Armenian law requires virtually all male citizens aged between 18 and 27 to serve in the country’s armed forces for two years. Refusal to do so is a crime punishable by five years in prison.
The bill drafted by Hayk Sargsian, a parliament deputy from the ruling Civil Contract party, and passed by the National Assembly in the first reading will give fugitive draft dodgers aged between 27 and 37 a range of options.
In particular, they will be able to turn themselves in and perform a two-and-a-half-year service or legally evade it by paying the state 15 million drams ($37,000). They could also serve in the armed forces for shorter periods in exchange for smaller fees.
Sargsian said that about 5,000 fugitive Armenian men will be eligible for these options. As things stands now, they cannot serve in the army “even if they want to,” complained the lawmaker.
“I don’t want us to again declare an amnesty in order to exempt these individuals from prosecution, but nor do I want to see 5,000 citizens sentenced to five years in prison,” he added during a debate on the parliament floor.
The parliament declared such an amnesty in 2021. More than 1,300 draft dodgers took advantage of it.
Sargsian also insisted that the new legal arrangements will not encourage draft evasion among draft-age men. He argued that it applies only to citizens aged 25 and older.
Opposition deputies and even some of Sargsian’s pro-government colleagues were not fully convinced by his assurances. Civil Contract’s Hovik Aghazarian was concerned that the bill will foster “wrong behavior” in the country.
“I’m quite uneasy about this idea,” said Sona Ghazarian, another Civil Contract deputy. “I think that we kind of undermine social justice and social equality with this bill.”
“We can’t tell people that if they don’t have money … they must serve the homeland or go to jail but if they have money they can pay up and move on,” said Tadevos Avetisian of the opposition Hayastan alliance.
Nevertheless, the parliament’s pro-government majority voted for the bill, while Hayastan and the other opposition bloc, Pativ Unem, abstained, instead of voting against it.
Armenia already had a similar amnesty-for-cash arrangement from 2004-2019. Officials say that some 10,000 draft evaders used it to avoid prosecution during those years.