“Zhoghovurd” reports on a “squabble” between two pro-government lawmakers after one of them abstained in the Tuesday vote on whether or not to bring onto the floor of the National Assembly a controversial opposition-drafted bill that would expressly ban same-sex marriages in Armenia. “As passions were running high the men of the My Step faction, perhaps forgetting where they were, rushed out of the chamber and continued their argument in the corridor… Other lawmakers had to intervene to stop the fight,” the paper writes.
Lragir.am notes that the killing of an Armenian Catholic priest in Syria occurred on the day when Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was on a visit to Yerevan. “During a joint press conference with his Armenian counterpart, Zohrab Mnatsakanian, Lavrov also spoke about the mission of Russia and Armenia in protecting the Christian population of Syria. Mnatsakanian thanked Russia for helping ethnic Armenians in Syria. A few days ago the U.S. House of Representatives passed a resolution recognizing the Armenian Genocide. Earlier, U.S. leaders repeatedly spoke about responsibility towards Christians in the Middle East,” the paper writes, wondering whether the killing of an Armenian Catholic priest was “a message that some forces do not want Christian Armenians to become a geopolitical factor in the region.” “Is it a warning to Armenians or the countries that speak about the need to preserve Christianity in the Middle East?” the paper asks.
The editor of “Aravot” writes: “Discussions about criminal subculture are a dispute between idealists and realists. Idealists say that everything must be according to law and that no one can have privileges not envisaged by law… Realists are convinced that criminal subculture is formed in the family, in the kindergarten, in the yard and at school. Realists also say that in certain closed environments, especially in penitentiaries, it is impossible to establish internal order only by official administration and that informal leaders are needed for that. Prison is the most vivid example of regulations bypassing the law, but with certain modifications this subculture also exists in military units, at school, in the yard. Should such phenomena be dealt with? I think they should. But is it possible to deal with them through legislative regulations? I think it isn’t. It is a matter of promoting true culture, education and orderly behavior when children are taught from early on not to respect bullying and impudence and respect the opposite.”
(Lilit Harutiunian)