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Paruyr Hayrikyan:
Gunman was not Armenian
http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/interviews/144092/Gunman_was_not_Armenian
February 3, 2013
PanARMENIAN.Net - A candidate in Armenia's presidential elections,
Paruyr Hayrikyan, shot and wounded in an assassination attempt, feels
good and is determined to continue the race. The question remains:
Will the elections be delayed? As the candidate told PanARMENIAN.Net,
he'll either apply to the Constitutional Court with a request to delay
the elections for 2 weeks, or try and collect his strength to continue
with the campaign. `The poll day of February 18 is important to me for
many reasons,' he said.
Mr Hayrikyan, how do you feel? When do you think you'll be fully recovered?
I feel good, on the whole. I am recovering. Last night I tried to get
out of bed. I hate being sick, and thus losing control of the
situation. Having set democracy as a priority I can't but feel upset
to become a reason for even a minor delay in polls.
The most burning issue of today is whether you'll delay the polls.
What did you decide?
I thought about it. As I said in a conversation with the head of the
Constitutional Court, PM, ex-PM and parliament speaker, who were
visiting me, new polls should be ruled out no matter how bad I feel.
I see the situation as thus: someone meant to eliminate one of the
presidential hopefuls, to cause a nomination of new candidates, and
restart the whole election process. Frankly speaking, I'd like for
polls to be held in warmer weather. Were the polls delayed for 40 days
it would be warmer and easier to communicate with the voters. However,
I won't be postponing polls for 40 days, and on Monday, I'll give a
final response for a 2-week delay. I'll either apply to the
Constitutional Court with a delay request, or try and collect my
strength to continue with the campaign. February 18 is an important
day for many reasons. On February 18, 1921 Yerevan was liberated from
Bolsheviks; Artsakh liberation started from February 18 meeting in
Garni.
Mr Hayrikyan, could you share your ideas on the shooting. What do you
think has actually happened and who's behind it?
I'm starting to recall some details of the incident, and having made
some conclusions, I have become confident that the murderer wasn't an
Armenian. He didn't say a word. And he was certain he'll kill me, as
he hadn't covered his face. Though the incident happened at night
there was enough light for me to be able to recognize him out of 10
people, but not out of 100 probably. I don't want to get ahead of
myself. There's a lot of evidence and I hope it will put the
investigation on the right track.
Some believe, that the attempt on your life could throw a shadow on
the process and result of the polls. What do you think about it?
To me, stability is a top value. Human rights, democracy and security
are the highest priorities for me. Sometimes, stability is undermined
deliberately, to help the perpetrators gain power. Some forces who've
orchestrated the incident are concerned. But no one will manage to
unleash chaos in Armenia, at least, not through harming me. I strive
to promote development of the highest level of democracy in Armenia
and will allow no one to present Armenia as a country of terror. I'll
do my best to prove that what happened to me was only a crime that
could be committed in any country of the world, rather than a
reflection of Armenia's reality.
Marie Taryan / PanARMENIAN News
Gunman was not Armenian
http://www.panarmenian.net/eng/interviews/144092/Gunman_was_not_Armenian
February 3, 2013
PanARMENIAN.Net - A candidate in Armenia's presidential elections,
Paruyr Hayrikyan, shot and wounded in an assassination attempt, feels
good and is determined to continue the race. The question remains:
Will the elections be delayed? As the candidate told PanARMENIAN.Net,
he'll either apply to the Constitutional Court with a request to delay
the elections for 2 weeks, or try and collect his strength to continue
with the campaign. `The poll day of February 18 is important to me for
many reasons,' he said.
Mr Hayrikyan, how do you feel? When do you think you'll be fully recovered?
I feel good, on the whole. I am recovering. Last night I tried to get
out of bed. I hate being sick, and thus losing control of the
situation. Having set democracy as a priority I can't but feel upset
to become a reason for even a minor delay in polls.
The most burning issue of today is whether you'll delay the polls.
What did you decide?
I thought about it. As I said in a conversation with the head of the
Constitutional Court, PM, ex-PM and parliament speaker, who were
visiting me, new polls should be ruled out no matter how bad I feel.
I see the situation as thus: someone meant to eliminate one of the
presidential hopefuls, to cause a nomination of new candidates, and
restart the whole election process. Frankly speaking, I'd like for
polls to be held in warmer weather. Were the polls delayed for 40 days
it would be warmer and easier to communicate with the voters. However,
I won't be postponing polls for 40 days, and on Monday, I'll give a
final response for a 2-week delay. I'll either apply to the
Constitutional Court with a delay request, or try and collect my
strength to continue with the campaign. February 18 is an important
day for many reasons. On February 18, 1921 Yerevan was liberated from
Bolsheviks; Artsakh liberation started from February 18 meeting in
Garni.
Mr Hayrikyan, could you share your ideas on the shooting. What do you
think has actually happened and who's behind it?
I'm starting to recall some details of the incident, and having made
some conclusions, I have become confident that the murderer wasn't an
Armenian. He didn't say a word. And he was certain he'll kill me, as
he hadn't covered his face. Though the incident happened at night
there was enough light for me to be able to recognize him out of 10
people, but not out of 100 probably. I don't want to get ahead of
myself. There's a lot of evidence and I hope it will put the
investigation on the right track.
Some believe, that the attempt on your life could throw a shadow on
the process and result of the polls. What do you think about it?
To me, stability is a top value. Human rights, democracy and security
are the highest priorities for me. Sometimes, stability is undermined
deliberately, to help the perpetrators gain power. Some forces who've
orchestrated the incident are concerned. But no one will manage to
unleash chaos in Armenia, at least, not through harming me. I strive
to promote development of the highest level of democracy in Armenia
and will allow no one to present Armenia as a country of terror. I'll
do my best to prove that what happened to me was only a crime that
could be committed in any country of the world, rather than a
reflection of Armenia's reality.
Marie Taryan / PanARMENIAN News