MONEY LAUNDERING CASE IS LIKE STORM IN A TEACUP, SAYS OSKANYAN
tert.am
01.10.12
A former foreign minister, now a lawmaker of the Prosperous Armenia
party (PAP), Vartan Oskanyan, says the money laundering proceeding
against him is like a storm in a teacup.
Addressing the parliament on Wednesday, the politician characterized
the case as a revengeful act against the PAP ahead of the presidential
election.
According to him, Armenia does not have enough financial and
geopolitical resources for that. “[That’s motivated] by the task of
banishing a political contender. They are preparing for a presidential
election, speaking in a hostage’s language and what’s even more,
from the position of someone with a political majority,” he said.
To prove that he isn’t the kind of person who could have appropriated
money, Oskanyan spoke of his family, saying that his ancestors dealt
with diamond cutting and jewelry for four generations consecutively.
He said his family lived on personal savings in Armenia in the first
years of independence.
“I didn’t own a business; I am fed up with that,” he said, adding
that he doesn’t see anything bad about the international donors’
trust, that enable him to bring money to Armenia.
Oskanyan noted that the Huntsman family, which supports his foundation,
Civilitas, had made two kinds of donations, the first being a direct
assistance to the foundation, and the second transferred through his
personal account.
“The question is if they really wanted the entire [sum] to go to
Civilitas, it could have directly gone there,” he said, noting that
the Huntsmans’ September 12 letter to the inquest body reaffirmed
his right to use the money at his own discretion.
Oskanyan quit the Civilitas Foundation’s board in May to join the
Prosperous Armenia party and run for parliament. On May 25, the
National Security Council launched a money laundering proceeding
against Civilatas, accusing the foundation of a failure to report
a $1.5 million donation to the tax authorities. Oskanyan’s lawyer
later asked a Yerevan district the court to halt the proceeding but
his motion was rejected.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Emil Lazarian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
Direct link to this article: https://www.armenianclub.com/2012/10/02/money-laundering-case-is-like-storm-in-a-teacup-says-oskanyan/
