient attitudes towards their perpetrators have created an atmosphere of impunity for one part of society and distrust and despair for another." In this situation, abolition of capital punishment can only enhance the polarization of society and be conducive to harsher mores, the statement says.
"Although this severe punishment may never be carried out in Armenia, we are not entitled to allow some people in our country to be sure that they can evade death under any circumstances."
The Socialist Armenia union said the issue of capital punishment is a problem of the future, when society is ready for the ethical choice.