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ANKARA: Will Spring Arrive In Armenia Before Winter?

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  • ANKARA: Will Spring Arrive In Armenia Before Winter?

    WILL SPRING ARRIVE IN ARMENIA BEFORE WINTER?

    Today's Zaman, Turkey
    Aug 7 2013

    by Mehmet Fatih Oztarsu*

    7 August 2013 /

    The economic woes plaguing Armenia have contributed greatly to the
    development of the Armenian culture of protest. With every passing day,
    Armenians have begun to become more informed and to see in themselves
    the real ability to run and direct their own country. And so, for
    the first time ever in this post-Soviet era, Armenians are really
    realizing the importance of reckoning with the leaders and oligarchs
    who are running the country.

    Over the course of the past two months, there have been a series of
    topics -- all of which have had economic troubles at their roots --
    that have been the focus of some very interesting protests. In May,
    protests started after announcements of increased fees for natural gas
    purchased from Russia; these protests then increased in proportion
    to the increases in costs in other areas announced by the Armenian
    administration. While Yerevan began to pursue a range of alternative
    plans following the natural gas crisis with Russia, plans made in
    the Armenian capital to engage in an energy barter with Iran --
    giving electricity in exchange for natural gas -- were backed away
    from after it was determined that Russia would not be happy about this.

    When Armenians were then informed of 30 percent increases in
    electricity costs before they had even had time to get over the
    60 percent hikes in natural gas prices, tensions rose throughout
    the country. Many opposition party fronts, like the Pan-Armenian
    National Movement and the Heritage party, took to the streets to
    underscore the point that the needs of Armenians are more important
    than Russian interests. And when the people poured into the streets
    to protest the government, the authorities, surprised in the face
    of these unexpected protests, did step back. The national atmosphere
    softened when the authorities promised that cost increases in energy
    would be made gradually and in low amounts and that Armenians would
    also be able to take advantage of assistance from the state.

    The implementation of fee increases

    Still trying to solve the country's considerable energy needs, the
    government decided to implement fee increases in a range of different
    areas. This time around, following the protests centered on natural
    gas and electricity costs, protesters from the Karabakh region began to
    fill the city squares. Complaining about poor living standards and that
    the government was not taking an interest in them, protesters accused
    the Karabakh-rooted Armenian authorities of treason against the nation.

    Protester Hacatur Hacaturyan asserted that while the country's leaders
    had at one time fought on the same front as the nation, they had now
    forgotten their once-comrades-in-arms and had brought Karabakh to
    the national agenda for the purpose of their own interests. Another
    protester, Volodya Avetisyan, who was an army reserve brigadier,
    said the thousands of other fighters from Karabakh would be prepared,
    if necessary, to fight against this Armenian administration.

    And so by now, the agenda was focused on the failed leadership of
    the country by an unskilled administration. Just as the nation had
    been looking at some of its very real problems, an announcement of fee
    hikes in the area of mass transportation set the tension levels in the
    national atmosphere even higher. The Yerevan Municipality, declaring
    that bus fares would go from 50 to 100 drams and that minibus fares
    would rise from 100 to 150 drams, said that this decision had been
    made to help increase the quality of mass transportation services.

    Now, the chain of fee increases that had begun with natural gas fee
    hikes was showing up in every area of life for Armenians. Thousands of
    people, whose socio-political movements were organized over various
    social media platforms, moved into action just a few hours after the
    latest fee hike announcements were made in the hopes of forcing the
    Yerevan Municipality to reverse its decision. The capital's city
    squares filled with angry protesters as people declared that not
    only did they not recognize the latest fare increases, but that they
    would not be riding mass transportation vehicles at all in the times
    to come. The protest movement, called "We will not pay 150 drams,"
    quickly attracted thousands of supporters. And with protests that
    lasted seven days, for the first time in Armenian history, a civilian
    movement was successful in getting a city municipality to shelve a
    decision on fee increases.

    During the same period of time, another protest, called the Free
    Vehicle movement, represented a different sort of first for the
    country. The Free Vehicle movement saw taxi drivers and private
    car owners working to transport protesters refusing to ride mass
    transportation vehicles to wherever they wanted for free.

    The '150 Dram' protests

    The "150 Dram" protests -- which for the first time ever saw the
    questioning of the oligarchy and the calling for punishment of
    bureaucrats who were unfairly profiting from their own interests --
    brought about another interesting situation. During these protests,
    it was revealed that the head of the Transportation Department of
    the Yerevan Municipality, one Henrik Navasardian, was in fact the
    owner of a bus line, and certain figures in parliament were owners
    of various taxi and private bus lines.

    It was simultaneously revealed that Navasardian's bus line, Dyako-Art,
    was legally owned by his 22-year-old son Andranik, and that the prime
    responsibility for the running of this company lay with his relative,
    Artak Navasardian. While details of the situation began to trickle
    out, various media organs began looking into the incredible level of
    investments held by Armenian bureaucrats like Navasardian, asserting
    that while this situation might in fact be somewhat acceptable, the
    insistence by Navasardian and other members of the ruling elite on
    new fare increases would not be accepted by the people of the country.

    When details were further revealed that another of Navasardian's sons,
    Davit Navasardian, was the owner of Motion Time, a company providing
    advertising services for mass transportation vehicles in Armenia,
    the situation took on scandalous proportions. Even now, throughout
    Armenia, protests are still ongoing, calling for the resignation of
    the current oligarchy.

    The Armenians, calling for the resignation of not only Prime Minister
    Tigran Sarksyan but also many mayors and government ministers,
    may turn to a number of different options if their leaders maintain
    their level of failure and economic problems. If the energy crisis
    in particular remains in place until wintertime, it seems clear that
    many different and new types of protests might be seen in Armenia in
    the time to come, though there is also great curiosity as to what
    sorts of reactions the protests will elicit not only from Armenian
    President Serzh Sarksyan, who has amassed his own fortunes, but also
    from other top leadership figures.

    *Mehmet Fatih Oztarsu is a strategic outlook expert on the Caucasus.

    http://www.todayszaman.com/newsDetail_getNewsById.action;jsessionid=78B36B295 D2AB425AC2F00CD26811408?newsId=323036&columnistId= 0

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