Month: February 2015

Armenian prime minister orders scrutiny of Tsarukyan’s charitable activity

YEREVAN, February 16. /ARKA/. Armenian Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan
ordered today a scrutiny of the charitable activity of Gagik Tsarukyan,
leader of Prosperous Armenia party.

The order was prompted by rumors going around that Tsarukyan evades
taxes under color of charity.

David Harutyunyan, minister-head of the government staff, sent an
appropriate message to Gagik Khachatryan, finance minister, Gohar
Poghosyan, press secretary of the prime minister, told ARKA News
Agency on Monday.

Speaking at a Thursday meeting of the executive board of the ruling
Republican Party of Armenia President Sargsyan lashed out at his
former coalition partner describing him as ‘a scourge for the country
who lacks intelligence, skills and education to govern Armenia.’

Sargsyan told Prime Minister Hovik Abrahamyan to instruct corresponding
bodies to thoroughly investigate the veracity of “unverified reports”
implicating Tsarukyan in large-scale tax evasion.

In retaliation to Sargsyan’s crackdown, the leader of the Prosperous
Armenia Party said the following day that the current situation in
the country requires solution and ‘the only solution is a complete
change of power through extraordinary presidential elections.’

Gagik Tsarukyan said also he was offered the post of president of
the country but only after constitutional reforms that would turn
Armenia into a parliamentary republic.

He claimed that the reform is aimed at enabling Sargsyan to stay in
power after the end of his second and final presidential term in 2018.

Tsarukyan said he declined the offer causing Sargsyan’s anger.

Prosperous Armenia is the second largest force in the parliament
controlling 36 seats. It was part of coalition governments from 2007
to 2012. According to some estimates, Tsarukyan is the third-richest
person of Armenia. On February 20, the party and its key allies,
the Armenian National Congress and Heritage, plan to hold a joint
rally in Yerevan to press for Sargsyan’s ouster. —0—-

EX-FOREIGN MINISTER AND PARTY FELLOWS THREATEN TO START SIT-INS AND HUNGER STRIKES

YEREVAN, February 16. / ARKA /. Several parliament members from
the Prosperous Armenia Party, including ex foriegn minister Vartan
Oskanian, secretary of the party’s parliamentary faction Naira
Zohrabyan and others may start a sit-in and a hunger strike if the
party leader Gagik Tsarukyan is stripped of his parliamentary seat,
RFE/RL reported quoting a party member Vahan Babayan. Babayan said
this decision was made by the party’s governing board.

In the mealtime the Armenian parliament was to discuss the issue
on the grounds of “Tsarukyan’s chronic absenteeism” after president
Sargsyan said last week that Tsarukyan attended only four of the 145
meetings of the legislative body.

Speaking at a Thursday meeting of the executive board of the ruling
Republican Party of Armenia president Sargsyan lashed out at his
former coalition partner describing him as ‘a scourge for the country
who lacks intelligence, skills and education to govern Armenia.’

Sargsyan told prime minister Hovik Abrahamyan to instruct corresponding
bodies to thoroughly investigate the veracity of “unverified reports”
implicating Tsarukyan in large-scale tax evasion.

In retaliation to Sargsyan’s crackdown, the leader of the Prosperous
Armenia Party said the following day that the current situation in
the country requires solution and ‘the only solution is a complete
change of power through extraordinary presidential elections.’

Prosperous Armenia is the second largest force in the parliament
controlling 36 seats. It was part of coalition governments from 2007
to 2012. According to some estimates, Tsarukyan is the third-richest
person of Armenia.

On February 20, the party and its key allies, the Armenian National
Congress and Heritage, plan to hold a joint rally in Yerevan to press
for Sargsyan’s ouster.-0-

ARMENIAN BUSINESSMAN COMMITS SUICIDE

YEREVAN, February 16. / ARKA /. An Armenian businessman, head of a
large construction company Hamlet Amirkhanyan was found dead in his
country house on Monday, Pastinfo reported. According to preliminary
information, the businessman committed a suicide by shooting himself.

Earlier media reports said that several high-ranking officials who
bought apartments in a residential building at Sayat-Nova 40 in the
center of Yerevan, built by Amirkhanyan’s company, could lose their
apartments because they were mortgaged at a bank.

