Author: Tavakalian Edgar

Bloomberg
May 13 2007

Armenia’s Ruling Coalition Heads for Election Victory (Update2)

By Sebastian Alison and Troy Etulain

May 13 (Bloomberg) — Armenia’s ruling coalition headed for victory
in parliamentary elections deemed “largely” fair by international
monitors. The opposition said the poll was flawed.

The Republican Party of Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan won about a
third of the votes counted by 3 p.m. local time, twice as many as its
nearest rival, the electoral commission said on its Web site. The
coalition’s share was more than 60 percent, with more than 98 percent
of ballots counted. The official result won’t be announced for a few
days.

The vote was “an improvement on previous elections and were
conducted largely in accordance with the standards for international
elections,” Tone Tingsgard, who coordinated the monitoring for the
Vienna-based Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe,
told a news conference in Yerevan today. The OSCE had 400 people
monitoring the voting.

All Armenian elections since 1995 had been declared flawed by
international observers. The landlocked state of 3.2 million people,
bordering Iran and Turkey and about the size of Maryland, is the
third-largest recipient of direct U.S. aid per person. It was warned
it may lose aid if this poll was also defective.

“I wouldn’t consider it a legitimate election,” Tigran Mkrtchian of
the opposition Country of Law Party said in Yerevan today. “We are
very disappointed.”

The coalition’s Prosperous Armenia party’s share of the votes counted
was about 15 percent, and its partner Armenian Revolutionary Front
about 13 percent, figures from the electoral commission showed.
Turnout was 59.4 percent, or about 1.3 million of an electorate of
about 2.3 million.

Election Laws

Foreign Minister Vardan Oskanian had said before the vote that “we
can’t afford another election that doesn’t meet international
standards.” The OSCE’s Tingsgard said Armenian officials “did their
utmost” to adhere to election laws.

Leo Platvoet, head of the delegation from the 47-member Council of
Europe, said that while there were some “irregularities,”
“progress” was made.

Armenia’s government has an estimated budget of $1.6 billion this
year, with revenue of $1.3 billion, according to the CIA World
Factbook. U.S. aid has fallen to about $55 million a year, from $75
million previously, putting it behind Israel and Egypt. The country
got about $254 million in overseas development aid in 2004 and also
relies on remittances from expatriates.

The U.S. and Armenia signed a new agreement last year which may
generate an aid package worth $235 million, to reduce rural poverty.
Agriculture accounts for almost half of all jobs in the country and
only about a sixth of gross domestic product.

Predecessor Dies

The opposition staged several rallies before the vote and had
threatened more demonstrations if they deemed the ballot flawed.
About 3,000 people had gathered in the rain at a large square beside
Yerevan’s Opera House today by 5:45 p.m.

Sargsyan became prime minister when his predecessor, Andranik
Margarian, died in office in March. The former defense minister has
said he may stand for the presidency next year, when incumbent Robert
Kocharian stands down.

Armenia is in a sixth consecutive year of economic growth of more
than 10 percent per year, Foreign Minister Oskanian said. The number
of people living in poverty has fallen from 56 percent to 27 percent
in the last 2 1/2 years, Sargsyan said.

The U.S. also has interests in neighboring Georgia and Azerbaijan. A
crude-oil pipeline runs from the Azeri capital Baku across Georgia to
the Turkish Black Sea port of Ceyhan.

Armenia has no diplomatic relations with Azerbaijan or Turkey. It
fought a war with Azerbaijan over the disputed region of
Nagorno-Karabakh. The region has a majority ethnic-Armenian
population and unilaterally declared independence in 1991. It is
shown on maps distributed by the United Nations as being part of
Azerbaijan and is completely surrounded by that country. Both
Sargsyan and Kocharian come from Nagorno-Karabakh.

Sargsyan has said he wants to resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh dispute
and establish diplomatic relations with Turkey “without any
preconditions.”

