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On December 11 on the initiative of the NA Standing Committee on Defense, National Security and Internal Affairs the series of events on the theme “Human Rights in the Armed Forces” continued. The Committee Chairman Koryun Nahapetyan, members of the Committee Grigor Grigoryan, Artur Stepanyan, Ishkhan Khachatryan, the Deputy Chairman of the NA Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs Margarit Yesayan, the representatives of the Geneva Centre for the Democratic Control of Armed Forces, the OSCE Office in Yerevan, the Youth Parliament were present at the RA Military Police and held seminar-consultation with the staff.

The former Senator of the Netherlands, former Minister of Defence Willem van Eekelen presented the experience of the Netherlands in human rights monitoring of the armed forces, the ways of effective cooperation between the parliament and the armed forces, considering transparency and accountability important factors in democratic governance.

The Deputy Chairman of the NA Standing Committee on Protection of Human Rights and Public Affairs Margarit Yesayan touched upon the role of the army, as a guarantee of state security, and highlighted the problems of the servicemen’s rights protection and the consolidation of the society-army mutual relations and trust. On behalf of the Committee he expressed readiness to actively cooperate with the RA Military Police.

The Head of the RA Military Police Samvel Ghukasyan presented the reforms made in the sphere and, as a result of it, the success of the Military Police reached in preventing and disclosing crimes.

After the seminar-consultation the NA deputies and the representatives of the international organizations acquainted with the conditions of the disciplinary isolators of the RA Military Police, talked with the jailed servicemen, got interested in the protection of soldiers' rights and lawfulness of the applied punishments.

In the afternoon the NA deputies and the international experts visited the Disciplinary Battalion of Yerevan Garrison at the RA Military Police for conducting monitoring there. The Committee Chairman Koryun Nahapetyan talked with the soldiers serving in the Disciplinary Battalion. He urged the soldiers to be respectful, forgiving towards their friends and never forget about their duty towards their parents and Motherland.