Despite Amirkhanyan’s claims that the problem would be resolved soon
the owners of apartments could not register them.-0-

ARMENIAN NATIONAL ASSEMBLY’S ADMINISTRATION LOOKING THROUGH RECORDS OF 2014 FALL SESSIONS TO SEE MPS’ ATTENDANCE

YEREVAN, February 16. /ARKA/. The administration of the National
Assembly of Armenia is looking through records of the 2014 fall
sessions to see the then attendance, Parliament Speaker Galust Sahakyan
was quoted by Novosti-Armenia as saying.

NOBEL PRIZE-WINNING TURKISH WRITER AVOIDS SPEAKING ABOUT ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

18:58, 16 Feb 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

Turkey’s military, which has forced out civilian governments in the
past, has been pushed to the sidelines but largely replaced with an
Islamist and authoritarian government, Turkish Nobel laureate Orhan
Pamuk said in remarks published on Saturday, Today’s Zaman reports.

“Authoritarian soldiers were [pushed] out [but an] authoritarian
and Islamist government took their place,” he said in an interview
with the French news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP) in Istanbul,
referring to Turkey’s recent history in which military influence over
politics has slowly disappeared and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan
and the ruling Justice and Development Party (AK Party) have become
the new center of power.

He also said that the AK Party was “destroying the balance of powers,
which is in fact the key to any democracy.”

“In that sense, Turkey is only [an] electoral democracy, but a
democracy where the respect [for] human rights, free speech are
violated every day,” said Pamuk, adding that he sensed a deterioration
when he last returned to Turkey from New York, where he teaches at
Columbia University.

“When I came back, I felt a climate of fear, people whispering,”
he told AFP.

In the interview, Pamuk was more reluctant to discuss the issue of the
Armenian Genocide at the hands of the disintegrating Ottoman Empire.

“I had a lot of trouble eight to 10 years ago because I talked freely
about this subject,” Pamuk said of his past remarks that caused a
great deal of controversy in Turkey.

SERGEY MINASYAN EXPECTS NO NEW PROPOSALD FROM CO-CHAIRS

19:26, 16 Feb 2015
Siranush Ghazanchyan

Political scientist Sergey Minasyan does not expect new proposals from
the OSCE Minsk Group Co-Chairs countries to the region. According to
him, the discussions will mainly focus on the line of contact.

“I don’t think the Co-Chairs will bring new proposals to the
countries. The mediators will hold serious discussions with the
Azerbaijani side on the situation at the line of contact and the
confidence-building measures,” Minasyan told Public Radio of Armenia.

He’s confident no other issues will be discussed.

The Co-Chairs will arrive in Armenia tomorrow. They are expected to
visit Nagorno Karabakh, as well.

From: Baghdasarian

FORMER ARMENIAN PRESIDENT SPEAKS ABOUT PROSPECT OF “DEEP CRISIS”

February 16, 2015 17:35
433 views

Yerevan/Mediamax/. Former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan said
today that “arrests and repressive actions will lead the country to
the deep and long-lasting crisis”.

He said this in his interview to 2rd.am site commenting on current
political situation in Armenia.

“I can’t explain why the President needed it. If the calculation was
to exert a pressure on Gagik Tsarukyan and thus dissolve the PAP,
it wasn’t effective. Vice versa, the opposition field demonstrates
distinct signs of unification as the vocabulary and goals have become
more radical. The PAP has not been discredited either due to extremely
lame arguments. Any action against the PAP now will be considered as
a persecution lacking legitimacy”, said Robert Kocharyan.

He noted that “the more zealously the authorities try to “clean up”
the political field, the stronger the unification against the power
and the more realistic the prospect of political shocks will be”.

At the same time, the former President said that the authorities still
can “stop and not to resort to an administrative actions against the
PAP leader, remain exclusively within oral duel and return to the
political field of confrontation with the opponents”.

“The intentions of the ruling party voiced at the session of the RPA
board are not within the Constitution of Armenia. The PAP and the
opposition in general is literally forced to organize mass actions
in the streets with unpredictable ramifications. The arrests and
repressive actions will lead the country to a deep and long-lasting
crisis. Our country is overloaded with grave issues and their solution
is only possible through the broader unification of the society
and restoring people’s faith in future. However, unfortunately,
what happened became a strong impulse in the opposite side”, said
Robert Kocharyan.

