Author: Kanayan Tamar

RAFFI HOVANNISIAN NOT TO END HUNGER STRIKE ON EVE OF HIS DAUGHTER’S BIRTHDAY

18:34 13/03/2013 ” POLITICS

Two years ago, I began hunger strike on March 15, the day when Soghomon
Tehleryan did his heroic act. I ended the hunger strike on March 30,
on the eve of my daughter Shoushi’s birthday, Heritage party leader,
former presidential hopeful Raffi Hovannisian told a news conference
in Liberty Square.

When asked if this time also he is going to end his hunger strike
on March 30, Hovannisian said that unless his demands are met, his
hunger strike may last longer than 15 days.

The Central Electoral Commission of Armenia on February 25 announced
the final results of the presidential elections in Armenia. According
to them, Serzh Sargsyan won the elections with 58.64% of the votes,
while his closest rival, Raffi Hovannisian, received 36.75% of
the votes. Hovannisian disagrees with the election results and is
holding mass protest actions. On March 4, representatives of Raffi
Hovannisian and former candidate Andrias Ghukasyan handed an appeal
to the Constitutional Court disputing the results of the February 18
presidential elections in Armenia.

Raffi Hovannisian began hunger strike in Liberty Square on March
10 evening.

Source: Panorama.am

EXPERT: AZERBAIJAN HINDERS DEEPENING OF ARMENIAN-GEORGIAN COOPERATION

ARMINFO
Wednesday, March 13, 16:08

Azerbaijan hinders deepening of Armenian-Georgian cooperation in
all the spheres, expert on Georgia, Joni Melikyan said at today’s
press-conference.

He said that Georgia is trying to be neutral and not to interfere
in regional conflicts. This rules out closer cooperation both with
Armenia and Azerbaijan. He also added that Georgian politicians often
say about their great love to one of them so that to keep balance
between Armenia and Azerbaijan. “For instance, Georgia’s Defence
Minister Irakli Alasania said during his visit to Yerevan that he
loves Azerbaijanis, hinting in such a way on the balance between
Armenia and Azerbaijan”, – the expert said.

Melikyan thinks that the power change cannot affect the
Armenian-Georgian relations, as irrespective of the fact who
occupies the president’s position in Armenia, Serzh Sargsyan or Raffi
Hovannisian, foreign policy of Georgia is stable and will not change
for the coming years. “Georgia will go on cooperating with NATO and
EU. They do not hide their commitment to these structures and have
been trying to draw Armenia there”, – he said.

ARMENIA-NATO COOPERATION FURTHERS ARMENIA-GEORGIA CONTACTS IN DEFENSE SECTOR

NEWS.AM
March 13, 2013 | 16:19

YEREVAN. – Armenia and Georgia are mainly cooperating in the fields of
economy and culture, political scientist, Georgian Studies specialist
Johnny Melikyan stated during a press conference on Wednesday.

“Armenia is a CSTO member, while Georgia chose the path of NATO
integration and is maintaining strategic relationship with Turkey
and Azerbaijan,” Melikyan noted.

He stressed that Armenia-NATO cooperation is contributing to
Armenia-Georgia cooperation on certain issues in defense sector.

I DON’T CARE ABOUT POST-INAUGURAL EVENTS, SAYS ARMENIAN OPPOSITIONIST

16:28 ~U 13.03.13

Nikol Pashinyan of the opposition Armenian National Congress (ANC) says
he is not very much interested in the decisions the authorities may
take after President Serzh Sargsyan’s second inauguration into office.

Speaking to reporters at Yerevan’s Liberty Square (where the main
opposition candidate, Raffi Hovhannisian, is now on a hunger-strike,
protesting the official voting results), the activist said his earlier
proposal for a shadow cabinet cannot be considered rejected at the
moment. “I think ideas in that connection will be voiced in the near
future,” he said.

But the opposition MP appeared indifferent to the president’s possible
concessions with his team. He said April 9 will be definitely an
inauguration day, adding that it is still questionable who will be
sworn into office.

