“Only by state order and on holidays”: fireworks in Armenia
Fireworks ban in Armenia
Armenia will ban “private” fireworks, meaning they will no longer be allowed for private wedding and birthday celebrations. The state intends to control the situation and order the deployment fireworks by specific organizations for certain holidays itself.
According to a draft law developed by the ruling party, the free sale of fireworks will also be prohibited. Citizens will be able to purchase and use only sparklers and candles for cakes with a firework effect.
Experts believe that the Armenian parliament will approve the bill, which would only go into effect in June 2023.
Ban on fireworks during private celebrations
According to the Deputy Mayor of Yerevan, former Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan, fireworks will be done in the capital only on holidays and by organizations and businesses which receive permission from the mayor.
The Yerevan City Council unanimously voted in favor of the project presented by Avinyan, which outlined the conditions for firework displays. It has already been announced that in the capital fireworks will only be deployed on Republic Square and Freedom Square.
“Fireworks will be allowed only on holidays and only at the initiative of state bodies and local governments,” the Vice Mayor said.
Violators will be fined from 300,000 to 1 million drams ($750 – 2,500) and in case of repeated violation up to 2 million drams ($5,000).
According to Avinyan, in some cases, such as the Junior Eurovision song contest, fireworks may be held on non-holidays and in unspecified places, but again by permission of the mayor.
“At the same time, the powers of the mayor will not be unlimited. He cannot allow fireworks, for example, in enclosed spaces, close to flammable objects and in a number of other cases,” the Vice Mayor explained.
After an August explosion at a pyrotechnics warehouse in Yerevan’s Surmalu shopping center that killed sixteen people, Tigran Avinyan said fireworks should be banned from private celebrations.
Import of pyrotechnics after obtaining a license
MP from the ruling Civil Contract faction Sisak Gabrielyan proposed licensing to
- import, store, and use explosive materials and explosive equipment,
- import materials for the production of pyrotechnics.
“The free sale of sparklers, the simplest and small fireworks for cakes, will continue, but their storage places, warehouses, and use will be brought in line with standards. And the fireworks known to all of us, which are organized on the street, depending on their type are class 4 and 5 fireworks — their sale to citizens will be strictly prohibited,” explained the author of the bill, Sisak Gabrielyan.
Fireworks will be arranged by order of the state not only in Yerevan, but throughout Armenia, and enforcement will be entrusted to the police.
In the meantime, fireworks are prohibited in Armenia from 23:00 to 07:00. A fine of 100,000 drams ($250) will be levied for violations provided; the penalty is doubled if someone repeatedly violates the current regulations. But, according to MPs, these fines “are not a sufficient deterrent for firework lovers.”
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Fireworks ban in Armenia
