Suren Sargsyan: Police batons are the only resource left to the
Armenian authorities
ArmInfo’s interview with Suren Sargsyan, Artsakh War veteran, member
of the Council of Field Commanders
by Ashot Safaryan
Saturday, November 9, 01:19
Mr. Sargsyan, please tell about the results of your meetings with
political parties. What kind of actions do they plan to settle the
problems in the country?
Today, Artsakh War veterans have quite different and bigger mission.
It is no longer just fight for improvement of the living conditions of
the people. Our country has faced a crisis. The authorities do not
enjoy legitimacy and public trust. In the wake of the current
social-economic and foreign policy, we have faced the threat of
economic collapse and gradual isolation. September 3 in Moscow,
October 25 in Minsk and the `either…or’ policy forced upon us from
outside is the best evidence of the failed policy of the incumbent
authorities. This is what made us launch a stronger fight. Therefore,
we decided to meet with the political forces that still have influence
in the country’s political life, namely, Prosperous Armenia, Armenian
National Congress, Heritage and others. All they share our views
regarding the current situation in the country and the ways to get out
of it. We had quite efficient meetings with those political forces
and received quite interesting and constructive approaches. Our
action plan will be developed and made public shortly.
We witnessed the fight of political parties during the past elections
cycle. We witnessed protests of civic activists against odious
initiatives of the authorities. Do you have anything new to offer?
I do not want to offend anyone, but the groups protesting against
increasing transport fare, construction of the supermarket in the area
of the Indoor Market or the elite building on Komitas Ave or other
initiatives of the Government were guided by the authorities. It is
at least silly to demand anything regarding the Indoor Market from
Samvel Aleksanyan. It is the Culture Ministry, the city authorities,
and the president that are responsible for the Indoor Market. They
permitted oligarch Aleksanyan to destroy historical monuments. We
think it is necessary to fight the source and not the consequences of
problems. We launched meetings with our comrades in the regions to
this end. We will publish our program soon.
What is the content of your program?
We have not invented the bicycle, of course. What we want to create is
something like the national guards in the United States. These armed
groups will be protecting the country’s Constitution. I think it is
necessary to amend the Constitution to create such armed groups in all
the regions of Armenia. These armed groups will work to prevent
election rigging, for instance. In addition, we mull transition to the
parliamentary system of government and election reform. We are ready
to study any radical reform that may deprive the authorities of their
monopoly.
What will you do if the authorities refuse to initiate the needed
constitutional amendments? They will not cook their own goose, will
they?
We are discussing these and other issues with the political parties.
Afterwards we will work out draft constitutional reforms. It is not
ruled out that a decision will be taken not to change the Constitution
if it is found out that the reason of the problems is not the Basic
Law of the country. We will gather in Liberty Square, thoroughly
discuss our further actions and present our demands to 26, Baghramyan
Street. Moreover, if the authorities have any other options, we are
ready to listen to them.
What are the current resources of the authorities to maintain the
`status quo’? How long can they keep the situation under control?
I think they have no special resources. The only guarantee of the
authorities’ viability is the police force and the use of force
against the displeased citizens. In the meantime, one should
understand that the police armed with batons are also our compatriots
and some time they may join us. This time we won’t let anyone shed our
citizens’ blood, we will prevent re-occurrence of the March 2008
tragedy. But if they try to bring buses with armed groups to suppress
the public protest, these buses will be blown up, you can be sure of
that. Certainly, we want no armed conflict with the authorities, we
just want make them work in the different, legal way.
What can you say about the opposition’s role? How successfully does it
cope with its task – to be the counterweight to the incumbent
authorities?
Over the past few years the authorities were able to weaken their
opponents by means of various intrigues. But the opposition is weak if
the parties act all by themselves. So, we should join our efforts and
it is hard to overestimate the role of the Artsakh war veterans here.
It is necessary to create a competitive political system, a system of
checks and balances, and ensure the sustainable development of the
country. Actually, our format of interaction between the veterans and
the political forces is aimed at creating that competitive
environment. All fields – economic relations, foreign and domestic
policies – need the system of checks and balances.
Experience suggests that the authorities retreat under the strong
pressure of the masses. Is the Council of Field Commanders ready for
radical actions, especially given that the ruling parties’
representatives take no part in your discussions and may display a
defiant position?
We will do our best to achieve all the goals peacefully, by means of a
civilized dialogue. If the authorities fail to understand that and if
they toughen their stance, we will have only one option of actions.
There are thousands of us, veterans that have passed the path of war,
and we know that we have no backing space.
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