RFE/RL Armenian Report – 12/11/2017

                                        Monday, 
Top Armenian Judge `Not Interested' In Presidential Run
 . Sisak Gabrielian
Armenia - Gagik Harutiunian, chairman of the Constitutional Court,
speaks to journalists in Yerevan, 11Dec2017.
The chairman of Armenia's Constitutional Court, Gagik Harutiunian,
said on Monday that he does not want to become the next president of
the republic despite speculation to the contrary.
The end of President Serzh Sarkisian's second and final term in April
will mark Armenia's transition to a parliamentary system of government
in accordance with a controversial constitutional reform initiated by
him. Most of his sweeping executive powers will be transferred to the
prime minister backed by the parliamentary majority.
The next head of state will be elected by the National Assembly,
rather than popular vote, and have largely ceremonial
powers. Sarkisian and his ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK)
have still not clarified who they think should occupy that post.
Several Armenian media outlets have claimed in recent months that
Harutiunian is Sarkisian's preferred presidential candidate. They have
noted in this regard that he will turn 70 and have to retire from the
country's highest court next under Armenian law.
Harutiunian insisted that he has received no offers to become
president when he spoke to reporters in Yerevan. Asked how he will
respond if he is offered to succeed Sarkisian as president, he said:
"I don't comment on `ifs.' I have no such desire, it's not on my
agenda."
"The media is engaged in mental exercises," he added in reference to
the lingering speculation about his political future. "That's all I
can say."
A Communist Party figure in Soviet times, Harutiunian was elected in
1990 a deputy speaker of Armenia's first post-Communist parliament. He
served as vice-president in the administration of Levon Ter-Petrosian,
Armenia's first president elected in 1991.
Harutiunian became chairman of the newly established Constitutional
Court in 1996 shortly after the post of vice-president was abolished
by a new Armenian constitution. The court has rarely handed down
rulings challenging the current and former Armenian presidents.
Opposition Leader Pounces On Sarkisian's Anti-Corruption Remark
 . Ruzanna Stepanian
Armenia - President Serzh Sarkisian speaks at a conference on local
governments in Dilijan, 9Dec2017.
An Armenian opposition leader called for criminal investigations on
Monday after President Serzh Sarkisian warned local government
officials to stop embezzling public funds.
Sarkisian issued the stark warning at a weekend conference in Dilijan
that was attended by senior government officials and city and town
mayors from across Armenia."We are not prepared to see some of you
pocket our population's money," he said. "It's shameful. If such cases
are detected, let nobody seek clemency."
"And let nobody -- be it a provincial governor, a minister or a person
close to me -- ask after the New Year [celebrations] for forgiveness
for any community head in such cases," Sarkisian added in a speech.
Edmon Marukian, a leader of the opposition Yelk alliance, said the
president thus admitted that he has been "aware of the plunder" among
local government officials. Marukian claimed that the authorities have
not prosecuted that "large group of plunderers" because the latter
have bought votes and provided other "services" to the ruling
Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) in various elections.
"They are first and foremost members of the Republican Party and the
authorities forgave those people at the highest level," Marukian told
a news conference. He said Armenian prosecutors must launch criminal
proceedings in connection with Sarkisian's public remarks.
Armenia - Opposition leader Edmon Marukian speaks during parliamentary
hearings in Yerevan, 27Nov2017.
The HHK spokesman, Eduard Sharmazanov, rejected the verbal
attack. "The president did not report any crime in his speech," he
told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). "As head of state and
leader of a political team, the president of the republic is just set
a task of better governance in advance of new realities and new
challenges."
Sharmazanov also said that it is up to law-enforcement agencies, not
Sarkisian, to determine who must be prosecuted for corruption.
Sarkisian, whose final presidential term ends in April, demanded a
tougher fight against bribery and other corrupt practices when he met
with the leadership of one such agency, the Special Investigative
Service (SIS), late last month. "For us, the fight against corruption
is a matter of national security," he declared.
Armenia's leading anti-graft watchdog reacted with skepticism to that
statement. "Serzh Sarkisian has repeatedly said such things since
[taking office in] 2008," said Varuzhan Hoktanian of the Armenian
branch of Transparency International. "So I don't see a fundamentally
new anti-corruption policy here."
Italian Firm To Build New Road Around Yerevan
Armenia - Traffic in Yerevan, 28Sep2017.
An Italian company has won a $33 million contract to build a section
of a new highway that will bypass central Yerevan and connect two
major highways leading to the Armenian capital.
The highway is constructed as part of a loan agreement signed by the
Armenian government and the Asian Development Bank (ADB). The first
5-kilometer stretch of the road was inaugurated a year ago.
The government went on to call an international tender for its second
section that will be about 10 kilometers long. The Italian
construction firm, Tirrena Scavi, was declared the winner of the
contest last week at a meeting of Prime Minister Karen Karapetian and
officials responsible for the project.
