Wednesday,
Armenian Opposition Slams U.S. Envoy
Armenia - U.S. Ambassador Lynne Tracy speaks to journalists in Syunik province,
September 15, 2021.
Opposition groups trying to topple Armenia’s government denounced the U.S.
ambassador in Yerevan on Wednesday for seemingly touting the outcome of last
year’s parliamentary elections won by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s party.
In an interview with the state-run Armenpress news agency, Ambassador Lynne
Tracy voiced support for the government’s “democratic and economic reform
agenda” amid continuing daily demonstrations held by the country’s leading
opposition forces.
“We are committed to continue helping the Armenian people build a future based
on shared democratic values, a path they chose in 2018 and to which they
recommitted themselves during the 2021 parliamentary election,” said Tracy.
Ishkhan Saghatelian, an opposition leader and the main speaker at the more than
two-week protests, criticized her comments when he addressed thousands of
supporters rallying in Yerevan’s France Square. He said that voters did not give
Pashinian a mandate to “cede” Nagorno-Karabakh to Azerbaijan.
“If some circles think the Armenian people will cater for their interests, they
are deeply mistaken,” Saghatelian told the crowd. “The Armenian people stand in
this square to prevent that. This is not a fight for power. This is a fight for
Armenia’s sovereignty. And let nobody contrast democracy with security.”
Saghatelian went on to accuse the United States and other Western power of
turning a blind eye to what called the Armenian authorities’ pressure on the
judiciary, the existence of “dozens of political prisoners” and other human
rights abuses.
“With you silence, you are contributing to dictatorship in Armenia,” he charged
before the protesters again marched through the city center to demand
Pashinian’s resignation.
Armenia - Parliament vice-speaker Ishkhan Saghatelian leads an opposition
demonstration in Yerevan, .
Saghatelian also stressed that for the Armenian opposition Russia is a
“strategic ally” while the U.S. and the European Union only “important partners”
of Armenia.
Reacting to the protests last week, the U.S. State Department spokesman, Ned
Price, urged the authorities to “exercise restraint.” He said at same the time
that the protesters should “refrain from violence and respect the rule of law
and Armenia’s democracy.”
The peaceful protests were sparked by Pashinian’s statements on the
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict made after his April 6 talks with Azerbaijani
President Ilham Aliyev.
Addressing the parliament on April 13, the prime minister said the international
community is pressing Armenia to scale back its demands on the status of
Karabakh and recognize Azerbaijan’s territorial integrity. He signaled Yerevan’s
intention to make such concessions to Baku.
Both the U.S. and the EU hailed Pashinian’s speech. U.S. Secretary of State
Antony Blinken praised his “courage and flexibility.”
Pashinian and his political allies have rejected the opposition demands for his
resignation. They say that they won in the June 2021 elections a popular mandate
to continue to rule Armenia.
Armenian Opposition Lawmakers Risk Losing Parliament Seats
• Astghik Bedevian
• Artak Khulian
Armenia - Ishkhan Saghatelian (second from right) and other opposition lawmakers
lead an anti-government rally in Yerevan, .
The leadership of Armenia’s parliament has threatened to strip its opposition
members boycotting sessions of the National Assembly and leading ongoing
anti-government protests in Yerevan of their seats.
The 35 lawmakers representing the opposition Hayastan and Pativ Unem alliances
began the boycott last month in advance of the daily demonstrations demanding
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s resignation.
Under Armenian law, a lawmaker can lose their seat if they skip, for
“non-legitimate” reasons, at least half of parliament votes during a single
semi-annual session of the National Assembly. The final decision to that effect
is to be made by the Constitutional Court at the initiative of the parliament’s
leadership or at least one-fifth of the deputies.
Parliament speaker Alen Simonian said on Tuesday that he is considering
initiating such an appeal to the court.
Armenia - Opposition supporters march through Republic Square, Yerevan, May 17,
2022.
“There is a law which I believe must be enforced,” he told RFE/RL’s Armenian
Service. “We will hold a discussion and make sense [of the situation.]”
Simonian said the parliament majority representing the ruling Civil Contract
will discuss the matter after the ongoing spring session of the 107-member
assembly ends on June 17. Thirteen of the opposition lawmakers can be formally
accused of absenteeism at this point, added the pro-government speaker.
Ishkhan Saghatelian, a senior opposition parliamentarian and the main speaker at
the opposition rallies launched on May 1, dismissed Simonian’s threats.
Armenia - Parliament deputies fromt the opposition Hayastan alliance attend a
session of the National Assembly, Yerevan, August 4, 2021.
“Let them start [such proceedings,]” said Saghatelian. “This is so secondary, so
tertiary for us. They don’t understand and control the situation.”
Saghatelian and other opposition parliamentarians continued to lead on Wednesday
groups of opposition supporters blocking roads and staging sit-ins at street
intersections across Yerevan in a bid to step up the pressure on Pashinian’s
government.
Riot police arrested more than 350 protesters in the morning. Police officers
also tried to detain one of the lawmakers, Artsvik Minasian, but let him ago
after realizing that he is a member of the parliament. They tore Minasian’s
shirt in the scuffle.
Prosecutors Again Block Trial Of Former Armenian Police Chief
• Naira Bulghadarian
Armenia -- Armenian police chief Vladimir Gasparian at a meeting in Yerevan,
February 17, 2017
Prosecutors have again refused to give the green light to the trial of Vladimir
Gasparian, a former chief of the Armenian police facing corruption charges,
saying that a criminal investigation conducted by another law-enforcement agency
was flawed.
The Anti-Corruption Committee (ACC) charged Gasparian with six counts of illegal
enrichment, embezzlement, fraud and other crimes in December. In particular, it
claimed that he acquired over 2 billion drams ($4.2 million) worth of assets “by
criminal means” when holding high-level positions in Armenia’s security
apparatus from 2000-2018.
Gasparian denies the accusations. But he has avoided publicly commenting on them.
The ACC completed the investigation and sent its findings to prosecutors for
approval in January.
The Office of the Prosecutor-General sent the case back to the investigators,
however. The ACC condemned the decision as “illegal and unfounded.” It
subsequently requested another endorsement from the prosecutors.
It emerged earlier this week that a prosecutor overseeing the probe refused for
a second time to pave the way for Gasparian’s trial. The Office of the
Prosecutor-General insisted that the investigators have still not submitted
sufficient evidence in support of the accusations brought against Gasparian.
The development highlighted tensions between the two law-enforcement agencies
that have been increasingly visible in the last few months. In January, the
prosecutors refused to put their seal of approval on corruption charges leveled
by the ACC against Aram Harutiunian, a fugitive former environment minister.
Gasparian, 63, headed the Armenian police from 2011-2018, during former
President Serzh Sarkisian’s rule. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian sacked him
immediately after coming to power in May 2018.
Gasparian had served as military police chief from 1997-2010 and as deputy
defense minister from 2010-2011.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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