Law of Attraction

YEREVAN, July 3, 2007 (RFE/RL) — Armenia’s parliament has failed to pass legislation that would have placed severe restrictions on foreign media, including RFE/RL, due to the lack of a quorum, RFE/RL’s Armenian Service reported.

The legislation, which passed its first reading on June 29, would ban foreign broadcasts on public television and radio frequencies and heavily tax the domestic retransmission of foreign-made programs on private stations.

Parliament failed in two attempts to pass the legislation in its second and final reading today when opposition lawmakers blocked a quorum by boycotting the vote.

In the first attempt, only 64 votes were cast (63 for, none against, one abstention) in the 131-member parliament. In the second attempt, 65 votes were cast (63 for, none against, two abstentions).

Both fell short of the 66 votes necessary for a quorum.

If the government wants to make another attempt to pass the legislation, it must redraft and resubmit it for a first reading.

The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) criticized the legislation, saying it “would amount to a ban” on RFE/RL and would have made the country’s March 2008 presidential election less free and fair.