CITY WOKE UP AND REBELS
Interview with Zaruhee Hovhannisyan, publicist
Zaruhee, do you think it is possible to achieve the dismissal of two
City Hall officials and declare the second victory of this movement?
The movement has not won, it has been suspended. An attempt is made
to appease, calm the community, put a soft pillow under their head,
send them home rather than have them fight in the street. And none
of the points that the movement has set down has been achieved. The
rise of fare has been suspended, frozen for the time being but not
withdrawn from the agenda. The victory of this movement is at the
cultural level, it is another step towards the cultural revolution.
Can the communities make sure that the struggle is continuous and
does not run out of energy? We can see that a lot of activists do
not support the demand of the sit-in explaining that the issue should
not be politicized.
The issue was initially political. As to the sit-in, the demands
contradict the existing stereotyped thinking. The demand is to dismiss
two marionette officials. People watch and think what this junior
official who depends on the senior one can do in this pyramid-shaped
system. What is the point in demanding their resignation? This is
also a component of the cultural change. Put responsibility on the
one whose job duty is to regulate the given sector. We have lived a
long period of total irresponsibility of both those who usurped power
and the opposition. Everyone waited for instructed and coordinated
actions, became operators, did not make decisions, did not assume
responsibility to undertake actions.
What will happen next if the demand is met and the two officials
are dismissed?
Imagine Serzh Sargsyan resigns. What will change? Nothing, I say.
Someone similar will come to power unless we learn to ask questions
and answer what we want and how we are going to achieve it. The sit-in
is effective because it is a target source where a creative atmosphere
is born, creativity in the street, in any person, in any individual’s
mind and actions. The action “I am one of those three” was initiated
by new young people who joined to support another group that went on
sit-in. the street speaks clear Armenian and with legal word stock.
Unlike the official who tries to cover up his ignorant boss with
ignorant wording.
For over a few years we have been saying that we need a revolution
of mind, change of consciousness, human as the paramount value,
but we do not achieve it.
I wouldn’t say that we have been able to define what we want, we have
mostly dwelled on what we have now that we reject, don’t want.
Whatever has been defined was the basis of liberation of mind and
possible developments. However, the main issue of transformation of
residents to citizens is still open, in other words we need a person
who thinks, acts and is responsible for change of the situation in
the country, not people who obey and do silently.
Zaruhee, how would you justify what happened in Mashtots Park where
the reporters and cameramen of TV companies were not allowed to cover
the event?
The deputy chief of police Valery Osipyan appeared in a similar
situation when he expressed a wish to make a speech during one of
the open discussions summing up the day and outlining the actions of
the next day. According to this logic, we should not pass the floor
to him because the police carried out illegal actions against the
participants of the boycott or we should achieve a breakthrough and
involve the player of another game in our game. We chose breakthrough.
He asked for a speech, registered and waited for 20 minutes to use the
equal right to one-minute speech. I think the movement was successful
thanks to such breakthroughs. The most important question is what to do
to make sure that the illegitimate, non-elected and stooge government
does not subject you to itself but appears in the game modeled by
you due to your non-obeying and is unable to impose his own rules.
In this case, however, a selective approach is displayed. Could it
mark a dangerous precedent?
It was a symbolic situation. Lack of professional dignity of
journalists. This act of refusal which was also a form of struggle
against inaction of the mass media will make think again whether
the media representatives perform their duties and whether they
are stooges. Their bosses tell them to go and cover the event, the
activists drive them away, and they do not oppose. In fact, they
do not protest in their offices when they are not allowed to cover
important public events, neither they protest in the park when they
are asked to go away.
Zaruhee, the transport fare resulted in mobilization. Will there be
mobilization for the demand of resignation?
No, because the transport fare affected everyone, every person felt
it measurably and tangibly. The message was clear: we want the fare
to be 100 drams. In this case, one sentence is not enough to explain
everyone who this or that official is. Not everyone has heard them
speak and cares what they are in charge of at the City Hall. And
those who defined the demand of the sit-in do not cherish hopes for
mobilization. It is not realistic. The sit-in deals with one problem:
defining responsibility and fighting away impunity. If this question
does not follow the big wave, it is easy to put it to sleep.
The experience of the past two civil movements shows that the city
has woken up and is showing signs of livelihood. So far the city has
obeyed all the mutations and now it already rebels.
Siranuysh Papyan 11:24 13/08/2013 Story from Lragir.am News:
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/interview/view/30685