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Chairman of the Constitutional Court of Armenia Gagik Harutyunyan attended the 103rd plenary session of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (the Venice Commission), the press service of Constitutional Court reports.

Among the issues on the session agenda was the work on constitutional reforms in Armenia.

The Venice Commission assessed positively the work done at this stage and approved the timetable of further joint discussions. Based on the results of debates due in July, a group of rapporteurs will present an opinion about the package of reforms. In particular, Commission member Kaarlo Tuori (Finland) stressed that the expert group gave an absolutely positive assessment of the constitutional changes discussed.

President of the Venice Commission Gianni Buquicchio, when summing up the results, expressed satisfaction with the work done and stated about the Commission’s readiness to continue working in that direction.

The situation over the judiciary in Turkey was also considered at the last day of the Commission’s session on June 20. Mr. Buquicchio informed the plenary session participants that the Venice Commission received many letters from Turkish judges, prosecutors and lawyers to the effect that they are being persecuted, while after adoption in February 2014 of the bill on the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors, the executive power received huge levers to interfere in the judiciary’s functions.

The Venice Commission approved a Bureau-submitted statement condemning encroachments on judicial independence in Turkey.