In his interview with Yerkir Media TV, President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian also touched upon the Lanzarote Convention ratified by the National Assembly and the future actions linked to the Convention.

“This is a sensitive topic because it concerns children, their education and protection, and there are certain subtleties. The Convention has been signed by 47 countries, and it has been ratified by 5 countries, starting from Russia and ending with European countries. Armenia’s neighboring countries have also ratified the Convention. After ratifying it, Azerbaijan issued a statement stating three points which, I believe, will be in the focus of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Armenia,” the President said, adding that this is not a law and that various countries adopt different approaches to children’s sexual education after ratifying the Convention.

“There are countries that say they will pilot the sexual education program starting from the seventh grade, and there are countries that say sexual education needs to be acceptable upon parents’ consent since this is what is stated in the Convention. I don’t know what road Armenia will take, and I am concerned about this,” he said.

As for the legal aspect, the President of Armenia can sign any law or send it to the Constitutional Court in the course of 21 days. “The Constitutional Court has already presented its opinion, stating that the Convention doesn’t contradict the Constitution. Therefore, the President’s only choice is to sign the law. Even if the President doesn’t sign it, it can be signed by the parliamentary speaker,” he said.