ARKA news Agency, Armenia
May 13 2007

ARMENIAN PROSECUTOR-GENERAL OFFICE RECEIVES SEVEN WRITTEN COMPLAINTS
ABOUT VIOLATION OF VOTING RIGHTS IN PARLIAMENTARY ELECTION

YEREVAN, May 12. /ARKA/. The office of the Prosecutor-General of
Armenia received seven written complaints about violation of voting
rights in the course of the parliamentary election in Armenia by
3:00pm.
The materials are being prepared based on the complaints, with two of
them in Yerevan and five in the marzes, the press service of the
Prosecutor-General reported.
The duty department of the office also received reports of
inaccuracies in the electoral rolls, particularly about missing
names. Reports on the violations make quite a number, with most of
them not representing the facts and being circulated by the
contenders themselves or their election campaign offices.
Particularly, some election campaign offices circulated reports
saying that the voting at Zvartnots Airport was held as early as at
3:00am and that ballots disappeared at the polling station N12 and
that a mass cast case was recorded in Eghvard and the protesters were
beaten up.
"These reports do not represent the facts: the voting process follows
a normal course, with no serious violation," the press service of
Prosecutor-General reported.
1,923 polling stations were opened throughout the country at 8:00am.
According to the Armenian Police, 2,285,830 people have the right to
vote in the parliamentary election in Armenia. By now 45.8% of the
voters have cast their ballots. N.V. -0–

ITAR-TASS, Russia
May 11 2007

Armenian opposition accuses police of breaching rally law

11.05.2007, 17.04

YEREVAN, May 11 (Itar-Tass) — The Armenian opposition has accused
the police of breaching the law on rallies and marches.

Although the canvassing campaign stopped last midnight, the
Impeachment election bloc held a press conference to comment on a
Wednesday clash between the police and a picket near the National
Security Service building in Yerevan.

The picket organizers said their peaceful action complied with the
law and they only wanted to read out a petition demanding the release
of former foreign minister Alexander Arzumanian, who was charged with
money laundering.

Impeachment bloc leader Nikol Pashinian said he will ask the
prosecutor’s office to punish police officials, who `abused of office
and ordered the illegal police operation that dispersed the picket.’

Meanwhile, the police have said that the opposition rally `developed
into an illegal march through provocative appeals and actions of its
organizers.’

`The mass hooliganism was instigated by the action organizers,’ said
first deputy police chief Col. Gen. Ararat Maitesian, adding that
prosecutors are sizing up the situation.

Anatolian Times, Turkey
May 12 2007

Ex-Soviet Armenia votes in key test for democracy
05-12-2007

Armenians voted in parliamentary elections Saturday in what is being
billed as a litmus test for democracy in this impoverished ex-Soviet
country.

Surveys show Armenians are hungry for reform, with an overwhelming
majority supporting radical change, but polls predict pro-government
parties will come out ahead in the election.

The vote is seen as a key test of democratic reform in the small
mountainous republic wedged between Turkey and Iran, where no
election has been judged fair since independence with the collapse of
the Soviet Union in 1991.

It is also a dress rehearsal for a presidential vote next year at the
end of President Robert Kocharian’s second term. Prime Minister Serzh
Sarkisian, Kocharian’s chosen successor, is expected to use the
parliamentary vote as a springboard to launch his presidential
campaign.

More than 20 opposition parties are running and analysts say these
divisions have scuttled chances of defeating two pro-government
parties — Sarkisian’s ruling Republican party and the Prosperous
Armenia party headed by millionaire former World Arm Wrestling
Champion Gagik Tsarukian.

Opposition leaders say the vote will be rigged and are already
planning street demonstrations on Sunday to pressure the government
to overturn the results.

A few hours after polls opened, the Central Elections Commission said
voting was proceeding normally.

"Everything is going well, we haven’t registered any problems," CEC
Spokeswoman Tsovinar Khachatrian said.

Opposition officials alleged Saturday that pro-government parties,
fearful of losing the election, had resorted to bribing voters.

"We have reports from across the country of massive amounts of bribes
being paid by pro-government parties right before the start of the
election," said Tigran Mkrtchian, a spokesman for the opposition
Country of Law party. He claimed voters were being paid between 5,000
Armenian drams (10 euros) and 20,000 drams (41 euros).

