Imprisonment for taking election bribes is not a new thing

The draft on making amendments to the Criminal Code has been published in the e-draft.am website, which, however, has been misinterpreted in the media.

The legislative amendment mainly assumes criminalization of violation of the ban on charity during the electoral processes (previously, it was an administrative violation, and currently criminal liability is proposed).

However, the mass media have misinterpreted the content of the draft law, claiming that hereinafter voters will face imprisonment for taking bribes.

It should be noted that under existing legislation taking bribes is punished with a fine in the amount of five hundred to seven hundred times (500 to 700 thousand drams) the minimum salary or with imprisonment for a term of one to three years (Article 154.2, Part 1).

No changes have been made to the new draft in this respect. The fine is the same: the same amount, or imprisonment for the same term. In other words, punishment in the form of imprisonment for accepting bribes is not a new thing. It was adopted back in 2016.