“I am not interested in the authorities’ steps, and I don’t think it
makes any sense to offer the opposition offices [in government]. Only
an elected president can offer a post; it is not something to be done
by a president who won votes illegitimately. I am candid enough to
say I have very little interest in all that. I am more interested in
what the citizen in Liberty Square will do,” he said.

Pashinyan ruled out any violence in the political processes. “Any
side that chooses violence will be defeated. I can say that people
have never resorted to and will never resort to violence,” said the
oppositionist.

Pashinyan stressed the importance of focusing on the content rather
than the form of a political protest. He promised to address the
topic at the upcoming opposition rally.

ARMENIANS HOLD PROTEST IN CALIFORNIA AGAINST VISIT OF AZERBAIJANI DELEGATION TO SENATE

16:38 14/03/2013 ” SOCIETY

Armenians in California held protest against the visit of the
Azerbaijani delegation to Senate, the Asbarez daily of the U.S.

reports referring to the Hay Dat commission in America.

The Armenians of US California held a protest in front of the Capitol
against the visit of the delegation of the Azerbaijani Parliament
and State Oil Company to the Senate of California.

“Senate of American California State is an important center for
democracy. It is not a place for showing off the dictatorial regime
of Aliev,” Tereza Yerimian, the Director of External Affairs of the
Hay Dat commission has told.

Members of Legislative Assembly of California Karo Achadyan, Adrin
Nazaryan, Jim Paterson, and Scot Wilq joined the protest organized
by the Armenian Youth Federation and Hay Dat.

“The aggression against the Armenians and inhabitants of NKR
continues after 25 years of the massacres of Armenians in Sumgait,
Baku, Kirovabad, Maragha. The reception of the representation of the
Aliev’s dictatorial regime in the Senate carries bad messages. Baku
is against the calls of the US for holding democratic reforms in
Azerbaijan and thwarts international efforts for settling the regional
problems in peaceful way,” Ardin Nazaryan mentions.

“One day before the visit of the Azerbaijani delegation to Senate
the Aliyev administration had used water cars and rubber bullets to
disperse the peaceful protesters. These are not the values and the
democratic traditions that anyone shares in California or the US,”
Sevak Tchekidjian, representative of ARF said.

Source: Panorama.am

SETTING UP TENT NOT VIOLATION OF PUBLIC ORDER – ARMENIAN OMBUDSMAN

Tert.am
15:21 ~U 14.03.13

On March 21, 2011, when Heritage party Chairman Raffi Hovannisian
went on a hunger strike and wanted to set up a tent in Freedom Square,
Armenian Human Rights Defender (Ombudsman) Karen Andreasyan issued a
statement saying that a ban on setting up a tent was a violation of
human rights.

On March 14, 2013, Heritage party members wanted to set up a tent in
Yerevan’s Freedom Square, but the policemen did not allow them to. A
representative of Armenia’s Ombudsman arrived at the square and said
that the policemen were violating human rights.

Heritage party Spokesman Hovsep Khurshudyan referred to international
legal norms defending hunger-strikers’ right to set up tents.

According to him, in 2011, when Raffi Hovannisian was on a hunger
strike and set up a tent, numerous representatives of Armenia’s ruling
coalition said that “there was no violation of law.”

HUNDREDS OF HOMELESS PEOPLE IN DAMAGED BUILDINGS – VIDEO

11:33 AM | TODAY | SOCIAL

Besides multistory living buildings subject to demolition and
dilapidated dormitories of former factories there are also dozens
buildings of former schools and libraries, which have not been rebuilt
or recovered either since Spitak earthquake of 1988.

In these buildings homeless families are still living, some
of which on previous years were even allowed to privatize their
occupied territories. However, many families living in these damaged
buildings do not have earthquake homeless status that is they are not
subjected to reimbursement by the state for housing; moreover they
do not have the means and possibilities to legitimize and strengthen
their apartments.

As a result for many years they continue living in unsafe, damaged
buildings without any kind of communal facilities.

One of them id Heghine Eghoyan who does not have homeless status and
is a single mother with 6 children.

Our staff visited Heghine’s family to give her the funds received
during last month’s charity telethon held in Los Angeles.

Details in the video of “Shirak Center”.

