This bill is aimed at prohibiting the development of non-regulatory relations between servicemen in the Armed Forces. This is what co-author of the bill, secretary of the Prosperous Armenia faction of the National Assembly Arman Abovyan declared during a discussion on the bill on making amendments to the Criminal Code in the second reading at the National Assembly today.

According to the proposed bill, in case of inciting a serviceman to commit suicide, the culprit shall be punished for a term of imprisonment. If a serviceman threatens, uses force, shows brutality or degrades the honor and dignity of a serviceman in the premises of his military unit or other place of military service and this becomes a reason for the injured party to commit suicide, the culprit shall be punished with imprisonment for 3-8 years. If these actions are carried out against a group of persons, an officer, a commander, subalterns and the same person on a regular basis, the imprisonment will be for 5-10 years. If the mentioned crimes are committed during martial law, war or military operations, the term will be extended to 7-12 years.

Based on the data of monitoring conducted by the Helsinki Citizens' Assembly Vanadzor Office, 88 cases of suicide have been recorded in the Armenian army between 2010 and 2019.

In its turn, the Prosecutor General’s Office of Armenia has reported that between January and June 2019, 11 citizens of the Republic of Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic have died during military service. Moreover, another 18 deaths have not been linked to military service.