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OSKANIAN PREDICTS FALLOUT FOR ARMENIA FROM 'POLITICAL ORDER' AGAINST HIM
http://www.armenianow.com/news/politics/40193/armenia_vartan_oskanian_civilitas
Politics | 02.10.12 | 10:49
Member of Parliament and former Minister of Foreign Affairs Vartan
Oskanian regrets the "miscalculation" of the authorities in trying
to prosecute him without any legal grounds that he says will only
damage Armenia's interests in international affairs and affect the
country's image.
Speaking on a prime time talk show on Kentron TV Monday night Oskanian
said that the authorities are executing "a political order" against
him by trying to strip him of parliamentary immunity and prosecute
in connection with an embezzlement of funds that he said had never
taken place.
"We should understand how all this is going to be seen from the
Diaspora and what attitude our citizens will have towards the whole
thing. We should also understand that we have the Karabakh issue,
for which we need confidence of the Diaspora," said the Syria-born
politician, who served as Armenia's foreign minister in 1998-2008
and participated then in internationally mediated negotiations with
Azerbaijan over the Karabakh conflict on behalf of the Armenian
leadership.
"Now the world will wonder: 'Did we work for 10 years with a person
who has been engaged in money laundering?' The government can't see
the broader picture," he charged.
Oskanian, who is a senior member of the Prosperous Armenia Party
(PAP) today, also suggested that the developments around his persona
as well as the party that now faces a government backlash will also
harm Armenia's democratic credentials, in particular may result in
Armenia appearing in the list of countries with authoritarian regimes
in the annual reports of Freedom House, a legal global watchdog.
The PAP lawmaker said the outcome of the vote on stripping him of his
parliamentary immunity planned for Tuesday was a 'foregone conclusion'
considering the majority that the ruling Republican Party today
enjoys in the National Assembly. He stressed that it is against this
"political monopoly" that he has been fighting ever since he joined
the PAP early this year.
The 57-year-old diplomat-turned-politician, who is regarded by many as
a plausible candidate to challenge incumbent President Serzh Sargsyan
in next February's election, stressed that he wouldn't give up and
was going to fight to the end even if it meant being jailed.
http://www.armenianow.com/news/politics/40193/armenia_vartan_oskanian_civilitas
Politics | 02.10.12 | 10:49
Member of Parliament and former Minister of Foreign Affairs Vartan
Oskanian regrets the "miscalculation" of the authorities in trying
to prosecute him without any legal grounds that he says will only
damage Armenia's interests in international affairs and affect the
country's image.
Speaking on a prime time talk show on Kentron TV Monday night Oskanian
said that the authorities are executing "a political order" against
him by trying to strip him of parliamentary immunity and prosecute
in connection with an embezzlement of funds that he said had never
taken place.
"We should understand how all this is going to be seen from the
Diaspora and what attitude our citizens will have towards the whole
thing. We should also understand that we have the Karabakh issue,
for which we need confidence of the Diaspora," said the Syria-born
politician, who served as Armenia's foreign minister in 1998-2008
and participated then in internationally mediated negotiations with
Azerbaijan over the Karabakh conflict on behalf of the Armenian
leadership.
"Now the world will wonder: 'Did we work for 10 years with a person
who has been engaged in money laundering?' The government can't see
the broader picture," he charged.
Oskanian, who is a senior member of the Prosperous Armenia Party
(PAP) today, also suggested that the developments around his persona
as well as the party that now faces a government backlash will also
harm Armenia's democratic credentials, in particular may result in
Armenia appearing in the list of countries with authoritarian regimes
in the annual reports of Freedom House, a legal global watchdog.
The PAP lawmaker said the outcome of the vote on stripping him of his
parliamentary immunity planned for Tuesday was a 'foregone conclusion'
considering the majority that the ruling Republican Party today
enjoys in the National Assembly. He stressed that it is against this
"political monopoly" that he has been fighting ever since he joined
the PAP early this year.
The 57-year-old diplomat-turned-politician, who is regarded by many as
a plausible candidate to challenge incumbent President Serzh Sargsyan
in next February's election, stressed that he wouldn't give up and
was going to fight to the end even if it meant being jailed.