The United States and European Union have repeatedly warned of
negative consequences if no improvement is seen over past elections.

US officials have said the provision of 235 million dollars (175
million euros) in aid to Armenia under the Millennium Challenge Fund
would be threatened if the vote is deemed unfair.

The EU has warned that a democratic election is necessary if Armenia
wants to continue to participate in the European Neighbourhood Policy
(ENP) programme, under which the EU has pledged to build stronger
economic and political ties with the country.

Cuts in foreign assistance could be disastrous for Armenia, where
more than 30 percent of people live on less than two dollars (1.50
euros) a day.

Kocharian has called on voters to support pro-government parties,
warning of instability if the opposition comes to power.

"If the two most important governmental institutions — the president
and the parliament — start a confrontation, the people will be the
ones to suffer," he said on Armenian television.

About 2.3 million of Armenia’s three million people are registered to
vote in elections for 131 seats in the National Assembly.

Ninety of the parliament’s members will be elected from party lists,
while the remaining 41 seats will go to the winners of individual
mandates.

Hundreds of local and international observers are monitoring the
vote, including more than 300 from the Organization for Security and
Cooperation in Europe.

Polls will close at 1500 GMT, with preliminary results expected
within 24 hours.

JOINT MEETING OF OPPOSITIONAL FORCES

A1+
[08:53 pm] 09 May, 2007

Currently three oppositional forces – the Impeachment, New Times
and Hanrapetutyun (Republic) are holding a joint meeting near the
Matenadaran. Even the heavy rain doesn’t hinder the rally participants.

According to A1+’s data, the crowd stretches from the Matenadaran to
Mashtots Avenue. At present we cannot reveal the exact figure of the
participants. The meeting will be followed by a march to the National
Security Service.

ARREST CHOSEN AS PRECAUTIONARY MEASURE TOWARDS FORMER RA FOREIGN MINISTER

Noyan Tapan
May 10 2007

YEREVAN, MAY 10, NOYAN TAPAN. The Court of First Instance of the
Yerevan communities of Kentron and Nork Marash satisfied on May 10
the mediation of the National Security Service on choosing two-month
arrest as precautionary measures towards former RA Minister of Foreign
Affairs Alexander Arzumanian.

A. Arzumanian is accused according to Point 1, Part 3, Article 190
of the RA Criminal Code: "Legalization of profits got in a criminal
code," by which 6-12-year imprisonment is envisaged. A. Arzumanian’s
defender Hovik Arsenian informed the Noyan Tapan correspondent about
it. He mentioned that he will appeal the decision of the Court of
First Instance at the RA Appeal Court on Criminal Cases.

VOTER APATHY APPEARS WIDESPREAD ON EVE OF PARLIAMENTARY POLL
By Marianna Grigoryan

EurasiaNet, NY
May 9 2007

With just over a day left in Armenia’s parliamentary campaign,
many voters say that it will take more than promises of a strong
army or increased pensions to get them to the polls on May 12. Some
sociologists put the disinterest down to political parties’ failure to
use professional public relations techniques. Many parties, however,
counter that they see no reason for experts to help them engage
with voters.

Frustration with past elections, which many voters believe were rigged,
appears to drive much of the apathy.

"No matter what happens, our life will not change. No matter who is
elected or not elected, nothing can change," said 50-year-old Martin
Hovhannisian, a former chemical engineer who now earns a living by
driving a cab in one of Yerevan’s suburbs. "As I see no prospects,
I will not go to the polls. The elections are for officials and do
not change anything in the lives of ordinary people."

Pensioner Margarit Minasian also plans to stay at home. She points
at buses that brought students and people working for state-run
organizations — reportedly involuntarily — to a Yerevan rally for
the ruling Republican Party of Armenia.

"If everything is turned into theater and people try to show something
using their strength, why should I believe in our tomorrow?" she
sighed.

