Monday,
Authorities Move To Arrest Tsarukian
• Ruzanna Stepanian
Armenia -- Prosperous Armenia Party leader Gagik Tsarukian speaks to reporters,
Yerevan, February 11, 2020.
Law-enforcement authorities on Monday asked the Armenian parliament to allow
them to arrest Gagik Tsarukian, a wealthy businessman leading its largest
opposition group, on charges which he and his allies reject as politically
motivated.
Parliament speaker Ararat Mirzoyan said he received a relevant motion from
Prosecutor-General Artur Davtian and included it on the agenda of a National
Assembly session scheduled for Tuesday.
In the motion publicized by his office, Davtian claimed that Tsarukian “created
and led an organized group” that bought more than 17,000 votes for his
Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) during parliamentary elections held in April 2017.
The chief prosecutor said the vote bribes were handed out to residents of the
Gegharkunik province. Each of them received 10,000 drams ($21), he said, adding
that the National Security Service (NSS) has collected documents and testimony
corroborating these accusations.
Armenia -- A supporter of Armenian opposition leader Gagik Tsarukian holds its
portrait during a unauthorised rally close to National secuirury service
headquarter in Yerevan,
Davtian made no mention of two other Tsarukian-related criminal cases opened by
the NSS. The security service accused companies owned by the leader of the
opposition Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) of large-scale fraud after raiding his
villa outside Yerevan on Sunday. It then interrogated him for more than eight
hours.
In a written statement issued several hours before the announcement of the
authorities’ decision to seek his arrest, Tsarukian again denounced the
crackdown as government retribution for his demands for Prime Minister Nikol
Pashinian. He stood by his claims that Pashinian’s government has mishandled
Armenia’s worsening coronavirus crisis and failed to mitigate its severe
socioeconomic consequences.
“Instead of solving problems and doing difficult but real work, the authorities
are terrorizing their opponents,” he said.
“I am prepared for any scenario,” the BHK leader added, alluding to his possible
arrest. “I am appealing to my fellow citizens: don’t get depressed, everything
will be fine, and we will overcome this crisis even if the authorities and Nikol
Pashinian personally do everything to aggravate the situation.”
Tsarukian met with BHK parliamentarians earlier in the day. One of them, Arman
Abovian, told RFE/RL’s Armenian service that the tycoon was “in very high
spirits.”
Another senior BHK figure, Naira Zohrabian, claimed in the morning that the
authorities have made a “political decision” to lift Tsarukian’s parliamentary
immunity from prosecution. “Prosecutor-General Artur Davtian still has a chance
not to execute the political order,” she said.
Davtian’s spokesman, Gor Abrahamian, countered that Tsarukian cannot be
prosecuted for political reasons.
Armenia -- Prosperous Armenia Party leader Gagik Tsarukian is surrounded by
supporters outside his house in Arinj, .
Pashinian and senior representatives of his My Step bloc also denied any
political motives behind the crackdown. Some of them posted on their Facebook
pages supposedly confidential details of the criminal investigations which they
said substantiate the NSS allegations.
Tsarukian’s party was officially in opposition to then President Serzh Sarkisian
when it ran for the parliament in the April 2017 elections. One year later, it
backed the “Velvet Revolution” that toppled Sarkisian, helped Pashinian become
prime minister and joined his first cabinet formed in May 2018.
Pashinian fired his ministers affiliated with BHK in October 2018, accusing
Tsarukian of secretly collaborating with the former regime.
The BHK came in a distant second in the December 2018 parliamentary elections
and won 26 seats in Armenia’s 132-member parliament.
Pashinian’s My Step controls 88 parliament seats, putting it in a position to
give the green to Tsarukian’s arrest and prosecution.
Pashinian Calls For New Constitution
Armenia -- Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian speaks at a referendum campaign rally
in Vayk, March 12, 2020.
Armenia should adopt a new constitution that could abolish the country’s
Constitutional Court, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said on Monday.
Pashinian insisted that wants to establish an “organic connection between the
state order and the will of the people,” rather than cement his hold on power.
Most Armenians, he said, do not feel such a connection because they played no
part in the enactment of their country’s post-Soviet constitution and numerous
amendments to it made by their former governments.
