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PREPARATIONS: ARMENIAN POLITICAL FORCES REVIEWING THEIR APPROACHES, DETERMINING POLICIES
Naira Hayrumyan
ArmeniaNow
13.07.10
Heritage founder Raffi Hovannisian elected chairman of the party's
board (at the party's congress in Yerevan, July 10).
With less than two years remaining before the parliamentary elections
in Armenia, the opposition parties start to mobilize forces and
declare their policies. Thus, the opposition Heritage Party held its
extraordinary congress on July 10, and the non-parliamentary Armenian
National Movement (ANM), which stood at the sources of independent
Armenia, plans its convention for July 17.
Judging by the fact that Heritage elected its founder and leader,
first Foreign Minister of Armenia Raffi Hovannisian as chairman
of the party's board, the party is going to engage in a serious
struggle for the presidency and parliamentary seats during the
next elections. The party has proclaimed its policy, which reflects
positions on foreign-policy and domestic issues. Some points of the
party program have become news on the political agenda.
In particular, Heritage believes that the nation-state of Armenia
should seek the recognition of Turkey's territorial integrity within
the borders outlined in 1920 by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson. The
party suggests Armenia recognize the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic within
its constitutional borders. From this point of view, the Heritage
positions may have something in common with the approaches of the
Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF, Dashnaktsutyun), which advances
nationalist goals.
Thus, Heritage calls on Armenia and the Diaspora to build a modern,
democratic, rule-of-law state at the foot of Mount Ararat, a state
where rights are respected, where there are no political prisoners
and where supreme power belongs to citizens, where everyone is equal
before the law regardless of their merits.
The party also declared its intention to mobilize the civil initiatives
that have displayed activity in Armenia and channel their activities
into achieving a system transformation in the country's life. This
is also something new for political parties that have disengaged
themselves from civil affairs.
Hovannisian said that they will be consistent in uncovering the
crime of March 1, 2008 (the deadly post-election unrest resulting
in clashes between opposition supporters and security forces), but
added that it will not happen until "the second, third and then first
presidents are questioned". "All of us are responsible for the rigged
elections, corruption, the clash of public and private interests,
but the primary responsibility lies with the three presidents of
Armenia," said Hovannisian. At the same time, he argued that during
their times as presidents Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan have
amassed so much capital that it would be sufficient to complete the
restoration of Karabakh along with its liberated territories.
In parliamentary elections, Hovannisian prefers participating as a
bloc, but if such an alliance fails to be formed, then they are ready
to participate in the election campaign independently.
Further developments within the opposition domain will show whether
electoral blocs will be formed or not. And the opposition in Armenia
today has two irreconcilable poles. The Armenian National Congress
led by first president Levon Ter-Petrosyan has so far failed to sit
down with ARF, which has declared itself to be opposition, and ARF
cannot forgive Ter-Petrosyan the so-called Dro case, the reprisals
against Dashnaktsutyun members, as a result of which by 1995 most of
the current ARF leaders had been jailed.
Heritage has good relations with both forces, but so far all its
attempts to convene a roundtable with the participation of all parties
have been unsuccessful. Despite the commonality of the declared policy
and goals, the parties prefer pursuing 'non-bloc' policies.
From: A. Papazian
Naira Hayrumyan
ArmeniaNow
13.07.10
Heritage founder Raffi Hovannisian elected chairman of the party's
board (at the party's congress in Yerevan, July 10).
With less than two years remaining before the parliamentary elections
in Armenia, the opposition parties start to mobilize forces and
declare their policies. Thus, the opposition Heritage Party held its
extraordinary congress on July 10, and the non-parliamentary Armenian
National Movement (ANM), which stood at the sources of independent
Armenia, plans its convention for July 17.
Judging by the fact that Heritage elected its founder and leader,
first Foreign Minister of Armenia Raffi Hovannisian as chairman
of the party's board, the party is going to engage in a serious
struggle for the presidency and parliamentary seats during the
next elections. The party has proclaimed its policy, which reflects
positions on foreign-policy and domestic issues. Some points of the
party program have become news on the political agenda.
In particular, Heritage believes that the nation-state of Armenia
should seek the recognition of Turkey's territorial integrity within
the borders outlined in 1920 by U.S. President Woodrow Wilson. The
party suggests Armenia recognize the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic within
its constitutional borders. From this point of view, the Heritage
positions may have something in common with the approaches of the
Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF, Dashnaktsutyun), which advances
nationalist goals.
Thus, Heritage calls on Armenia and the Diaspora to build a modern,
democratic, rule-of-law state at the foot of Mount Ararat, a state
where rights are respected, where there are no political prisoners
and where supreme power belongs to citizens, where everyone is equal
before the law regardless of their merits.
The party also declared its intention to mobilize the civil initiatives
that have displayed activity in Armenia and channel their activities
into achieving a system transformation in the country's life. This
is also something new for political parties that have disengaged
themselves from civil affairs.
Hovannisian said that they will be consistent in uncovering the
crime of March 1, 2008 (the deadly post-election unrest resulting
in clashes between opposition supporters and security forces), but
added that it will not happen until "the second, third and then first
presidents are questioned". "All of us are responsible for the rigged
elections, corruption, the clash of public and private interests,
but the primary responsibility lies with the three presidents of
Armenia," said Hovannisian. At the same time, he argued that during
their times as presidents Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan have
amassed so much capital that it would be sufficient to complete the
restoration of Karabakh along with its liberated territories.
In parliamentary elections, Hovannisian prefers participating as a
bloc, but if such an alliance fails to be formed, then they are ready
to participate in the election campaign independently.
Further developments within the opposition domain will show whether
electoral blocs will be formed or not. And the opposition in Armenia
today has two irreconcilable poles. The Armenian National Congress
led by first president Levon Ter-Petrosyan has so far failed to sit
down with ARF, which has declared itself to be opposition, and ARF
cannot forgive Ter-Petrosyan the so-called Dro case, the reprisals
against Dashnaktsutyun members, as a result of which by 1995 most of
the current ARF leaders had been jailed.
Heritage has good relations with both forces, but so far all its
attempts to convene a roundtable with the participation of all parties
have been unsuccessful. Despite the commonality of the declared policy
and goals, the parties prefer pursuing 'non-bloc' policies.
From: A. Papazian