International observers have already noted this mood. During an April
27 press conference, Organization for Security and Cooperation in
Europe (OSCE) Armenia Office Head Vladimir Pryakhin stated that OSCE
surveys indicate that more than half of Armenian voters do not want
to participate in the elections.

"It is difficult for me to say why it is so, but the latest surveys
show that 90 percent of eligible voters do not connect their and their
families’ future with the outcome of the upcoming elections," Pryakhin
told reporters. "It is not that they mistrust politicians, they simply
do not feel dependent on them," he noted about the elections. The fact
that many Armenians rely on relatives abroad for financial support
could explain the low interest in domestic politics, he added.

Similarly, an April 3-10 opinion poll of 2,000 Armenians conducted
by British pollster Populus reported that 50 percent of respondents
believe that the elections’ outcome will have no personal significance
for them. Thirty percent noted that there will be no change in Armenia
generally, and only 10 percent of respondents expressed optimism
about the elections’ consequences.

Some sociologists argue that part of the problem is that Armenian
political parties have not yet learned how to engage the public’s
attention and retain it for a month-long campaign. The knowledge of
how "to conduct a competent and correct campaign . . . is absent in
Armenia," commented Gevorg Poghosian, head of the Armenian Sociological
Association.

A campaign poster featuring a photograph of an official sitting at a
table and captioned "Strength and Faith" typifies the favored approach
for pro-government party posters. Such placards can be seen throughout
Armenian towns – even on the walls of kindergartens – and with little
variation in facial expressions or slogans. Opposition posters tend
to be equally non-descript.

"Time is moving on, but the campaign here is conducted on the level
of the 1990’s," said political campaign specialist Armen Badalian. "
Everyone says that they will build a strong army, will raise pensions,
will solve the Nagorno-Karabakh problem. The same thing constantly."

Attention to details frequently seems lacking. Information about
rallies and concerts is not always widely distributed even within the
parties themselves, much less to the press or public. The April 18 to
May 2 report of the OSCE/Office for Democratic Institutions and Human
Rights Election Observation Mission notes that "most parties appear
to favor an approach of holding unannounced or short-notice rallies."

The result, continued Badalian, is a campaign "which cannot have any
impact on the public."

"For a good result, political parties must work with voters for at
least one year, conduct surveys, decide on psychological aspects [of
the campaign], how they can influence the voter," said Badalian, who
would not disclose for which parties he himself is working. "But what
is happening is that, if, say, they are bribing voters [with handouts],
they think they have already achieved their result and never think
of consulting a specialist. They think they can do everything."

An informal poll of about a dozen political parties conducted by
EurasiaNet found that none had turned to outside advisors for help
with grabbing voters’ interest.

"What specialist can help us if we ourselves have a good knowledge of
this business?" asked Prosperous Armenia Party spokesman Baghdasar
Mherian. "I conducted PR for President Robert Kocharian in the 2003
presidential election, and, as you see, we succeeded then, so we will
be successful this time around as well."

A similar view holds on the other side of the political divide as
well. Nikol Pashinian, a newspaper editor and one of the leaders
of the hardline opposition Impeachment alliance argues that such
specialists serve no purpose.

"If you have something to say to the people and thousands of people
come to listen to you, and you do not follow any rule, but simply say
what you want to say, then people will understand you," Pashinian said.

To improve voter engagement with the campaign, one member of the
Republican Party of Armenia parliamentary faction has proposed
shortening future parliamentary campaigns from the current 33 days
to one or two weeks.

But for voters like 75-year-old Yerevan resident Varazdat Hakobian
a larger problem still lingers on.

"Everyone smiles, shows they think about us, while everyone has
in their minds how to cheat us and get hold of our votes and then
disappear for years until the next election," Hakobian said.

"Everyone is lying, so I won’t go to the polls. Let them lie without
me."

Editor’s Note: Marianna Grigoryan is a reporter for the independent
online weekly ArmeniaNow in Yerevan.

MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS OF THE REPUBLIC OF ARMENIA
—————————————— —-
PRESS AND INFORMATION DEPARTMENT
Telephone: +37410. 544041 ext 202
Fax: +37410. 562543
Email: [email protected]

PRESS RELEASE

09-05-2007
Vladimir Karapetian, Ministry Acting Spokesperson responds to a question by
"Armenpress" on Armenia’s refusal to accept Turkish representatives in the
election observation mission

Question.- Turkey and the international community are surprised that
Armenia refused to accept Turkish representatives in the election
observation mission.

Answer.- Turkey maintains a closed border with Armenia and refuses to
establish diplomatic relations. Under these circumstances, to expect to send
observers is a bit disingenuous.

Armenia regrets that Turkey did not demonstrate sensitivity in relation to
its citizens-representatives participating in the OSCE observer mission to
Armenia, given the absence of relations between our two countries.

Turkey cannot choose and select which kinds of political relations it wishes
to have with Armenia, and which it does not wish to have. Political and
diplomatic relations are not entered into selectively.

Armenia understands the concern of OSCE members regarding Armenia’s OSCE
commitments, and reaffirms that we remain faithful to those commitments. But
we expect that participating states will also expect Turkey to adhere to its
commitments to engage in normal, neighborly relations with Armenia.

ARMEN MAZMANIAN AWARDED GOLD MEDAL OF RA MINISTRY OF CULTURE

Noyan Tapan
May 08 2007

TSAGHKADZOR, MAY 8, NOYAN TAPAN. Armen Mazmanian, the Artistic Director
of the Goy theater was awarded the gold memory medal and certificate
of the RA Ministry of Culture and Youth Issues for the contribution
in the theatric art.

Minister Hasmik Poghosian handed that high cultural award to Armen
Mazmanian at the May 5-6 conference held in Tsaghkadzor, with
participation of theatric figures.

DEPUTY CHAIRMAN OF RULING PARTY SAYS NEW FRENCH PRESIDENT SHOULD CHANGE FRANCE’S POSITION TOWARD TURKEY

Trend News Agency, Azerbaijan
May 7 2007

Azerbaijan, Baku/ Trend , corr. I. Alizadeh/Ali Ahmadov, a Member of
the Milli Majlis (Azerbaijan’s Parliament), Deputy of the Chairman of
the ruling New Azerbaijan Party (YAP), has said in Baku today that the
position of the newly-elected French President, Nicola Sarkozi towards
Turkey gives concern to Azerbaijan, by adding that our country hopes
that the new Head of the French State will change his cool attitude
toward Turkey.

He noted that that the statements made by the candidates for the
post of President of France during the presidential campaign were
different to those principles they took as the basis. "I hope that
Mr. Sarkozi will realize the reality and rapidly change his attitude
toward Turkey," said Mr. Ahmadov.

The representative of the ruling Party noted that it was the
population of France, who elected the French President by adding that
Azerbaijani citizens had no possibility to have an effect on this
process. "We hope that France is headed by such a person, who, being
one of the OSCE Minks Co-Chairs, could approach the resolution of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict objectively and unbiased
and achieve acceleration of the peaceful process," considers Ahmadov.

The Azerbaijani MP believes that it is too early to speak of how
Nicola Sarkozi will act within his post of President of France in the
future. Despite the fact that during the election campaign Sarkozi
expressed his position toward Turkey. "However, he did not touch
upon the troubles that Azerbaijan faced," said Ahmadov. "For this
reason, it is very difficult to determine the future position of the
newly-elected French President. I consider that being a country with
developed democratic traditions, France will do everything possible to
make its contribution in the activity of the OSCE Minsk Group, which
was specially built up to peacefully resolve the Nagorno-Karabakh
issue on the basis of objective principles," said the Azerbaijani MP.

The Deputy Chairman of the ruling New Azerbaijan Party (YAP) noted
that OSCE should approach this issue from the point of view of just
principles. According to him, applying any other criteria, which
will be worked out by the Minsk Group, may lead to failure of the
OSCE mediation mission. "I think that the new French President is
well aware of that, and I hope that his future activity on this post
will meet with the truth," concluded Ahmadov.