– See more at:

EACH ACTION AGAINST THE PAP LEADER WILL BE VIEWED AS POLITICAL PERSECUTION – ROBERT KOCHARYAN

18:18 / 16.02.2015

2rd.am has published an interview with Armenia’s second president
Robert Kocharyan over the created domestic political situation.

– Mr President, how can you explain the situation created between the
Republican party and the PAP? How will you explain the developments
that have taken place?

– I cannot explain why the president needed it. If they thought
that by pressing Gagik Tsarukyan they will reach the elimination of
the PAP they failed. Just the opposite, the opposition has obviously
started consolidation process. Neither did the authorities managed to
discredit the PAP due to the unconvincing hypotheses they brought up.

Each action against the PAP leader will be viewed as political
persecution which is not legitimate. Taking into consideration
the degree of social tension and dissatisfaction in the country as
well as the trust of people toward the PAP and its leader, the more
optimistically the authorities try to “clean” the political field,
the stronger will the consolidation against the authorities be and the
stronger the prospect of political blows will be. It is not difficult
to predict how it all will affect our economy, the situation on the
line of contact, on the conduction of events dedicated to the Armenian
Genocide centennial.

– Mr President, it seems that all this may really blow the domestic
political situation. Do the authorities have a way out of the
situation?

– I think they still have it. They should stop and not apply active
administrative actions against the PAP leader, remain just in the
oral fight, return to the political platform with their opponents. The
intentions voiced by the ruling party at the sitting of the political
council do not fit in the limits of the Armenian Constitution and
make the PAP and the opposition in general conduct mass rallies the
consequences of which are unpredictable. The arrests and repressive
actions will lead the country to deeper and long lasting crisis. Our
country is overloaded with serious problems and the solution is
possible only in case of consolidation and restoration of trust of
people toward the future. Unfortunately, what happened became a strong
signal in the opposite direction.

RUSSIA-BASED TYCOON SAMVEL KARAPETYAN HEADS TO YEREVAN

16:00 / 16.02.2015

In the coming hours well-known Russia-based tycoon Samvel Karapetyan
is arriving in Yerevan.

According to Nyut.am sources, Karapetyan is arriving with the mission
to reconcile Serzh Sargsyan and Gagik Tsarukyan. The tycoon is in
good relations both with the leaders of the Republican party and PAP.

Nyut.am

TO TAKE OLIGARCHS AWAY TO MEAN HAVING 1-2 MPS AND EMPTY CABINET – SOS GIMISHYAN

17:00 / 16.02.2015

There is no political fight in Armenia, there are just arrangements
behind the stage, chairman of the Christian-Democratic Revival party
Sos Gimishyan told the reporters on Monday. In his words there is no
mandate in the NA given without the consent of Serzh Sargsyan.

Referring to the statements as if PAP leader Gagik Tsarukyan is
avoiding paying taxes, Gimishyan stressed that al oligarchs do so. “It
sounds strange that the authorities voice this issue as there are
many people among them who avoid paying taxes,” he said.

Gimishyan said his wish is to see only political figures in the field.

“If the oligarchs are taken away from the NA, just one-two MPs will
stay there and the cabinet will be empty,” he stressed, adding that
the change of power is a must here but without blows.

“I consider Gagik Tsarukyan quite successful economic figure but not
political one. I hope it is not order from outside and no Maidan will
take place here. I think it will not last long, but I would like to
be mistaken and this political fight be just,” he said.

PAP MP Michael Melkumyan said that their team was not going to enter
the field of personal offences. “These processes must enter civilized
field. Is Gagik Tsarukyan guilty that no investments are being made
in Armenia, or that the unemployment rate is high,” he said, adding
that the PAP was opposition but wanted to make the changed gradually
without blows, but the recent developments accelerated the process.

“We have chosen the path of snap elections. One thing was not taken
into consideration – the people are ignored. The people mobilized over
non-governmental forces, over Gagik Tsarukyan. The authorities saw
that there is no corridor for reaching arrangement over Constitutional
changes which resulted in the created situation,” he said.

The PAP MP said that the people are by their side. Asked whether
Armenia’s second president Robert Kocharyan is engaged in the process,
Melkumyan said, “Robert Kocharyan is periodically coming up with his
concerns and observations. He is concerned with the situation in the
country but I cannot say whether he is in the process or not.”