No vote on "pay-to-skip-service" bill as Armenian lawmakers push back

The Armenian Parliament has decided not to include the contentious draft law on the “buyout” of military service in the agenda of its upcoming session, despite previous government support for the measure.

The ruling “Civil Contract” party largely opposed placing the bill on the parliamentary agenda during today’s session. Only Deputy Speaker Hakob Arshakyan voted in favour of including it. Notably, even the bill’s author, pro-government MP Hayk Sargsyan, voted against its inclusion, Caliber.Az reports, citing Armenian media outlets.

The bill had earlier received a negative opinion from the parliament’s Defence Committee, further reducing its chances of being debated.

Initially, the Armenian government had issued a favourable opinion on the draft law back on May 22. The latest version proposed that individuals could pay 24 million drams (approximately $62,000) to fulfil just one month of mandatory military service, designated as a training course. An alternative option would allow payment of 18 million drams (around $46,000) in exchange for four months of service at a training base.

However, the proposal sparked strong criticism from human rights defenders. Armenia’s current Human Rights Defender, Anahit Manasyan, as well as former Ombudsman Arman Tatoyan, denounced the initiative as unconstitutional and discriminatory. They warned that the bill would promote social injustice by creating unequal conditions for different groups of citizens.

Manasyan specifically urged that such sensitive matters should be resolved through more balanced methods that respect both human rights and national security considerations.

By Tamilla Hasanova