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Levon Ter-Petrossian Will Not Leave Politics

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  • Levon Ter-Petrossian Will Not Leave Politics

    Levon Ter-Petrossian Will Not Leave Politics

    http://www.aravot.am/en/2012/12/27/145264/
    DECEMBER 27, 2012 13:24



    `We have never allowed ourselves to make assumptions whether the
    Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) made one-man or team
    decisions, have we?' an Armenian National Congress (ANC) MP Says to
    ARF MPs

    The ANC discussed the ways of its participation in the presidential
    election during a political council meeting yesterday. They didn't
    reach any agreement; discussions are still in progress. However, an
    ANC parliamentary group member, Lyudmilla Sargsyan, assured during a
    conversation with Aravot, `All the forces that have remained in the
    ANC unequivocally support the Congress, and the ANC will always be
    viable, although the situation has changed.' In response to an
    observation that another member of the ANC, Mikayel Hayrapetyan's
    Conservative Party, had withdrawn from the ANC, Ms. Sargsyan said:
    `That party had just been registered in the ANC, but you know quite
    well yourself that it hadn't been engaged in any activity in the ANC
    for a long time. Therefore, the loss will not be great. As for Hrant
    Bagratyan, I have already expressed my opinion; I am sorry that he had
    made that decision before the president's decision.' However, we have
    what we have. According to our interlocutor, `We are very decisive.
    The ANC should be refreshed with new thoughts, put forward new ideas.
    Realizing what a great role the ANC plays in Armenian political life,
    we will do whatever it takes to make the ANC stronger, more powerful
    and not only maintain its role, but also make it greater. I saw that
    decisiveness in all the parties that are members of the political
    council, and I am more than convinced that we will carry all that out.
    If there is no ANC, our political stage and thought will be poorer.'
    Moreover, according to Ms. Sargsyan, the fact that Levon
    Ter-Petrossian, the first president and the leader of the ANC, stated
    about not announcing his candidacy for the upcoming presidential
    election doesn't mean at all that he will not be the ANC leader from
    now on, and it doesn't mean that he is going to leave politics, `I am
    more than convinced that his presence will be visible every day,
    because Levon Ter-Petrossian's sense of responsibility for our country
    and our people will never disappear.'

    A political unit that consolidated a big part of the political stage
    and society only five years ago cannot clarify its further actions
    today, in the run-up to the presidential election. In response to our
    question what role should the ANC and the first president play in the
    future political developments, in her opinion, Ms. Sargsyan said that
    it was too early to talk about it, since the programs were still being
    devised and discussed. `The reason why we don't participate in the
    presidential election is that there are no real mechanisms to win a
    victory as a result of that participation. The reason is not a lack of
    supporters, but the fact that the Electoral Code is much distorted,
    and the administrative, financial and criminal oligarchic leverage is
    in the government's hands; it makes impossible for any serious force
    to participate in the election. As you have seen, the Prosperous
    Armenia Party (PAP), as well as the ANC and the ARF, refused to
    participate in the presidential election. Basically the second, third
    and fourth biggest parliamentary groups refused,' our interlocutor
    affirms, adding that if the government had been inclined to conduct a
    really fair and transparent election, it wouldn't have disrupted the
    reform of the Electoral Code initiated by the ANC and joined by
    non-coalition forces. `We became convinced once again that the
    government was not ready for fair elections, therefore it leaves us
    with no other choice than to wish good luck to Serzh Sargsyan in his
    lonely activities in the uncompetitive presidential election,' L.
    Sargsyan says, predicting that a rather passive presidential election,
    which the government will try to compensate by moving people from one
    place to another and ensuring their voting, is expected. According to
    her, our people, who may not get the expected bribes in yet another
    election, have `suffered' from all this.

    We noted that the ANC leader hadn't talked about other reasons for his
    decision, except for stressing the age qualification. Ms. Sargsyan
    said that if the president had made such an emphasis, probably, he had
    had reasons to do so.

    In response to our question whether the fact that two opposition
    forces in the parliament and the second biggest force in the
    parliament that had declared itself an alternative refused to
    participate in such an important event as a presidential election
    didn't imply backstage agreements, the ANC MP said: `I can say with
    regard to us that there could have been no agreement. It is not
    logical that Levon Ter-Petrossian cut a deal with someone not to
    announce his candidacy. I don't rule out anything with regard to other
    forces. The ANC never cuts such deals, especially, with the
    government, particularly given the fact that we had our competitive
    candidate, who really could have challenged the regime, if there had
    been a respective situation in the country, the people had overcome
    that difficult moral and psychological condition and had been ready to
    fight to the finish. There were no prerequisites; therefore, it was
    obvious that the regime would ensure Sargsyan's reproduction. A
    serious political force has no right to participate in such a farce.'
    Ms. Sargsyan thinks that on the one hand, this situation is `very
    good' for the incumbent president, he has great chances to be
    `reelected,' but on the other hand, he is in a rather difficult
    situation, since he has no rival, `The fact that electoral mechanisms
    are destroyed will be visible also to the international community, and
    Sargsyan's position will weaken.'

    Yesterday ARF representatives described the ANC leader's decision as a
    `one-man' decision and didn't deem it normal. Lyudmila Sargsyan said
    that in the ANC, they weren't guided by the principle whether the ARF
    would like it or not. `Making a decision on his nomination was first
    of all Levon Ter-Petrossian's right, because he was the one who would
    enter that struggle. And it is normal. So what? If Armen Rustamyan,
    for one, decided that he didn't want to participate in the
    presidential election, would the Bureau force him? I think not. It was
    a personal decision, which the party might or might not like. Yes, we
    wanted Levon Ter-Petrossian to announce his candidacy, but none of us
    gave himself a moral right to force Ter-Petrossian. Regardless of our
    wishes, I am convinced that Ter-Petrossian made the right decision. We
    have never allowed ourselves to make assumptions whether the ARF made
    one-man or team decisions, have we? It is their internal issue in the
    same way as this is our internal issue.' Ms. Sargsyan doesn't agree
    that the ANC leader's decision will confuse the parents of the March 1
    victims. She is sure that they will get the ANC leader right too, `All
    of us took that decision hard at first, but then we realized that he
    had calculated everything. I am sure that the parents of the March 1
    victims will get him right and understand all that. The events of
    March 1 will always be on the ANC agenda, and we will try to uncover
    those events as soon as possible.' L. Sargsyan hopes that the
    government will keep its promise after the presidential election, and
    it will be possible to shed light on those events within the framework
    of a parliamentary commission to be formed.

    NELLY GRIGORYAN

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