MOSCOW, March 10. /TASS/. Chairman of the Russian State Duma (lower house) Statehood and Constitutional Legislation Committee Pavel Krasheninnikov said on Tuesday that the proposed Constitutional amendments are expected to enshrine that children are an important priority of Russia’s national policy.
"The working group discussed the wording for a long time. It was proposed to enshrine that children are the core value of the state, we declined that proposal. However, ‘the treasure of the Russian Federation’ is probably not the best wording either," he told reporters. "It is proposed to specify that "children are the most important priority of Russia’s national policy." In this form, the provision about children will fully comply with the values of our society."
The amendment was initiated by Krasheninnikov himself. The committee is expected to consider it on Tuesday before the second reading of the bill on Constitutional amendments.
On January 23, Russia’s State Duma (lower house of parliament) unanimously voted to approve the bill in the first reading on the constitutional amendments submitted by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The document, in particular, stipulates expanding the powers of the legislature and the Constitutional Court, a ban on high-ranking officials from holding residence permits in other countries, limiting the number of presidential terms, placing the supremacy of Russia’s constitution over international agreements and strengthening the state’s social obligations.