A government statement cited one of those officials as saying that
Tirrena Scavi was one of five bidders in the tender which she said was
said held "in conformity with Asian Development Bank procedures." The
Italians offered to build the road for almost $33 million, said the
statement.
Yerevan Mayor Taron Markarian and a senior Tirrena executive, Giacomo
Lombardi, signed a construction contract on Monday. Lombardi was
reported to say at the signing ceremony that the quality of the
highway section "will satisfy everyone."
Under the contract, work on the four-lane road will start early next
year and take two years.
The road will pass through Yerevan's southern and western suburbs
close to the two national highways. Officials say that it will reduce
traffic congestion in the city.
Armenian Minister Cautious Over President's GDP Target
 . Tatevik Lazarian
Armenia - Finance Minister Vartan Aramian speaks at a news conference
in Yerevan, 25Sep2017.
Finance Minister Vartan Aramian declined to clarify on Monday whether
he considers realistic President Serzh Sarkisian's latest forecast
that Armenia's per capita income will triple, in dollar terms, in the
next "several" years.
In a weekend speech, Sarkisian said that the country's GDP per capita,
which currently stands at roughly $3,500, will reach $10,000. He set
no specific dates for meeting that target.
A long-term strategy for socioeconomic development adopted by the
Armenian government earlier set such a target for 2025. It also
predicted that GDP per capita will rise to $4,200 by 2017.
Aramian was reluctant to comment on Sarkisian's remark when approached
by journalists. He suggested that the president simply made an
"appeal" to the government to the effect that "you must make efforts
in this direction."
"Now you want the finance minister to come out and say, `Dear people,
that $10,000 [target] is not possible,'" Aramian complained. "Will you
give me time to make calculations and answer you accordingly?" he
added when pressed on the subject.
In its five-year policy program approved by parliament in June, Prime
Minister Karen Karapetian's cabinet pledged to ensure that the
Armenian economy grows by around 5 percent annually. It expects
economic growth to exceed 4 percent in 2017 and accelerate in 2018.
Asked whether such growth rates would be enough to triple GDP per
capita in the near future, Aramian said: "It's hard to tell."
Opposition representatives, meanwhile, dismissed Sarkisian's forecast
as unrealistic. Sergey Bagratian, a parliament deputy from the
Tsarukian Bloc, said that the authorities will fail to quickly improve
living standards in the country unless they break up economic
monopolies and ensure fair competition. He insisted that they are not
committed to "liberalizing the economy."
Aram Sargsian, a leader of the Yelk bloc, agreed. "I don't see any
evidence that the current authorities have a desire to change ways or
are taking steps to change ways," he told RFE/RL's Armenian service
(Azatutyun.am).
The president famously stated in 2013 an Armenian government failing
to achieve a growth rate of at least 7 percent must step
down. Economic growth in Armenia has since fallen well short of that
figure.
Press Review
(Saturday, December 9)
"Zhamanak" dismisses President Serzh Sarkisian's recent remark that
corruption now poses a serious threat to Armenia's national security,
saying that his government's declared efforts to combat the problem
are not commensurate with that threat. "Either Serzh Sarkisian
exaggerated the scale of corruption # or it is more likely that in
Armenia they do not fight against corruption as strongly as they do
against national security threats," comments the paper. "Because in
Armenia corruption is not just a phenomenon, it's an axis upon which
the entire government system is built."
"Aravot" weighs in on controversy caused by Hakob Hakobian, a senior
pro-government lawmaker who has said that the latest rises in the
prices of some foodstuffs will not hurt the poor because they could
not afford those products anyway. The paper disagrees with calls for
his resignation from the National Assembly made in recent days. "Yes,
the chairman of the National Assembly committee on social issues must
understand that butter or meat are not luxury goods as they are part
of any modern healthy food diet and their increased cost deals a
severe blow to our low-income people," it says in editorial. "Also, a
politician living in a poor country must think carefully before making
judgments about poverty. But stripping [a parliament deputy] of their
seat because of their views could set a bad precedent. The best way to
punish the deputy is not to reelect him. In a normal society, Hakob
Hakobian would never be reelected to parliament."
Paul Goble, a U.S. political analyst, tells "168 Zham" that Turkey's
involvement in the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process is "extremely
undesirable" because the current Turkish leadership is unpredictable
and could seek to undermine Russia's central role in international
mediation efforts. "Turkey will continue to intervene," he is quoted
as saying. "That intervention will likely succeed only in cases like
the April 2016 events [in Karabakh.] Or else, such intervention will
not be allowed in the negotiation process influenced by both Russia
and the U.S."
"Haykakan Zhamanak" comments on the results of the latest opinion
polls released by in recent days. According to them, Prime Minister
Karen Karapetian's approval rating has fallen from 85 percent to 57
percent and is now slightly lower than President Serzh
Sarkisian's. The paper predicts that the government-linked pollsters
will report further drops in Karapetian's popularity before Sarkisian
completes his final presidential term in April. By contrast, it says,
Serzh Sarkisian's approval rating will reach 60-70 percent.
(Tigran Avetisian)
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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