On the 5th of February, 2010 in the RA Constitutional Court heard the claim of the Freedom of Information Center to declare 151st and 152nd articles of the RA Administrative Procedure Code as contradicting the RA Constitution. Right on the same day the court announced its decision.
The Constitutional Court decided that 151st and 152nd articles of the RA Administrative Procedure Code do not contradict the RA Constitution. The Constitutional Court stated that the problem lies in the legislative gap in this sphere. It is necessary that the competent body, i.c. the RA National Assembly, implement a proper initiative in order to fill the legislative gap by carrying out reforms in the RA Code of RA Administrative Offence and by creating an administrative penalizing system.
In the end the president of the RA Constitutional Court Gagik Harutyunyan thanked the FOI Center for touching upon such an important issue.
It is worth reminding that in the cases of FOI vs. the Nor Nork district municipality and FOI vs. “Office for Building Yerevan and Implementing Investment Projects” State Non-Commercial Organization courts have dismissed FOI’s demand to inflict an administrative penalty upon the official, arguing that according to 151st and 152nd articles of the RA Administrative Procedure Code proceedings can be taken for inflicting administrative penalties only based on the claims of the officials of such bodies that according to the law have the competence to write statements about administrative offenses. Whereas, FOI is not such a body or official who has these competences. However, in the RA Administrative Procedure Code it is not mentioned which bodies have the right to write such statements. So, it turns out that it is impossible to inflict administrative penalties upon an official who has violated one’s freedom of information just because there is not a body or official to write the necessary statement.
It is worth reminding that in the cases of FOI vs. the Nor Nork district municipality and FOI vs. “Office for Building Yerevan and Implementing Investment Projects” State Non-Commercial Organization courts have dismissed FOI’s demand to inflict an administrative penalty upon the official, arguing that according to 151st and 152nd articles of the RA Administrative Procedure Code proceedings can be taken for inflicting administrative penalties only based on the claims of the officials of such bodies that according to the law have the competence to write statements about administrative offenses. Whereas, FOI is not such a body or official who has these competences. However, in the RA Administrative Procedure Code it is not mentioned which bodies have the right to write such statements. So, it turns out that it is impossible to inflict administrative penalties upon an official who has violated one’s freedom of information just because there is not a body or official to write the necessary statement.
