Levon Ter-Petrossian Will Not Leave Politics
DECEMBER 27, 2012 13:24
`We have never allowed ourselves to make assumptions whether the
Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) made one-man or team
decisions, have we?’ an Armenian National Congress (ANC) MP Says to
ARF MPs
The ANC discussed the ways of its participation in the presidential
election during a political council meeting yesterday. They didn’t
reach any agreement; discussions are still in progress. However, an
ANC parliamentary group member, Lyudmilla Sargsyan, assured during a
conversation with Aravot, `All the forces that have remained in the
ANC unequivocally support the Congress, and the ANC will always be
viable, although the situation has changed.’ In response to an
observation that another member of the ANC, Mikayel Hayrapetyan’s
Conservative Party, had withdrawn from the ANC, Ms. Sargsyan said:
`That party had just been registered in the ANC, but you know quite
well yourself that it hadn’t been engaged in any activity in the ANC
for a long time. Therefore, the loss will not be great. As for Hrant
Bagratyan, I have already expressed my opinion; I am sorry that he had
made that decision before the president’s decision.’ However, we have
what we have. According to our interlocutor, `We are very decisive.
The ANC should be refreshed with new thoughts, put forward new ideas.
Realizing what a great role the ANC plays in Armenian political life,
we will do whatever it takes to make the ANC stronger, more powerful
and not only maintain its role, but also make it greater. I saw that
decisiveness in all the parties that are members of the political
council, and I am more than convinced that we will carry all that out.
If there is no ANC, our political stage and thought will be poorer.’
Moreover, according to Ms. Sargsyan, the fact that Levon
Ter-Petrossian, the first president and the leader of the ANC, stated
about not announcing his candidacy for the upcoming presidential
election doesn’t mean at all that he will not be the ANC leader from
now on, and it doesn’t mean that he is going to leave politics, `I am
more than convinced that his presence will be visible every day,
because Levon Ter-Petrossian’s sense of responsibility for our country
and our people will never disappear.’
A political unit that consolidated a big part of the political stage
and society only five years ago cannot clarify its further actions
today, in the run-up to the presidential election. In response to our
question what role should the ANC and the first president play in the
future political developments, in her opinion, Ms. Sargsyan said that
it was too early to talk about it, since the programs were still being
devised and discussed. `The reason why we don’t participate in the
presidential election is that there are no real mechanisms to win a
victory as a result of that participation. The reason is not a lack of
supporters, but the fact that the Electoral Code is much distorted,
and the administrative, financial and criminal oligarchic leverage is
in the government’s hands; it makes impossible for any serious force
to participate in the election. As you have seen, the Prosperous
Armenia Party (PAP), as well as the ANC and the ARF, refused to
participate in the presidential election. Basically the second, third
and fourth biggest parliamentary groups refused,’ our interlocutor
affirms, adding that if the government had been inclined to conduct a
really fair and transparent election, it wouldn’t have disrupted the
reform of the Electoral Code initiated by the ANC and joined by
non-coalition forces. `We became convinced once again that the
government was not ready for fair elections, therefore it leaves us
with no other choice than to wish good luck to Serzh Sargsyan in his
lonely activities in the uncompetitive presidential election,’ L.
Sargsyan says, predicting that a rather passive presidential election,
which the government will try to compensate by moving people from one
place to another and ensuring their voting, is expected. According to
her, our people, who may not get the expected bribes in yet another
election, have `suffered’ from all this.
We noted that the ANC leader hadn’t talked about other reasons for his
decision, except for stressing the age qualification. Ms. Sargsyan
said that if the president had made such an emphasis, probably, he had
had reasons to do so.
In response to our question whether the fact that two opposition
forces in the parliament and the second biggest force in the
parliament that had declared itself an alternative refused to
participate in such an important event as a presidential election
didn’t imply backstage agreements, the ANC MP said: `I can say with
regard to us that there could have been no agreement. It is not
logical that Levon Ter-Petrossian cut a deal with someone not to
announce his candidacy. I don’t rule out anything with regard to other
forces. The ANC never cuts such deals, especially, with the
government, particularly given the fact that we had our competitive
candidate, who really could have challenged the regime, if there had
been a respective situation in the country, the people had overcome
that difficult moral and psychological condition and had been ready to
fight to the finish. There were no prerequisites; therefore, it was
obvious that the regime would ensure Sargsyan’s reproduction. A
serious political force has no right to participate in such a farce.’
Ms. Sargsyan thinks that on the one hand, this situation is `very
good’ for the incumbent president, he has great chances to be
`reelected,’ but on the other hand, he is in a rather difficult
situation, since he has no rival, `The fact that electoral mechanisms
are destroyed will be visible also to the international community, and
Sargsyan’s position will weaken.’
Yesterday ARF representatives described the ANC leader’s decision as a
`one-man’ decision and didn’t deem it normal. Lyudmila Sargsyan said
that in the ANC, they weren’t guided by the principle whether the ARF
would like it or not. `Making a decision on his nomination was first
of all Levon Ter-Petrossian’s right, because he was the one who would
enter that struggle. And it is normal. So what? If Armen Rustamyan,
for one, decided that he didn’t want to participate in the
presidential election, would the Bureau force him? I think not. It was
a personal decision, which the party might or might not like. Yes, we
wanted Levon Ter-Petrossian to announce his candidacy, but none of us
gave himself a moral right to force Ter-Petrossian. Regardless of our
wishes, I am convinced that Ter-Petrossian made the right decision. We
have never allowed ourselves to make assumptions whether the ARF made
one-man or team decisions, have we? It is their internal issue in the
same way as this is our internal issue.’ Ms. Sargsyan doesn’t agree
that the ANC leader’s decision will confuse the parents of the March 1
victims. She is sure that they will get the ANC leader right too, `All
of us took that decision hard at first, but then we realized that he
had calculated everything. I am sure that the parents of the March 1
victims will get him right and understand all that. The events of
March 1 will always be on the ANC agenda, and we will try to uncover
those events as soon as possible.’ L. Sargsyan hopes that the
government will keep its promise after the presidential election, and
it will be possible to shed light on those events within the framework
of a parliamentary commission to be formed.
NELLY GRIGORYAN
http://www.aravot.am/en/2012/12/27/145264/