THE POLITICAL AND THE RELIGIOUS

March 13 2013

Both good and bad things are written about Raffi Hovhannisyan’s hunger
strike. By the way, contradictory though it may seem, there is a grain
of rationality in both sides’ arguments. And that ambiguity is caused
by the fact that we don’t completely understand the logic of the
politician’s behavior. The whole problem is that Raffi Hovhannisyan
combines, coalesces a religious and moral struggle with a political
one. From the perspective of many of us, including me, religion is
a personal, individual, and intimate business, one shouldn’t show
off one’s religious sentiments in the square. If I read the Bible
correctly, it also mentions that a prayer, a fast, or candle-lighting
should not be for show. As opposed to that, political activities
cannot but be public, because a politician tries to make known his
ideas and programs to the masses. Two years ago, in the spring when
Freedom Square “belonged” to Levon Ter-Petrossian, the latter would
criticize Raffi Hovhannisyan, as far as I can tell, using arguments
like those. Perhaps the first president’s words were too harsh,
perhaps it shouldn’t have been a reason for not saying hello to Mr.

Hovhannisyan at the time, but separation of the spiritual and
the secular, the physical and the metaphysical that Ter-Petrossian
suggested is acceptable at least to me. Really, if Raffi Hovhannisyan
is on a hunger strike, since now is the period of Lent, and he wants
to purify himself, as he says, then he should do such things at home,
not informing anyone about his self-sacrifice. If, however, he is on
a hunger strike to make Serzh Sargsyan resign and is ready to die,
in case of a failure, as he also states, then it is purposeless,
inappropriate to talk about Lent and self-purification. However,
one should take into account that in the Diaspora, there is no clear
separating line between the political and the religious, which exists
here, in our mentality. In the Diaspora, to its credit, the church has
played a huge role in preserving the Armenian identity, to organize
Armenian communities in different countries and governing them to
a certain extent for decades. As a result of all that the attitude
toward religion, church, and its institutions is different here,
in Armenia, and in the Diaspora. I for one, as hundreds of thousands
of residents of Armenia, am not interested whether the Catholicos of
All Armenians will come to the president’s inauguration or not. He is
a part of the system for us; his presence or blessing has the same
significance, as that of any Republican MP. Raffi Hovhannisyan’s
attitude is different. Probably this is the difference. ARAM ABRAHAMYAN

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© 1998 – 2013 Aravot – News from Armenia

ROBERT KOCHARYAN TOPS THE LIST OF THE MOST CORRUPT OFFICIALS IN ARMENIA PUBLISHED BY ANTI-CRIMINAL NGO

ARMINFO
Thursday, March 14, 12:12

Anti-Criminal NGO has published the list of the most corrupt official
in Armenia, which is topped by the second president Robert Kocharyan.

The organization considers Kocharyan as the pioneer of the corruption
schemes in the country. A Yerevan-based Daily Aravot writes that the
NGO applied to representatives of diplomatic corps of 30 countries
in Armenia and declared that officials save the corrupt funds in the
banks of those countries.

Consequently, Anti-Criminal NGO expects the support of the
representatives of those countries in its efforts to return the
national riches of Armenia. The paper writes that the list of the
most corrupt officials will be soon available on the website of the
Organization. Spokesperson of the second president Victor Soghomonyan
refused to comment ArmInfo on the given information in the newspaper.

TENTS WILL BE BROUGHT TO THE GOVERNMENT BUILDING

12:29 PM | TODAY | SOCIAL

Meanwhile the executive holds a session the residents of 33 district
of Yerevan raise the voice of their protest in front of the government
building.

Mentioned area in 2007 was recognized as a major public benefit. Since
2007 the residents are living for rent and today they demand from
Serzh Sargsyan and prime minister the promised apartments instead of
their destroyed houses.

The gvernment representative of citizens’ reception and complaints
approached Alexander Ghazaryan, listened to their complaints and
ensured that the response to the letter will be within 10-15 working
days.

The residents brought the letter yesterday to the government building.

They mentioned that during February 18 presidential elections they
have elected Serzh Sargsyan as a president who promised to solve
their housing problems but now they feel cheated. They say that
if the government do not solve their problem they will come with
tents and will stay in front of the building until they get to their
promised homes.