“I’m not one of those people who think that the country’s constitutions should
frequently undergo changes,” he told a government commission on constitutional
reform formed early this year. “But I must also say that especially at this
juncture I am of the opinion that we need to not just enact constitutional
changes but to adopt a de jure new constitution.”
Pashinian stressed that the commission should not try to reverse Armenia’s
transition to the parliamentary system of government which was controversially
engineered by former President Serzh Sarkisian. It should work on other changes
mostly relating to the judicial system, he said.
In particular, Pashinian suggested that the ad hoc panel “very seriously”
consider drafting constitutional provisions that would merge the Constitutional
Court with the Court of Cassation, Armenia’s highest body of criminal and
administrative justice. He said that the two courts have offered different
interpretations of Armenian laws on a number of occasions.
Over the past year, Pashinian has been at loggerheads with seven of the nine
members of the Constitutional Court, accusing them of being linked to the former
regime and impeding judicial reforms. The Constitutional Court chairman, Hrayr
Tovmasian, has rejected those accusations, saying that the prime minister is
simply seeking to gain control over the court.
In February, Pashinian’s government decided to hold a referendum on
constitutional amendments that would replace Tovmasian and the six other judges.
The referendum scheduled for April 5 was subsequently postponed due to the
coronavirus pandemic.
With no end in sight to the pandemic, the government is expected to cancel the
vote altogether. Last month it asked the Venice Commission of the Council of
Europe to help it end the standoff with the high court.
The government commission on constitutional reform was formed in January before
Pashinian’s political team decided to hold the controversial referendum. It
consists of 15 members, including Armenia’s justice minister, human rights
ombudsman, a representative of the country’s judges, members of the three
political forces represented in the parliament and legal scholars chosen by the
Justice Ministry.
The commission chairman, Yeghishe Kirakosian, said in February that the panel
will come up with a package of amendments and initiate “public discussions” on
it by September 2020.
Kirakosian indicated on Monday that the process will take more time. He told
Pashinian that the commission expects to draft “constitutional reforms” by June
2021.
Opposition Parties Condemn Crackdown On Tsarukian
• Ruzanna Stepanian
• Anush Mkrtchian
Armenia -- Riot police detain a supporter of Prosperous Armenia Party leader
Gagik Tsarukian outside the National Security Service headquarters in Yerevan,
.
Several other opposition forces have joined the Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK)
in condemning as politically motivated criminal proceedings launched against its
leader Gagik Tsarukian.
The National Security Service (NSS) interrogated Tsarukian for more than eight
hours on Sunday after searching his home and announcing the launch of three
separate criminal investigations into the wealthy businessman heading Armenia’s
largest parliamentary opposition party.
Tsarukian and his associates denounced the crackdown as government retribution
for the BHK leader’s recent strong criticism of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian
and demands for his resignation.
The Bright Armenia Party (LHK), the second opposition group represented in the
parliament, likewise said on Monday that the country’s political leadership
ordered the criminal proceedings in a bid to “silence” a key political opponent.
“The Bright Armenia Party strongly condemns criminal prosecutions resulting from
political expediency and carried out through a selective enforcement of the
law,” read a statement issued by the party leadership.
The LHK also criticized the Armenian police for detaining at least 252 BHK
supporters who protested against the NSS actions against Tsarukian outside the
NSS headquarters in Yerevan. The police argue that the demonstration was illegal
because it was held during a coronavirus-related state of emergency in the
country.
Other opposition groups, which are not represented in the National Assembly,
condemned the crackdown in even stronger terms. The Armenian Revolutionary
Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) claimed that it is part of Pashinian’s attempts to
“establish dictatorship.” The recently formed Hayrenik (Fatherland) party of
former NSS Director Artur Vanetsian accused the authorities of “fabricating” the
cases against Tsarukian.
A Dashnaktsutyun leader, Ishkhan Saghatelian, confirmed that he hosted on Sunday
a meeting with senior representatives of the BHK, Hayrenik and two other
opposition parties that discussed the latest developments in Armenia. The LHK
did not take part in the talks.
