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PARTIES 'COOPERATE FOR REGIME CHANGE'
Sargis Harutyunyan, Ruzanna Stepanian
http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/24552806.html
18.04.2012
Armenia - Armen Rustamian, a leader of the opposition Armenian
Revolutionary Federation, addresses a campaign rally in Armavir,
17 Apr 2012.
Three leading political forces that have pledged to jointly fight for
the fairness of next month's parliamentary elections are ultimately
interested in changing Armenia's current government, a leader of
the opposition Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun)
said on Wednesday.
"The goal is not only election oversight but to ensure that elections
in Armenia become means of changing the government," Armen Rustamian
told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). "Unfortunately, this
has not been the case in Armenia until now."
"Changing this situation is beneficial for those political forces that
really want regime change and want to change the government without
upheavals, without putting the public and our fellow citizens at
risk," Rustamian said, referring to Dashnaktsutyun, the opposition
Armenian National Congress (HAK) and the Prosperous Armenia Party
(BHK), a member of the governing coalition.
The three election contenders decided to set up the Inter-Party
Center for Public Oversight of the Elections on April 4. BHK leader
Gagik Tsarukian and the HAK's Levon Ter-Petrosian stressed on Tuesday
that they have struck no far-reaching political deals and are only
cooperating on the proper conduct of the May 6 polls.
Rustamian argued, though, that regime change will happen
"automatically" if elections held in Armenia are truly democratic. "If
we create an environment where democratic elections take place,
this issue will be solved," he said.
Rustamian spoke to RFE/RL's Armenian service after attending a third
meeting of senior Dashnaktsutyun, BHK and HAK figures that discussed
details of the anti-fraud center's activities. They named three
individuals who will coordinate the center's work.
Predictably, the meeting was boycotted by another major opposition
party, Zharangutyun. It was initially ready to join the task force
but demanded that the top leaders of the participating forces and
Tsarukian in particular personally commit themselves to combating
electoral fraud. Zharangutyun leaders have also accused the HAK and
Tsarukian's party of having ulterior motives.
The Zharangutyun criticism and allegations were dismissed by the
participants of Wednesday's meeting. "Regarding those absent from
the task force, I have doubts as to whether they really want free
and fair elections," said Vartan Oskanian, a former foreign minister
representing the BHK.
Oskanian and Rustamian also condemned recent days' reported attacks
on HAK activists campaigning in a Yerevan district dominated by a
government-linked businessman. "These are unfortunate incidents. I
think they must be promptly condemned and prevented because they
cast shadow on the fairness and, at the end of the day, results of
the elections," Oskanian told reporters.
The BHK representative added that the violence ran counter to
President Serzh Sarkisian's repeated calls for election contenders
to show mutual tolerance and avoid "hostility." "I'm glad that the
president of the republic is making such calls," "But right now they
seem to be neglected," he said.
Sargis Harutyunyan, Ruzanna Stepanian
http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/24552806.html
18.04.2012
Armenia - Armen Rustamian, a leader of the opposition Armenian
Revolutionary Federation, addresses a campaign rally in Armavir,
17 Apr 2012.
Three leading political forces that have pledged to jointly fight for
the fairness of next month's parliamentary elections are ultimately
interested in changing Armenia's current government, a leader of
the opposition Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun)
said on Wednesday.
"The goal is not only election oversight but to ensure that elections
in Armenia become means of changing the government," Armen Rustamian
told RFE/RL's Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). "Unfortunately, this
has not been the case in Armenia until now."
"Changing this situation is beneficial for those political forces that
really want regime change and want to change the government without
upheavals, without putting the public and our fellow citizens at
risk," Rustamian said, referring to Dashnaktsutyun, the opposition
Armenian National Congress (HAK) and the Prosperous Armenia Party
(BHK), a member of the governing coalition.
The three election contenders decided to set up the Inter-Party
Center for Public Oversight of the Elections on April 4. BHK leader
Gagik Tsarukian and the HAK's Levon Ter-Petrosian stressed on Tuesday
that they have struck no far-reaching political deals and are only
cooperating on the proper conduct of the May 6 polls.
Rustamian argued, though, that regime change will happen
"automatically" if elections held in Armenia are truly democratic. "If
we create an environment where democratic elections take place,
this issue will be solved," he said.
Rustamian spoke to RFE/RL's Armenian service after attending a third
meeting of senior Dashnaktsutyun, BHK and HAK figures that discussed
details of the anti-fraud center's activities. They named three
individuals who will coordinate the center's work.
Predictably, the meeting was boycotted by another major opposition
party, Zharangutyun. It was initially ready to join the task force
but demanded that the top leaders of the participating forces and
Tsarukian in particular personally commit themselves to combating
electoral fraud. Zharangutyun leaders have also accused the HAK and
Tsarukian's party of having ulterior motives.
The Zharangutyun criticism and allegations were dismissed by the
participants of Wednesday's meeting. "Regarding those absent from
the task force, I have doubts as to whether they really want free
and fair elections," said Vartan Oskanian, a former foreign minister
representing the BHK.
Oskanian and Rustamian also condemned recent days' reported attacks
on HAK activists campaigning in a Yerevan district dominated by a
government-linked businessman. "These are unfortunate incidents. I
think they must be promptly condemned and prevented because they
cast shadow on the fairness and, at the end of the day, results of
the elections," Oskanian told reporters.
The BHK representative added that the violence ran counter to
President Serzh Sarkisian's repeated calls for election contenders
to show mutual tolerance and avoid "hostility." "I'm glad that the
president of the republic is making such calls," "But right now they
seem to be neglected," he said.