Saghatelian told RFE/RL’s Armenian service that despite their overall “mutual
understanding” the participants did not reach any concrete agreements. “We will
meet again if need be,” he said.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Office of Prosecutor-General insisted on Monday
that the controversial investigations into Tsarukian’s business activities are
not politically motivated. Pashinian also denied through his press secretary
issuing any orders to the investigators.
French Coronavirus Doctors Arrive In Armenia
Armenia -- French doctors pose for a photograph on their arrival at Zvartnots
airport, Yerevan, . (Photo by the French Embassy in Armenia)
A team of French medics has arrived in Armenia to help Armenian colleagues
increasingly struggling to cope with the coronavirus crisis.
The seven doctors were greeted by Armenia’s Diaspora High Commissioner Zareh
Sinanyan, Deputy Health Minister Anahit Avanesian and the French and U.S.
ambassadors in Yerevan when they arrived at Zvartnots airport late on Sunday.
Sinanyan’s office said it has organized the emergency mission “in close
collaboration” with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
“The doctors who had already undertaken the COVID-19 fight in France are in
Armenia for the first time and will invest all their experience and knowledge in
this crucial mission to save human lives,” it said in a statement.
According to French Ambassador Jonathan Lacote, they will stay in Armenia for 10
days.
“I want to thank all our partners for organizing their mission,” Health Minister
Arsen Torosian said on Monday. “It will be really useful for us.”
France -- Medical workers tend to a patient infected with COVID-19 at the
intensive care unit of the Lariboisiere Hospital of the AP-HP in Paris on April
27, 2020.
In a Facebook post, Torosian also said that the French medics have already
“gotten down to work” at the intensive care units of three Yerevan-based
hospitals treating COVID-19 patients.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Torosian confirmed that a similar medical team
from Lithuania will arrive in Armenia in the coming days. The decision to send
it was made by the Lithuanian government.
Torosian revealed that about 50 Russian doctors have also expressed a desire to
work at the Armenian hospitals on the front lines of the coronavirus epidemic.
He gave no dates for their arrival.
The minister made no mention of similar assistance that was offered by
neighboring Georgia. Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia said on Thursday
that his government is discussing details of the proposed aid with the Armenian
side.
Torosian warned on June 4 that Armenia’s healthcare system is now so
overstretched that hospitals may soon be unable to admit all infected citizens
in need of urgent treatment. He said afterwards that the health authorities will
set up soon 350 new hospital beds to treat the increased number of people
infected with the virus.
The minister insisted on June 11 that Armenian hospitals are still able to give
life-saving treatment to all patients that are in a serious condition.
The number of confirmed coronavirus cases registered in the country of about 3
million continued to grow rapidly over the weekend. The Armenian Ministry of
Health said on Monday that they rose by 397 to 17,064 in the past day.
Armenia -- Healthcare workers wearing protective gear are seen outside the Nork
Hospital for Infectious Diseases, Yerevan, June 5, 2020.
The ministry also reported the deaths of 19 more people infected with the
disease. It said 16 of those deaths were primarily caused by the coronavirus.
They were added to the official COVID-19 death toll which rose to 285.
According to the health authorities, 94 other infected people have died as a
result of other, pre-existing diseases. Three of these fatalities were recorded
on Sunday.
The number of new COVID-19 infections hit a new daily high of 723 on Friday.
“With regard to the coronavirus we are not doing well,” Prime Minister Nikol
Pashinian admitted on Saturday morning. He again complained that many Armenians
are not practicing social distancing, wearing face masks in public and taking
other precautions recommended by the authorities.
The Armenian government cited the high infection rates last week when it
extended a coronavirus-related state of emergency in the country by another
month, until July 13.
The state of emergency was declared on March 16. A few days later, the
government issued stay-at-home orders and banned most types of business
activity. It began relaxing those restrictions already in mid-April and lifted
virtually all of them by May 10 despite the growing numbers of coronavirus cases
and deaths.
Critics say that the government never properly enforced the lockdown and lifted
it too soon. Some of them have called for a renewed lockdown. Pashinian and
other senior government officials have opposed such a measure so far.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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