ARMENIAN OPPOSITIONISTS DISCUSS SHADOW CABINET PLAN IN LIBERTY SQUARE (VIDEOS, PHOTOS)
http://www.tert.am/en/news/2013/03/17/liberty-square2/
18:48 ~U 17.03.13
Opposition activists opened Sunday a civil council debate in Yerevan's
Liberty Square to discuss the possibility of forming a shadow cabinet.
The meeting was conducted by Nikol Pashinyan, an MP affiliated with
opposition Armenian National Congress.
The organizers are discussing plans for forming new legislative,
executive and judicial authorities.
Addressing the crowd, Pashinyan said the cause of the popular movement
was the people's choice in the February 18 presidential election.
Considering Raffi Hovhannisian an absolute winner, the opposition
activist said it is logical for an elected president to take steps
characterizing a real country leader.
"There has been a proposal for forming a shadow cabinet, but the
process is not definately an easy one. It is, in that respect,
important for the public to be involved in the processes. A key problem
in Armenia is to make politics public, as that is an important issue
in democratization efforts. We all must think in this period. It is
very important for us to forget the incumbent authorities and direct
our ideas to a change of government," he said.
Pashinyan added they will try to name specific people and unveil
a list of 100-300 individuals in order to understand the crowd's
reaction to their plan.
He further spoke of security issues, noting that the problem gains
an increasing attention at moments of a maturing coup.
"We hear opinions that the public processes in Liberty Square pose
a threat to Nagorno-Karabakh's security. But the Nagorno-Karabakh
Republic has an army and a commander-in-chief, so Liberty Square does
not question the NKR president's legitimacy," he said.
Pashinyan further called for properly evaluating the existing situation
in Armenia. He said Armenia saw serious political system changes this
year, with several key parties refusing to join the election race.
"The election created a kind of situation in which the Armenian
people seemed to have no a choice, being left face to face with Serzh
Sargsyan. But what happened was a different thing; the people headed
to [the polls] with a tacit agreement, and they made their choice,
surprising analysts and political figures," he said.
Pashinyan said such circumstances demonstrate the impossibility of
maintaining the current political system.
"The political system has seen the emergence of a central force, which
is the Armenian citizen. The main parties did not guide their voters;
they made a choice on their own. This means the new government's
formation has to belong to the civil society, not the people,"
he added.
Public Forum at Liberty Square 17.03.13
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BYk9eIxsUk&feature=youtube_gdata
http://www.tert.am/en/news/2013/03/17/liberty-square2/
18:48 ~U 17.03.13
Opposition activists opened Sunday a civil council debate in Yerevan's
Liberty Square to discuss the possibility of forming a shadow cabinet.
The meeting was conducted by Nikol Pashinyan, an MP affiliated with
opposition Armenian National Congress.
The organizers are discussing plans for forming new legislative,
executive and judicial authorities.
Addressing the crowd, Pashinyan said the cause of the popular movement
was the people's choice in the February 18 presidential election.
Considering Raffi Hovhannisian an absolute winner, the opposition
activist said it is logical for an elected president to take steps
characterizing a real country leader.
"There has been a proposal for forming a shadow cabinet, but the
process is not definately an easy one. It is, in that respect,
important for the public to be involved in the processes. A key problem
in Armenia is to make politics public, as that is an important issue
in democratization efforts. We all must think in this period. It is
very important for us to forget the incumbent authorities and direct
our ideas to a change of government," he said.
Pashinyan added they will try to name specific people and unveil
a list of 100-300 individuals in order to understand the crowd's
reaction to their plan.
He further spoke of security issues, noting that the problem gains
an increasing attention at moments of a maturing coup.
"We hear opinions that the public processes in Liberty Square pose
a threat to Nagorno-Karabakh's security. But the Nagorno-Karabakh
Republic has an army and a commander-in-chief, so Liberty Square does
not question the NKR president's legitimacy," he said.
Pashinyan further called for properly evaluating the existing situation
in Armenia. He said Armenia saw serious political system changes this
year, with several key parties refusing to join the election race.
"The election created a kind of situation in which the Armenian
people seemed to have no a choice, being left face to face with Serzh
Sargsyan. But what happened was a different thing; the people headed
to [the polls] with a tacit agreement, and they made their choice,
surprising analysts and political figures," he said.
Pashinyan said such circumstances demonstrate the impossibility of
maintaining the current political system.
"The political system has seen the emergence of a central force, which
is the Armenian citizen. The main parties did not guide their voters;
they made a choice on their own. This means the new government's
formation has to belong to the civil society, not the people,"
he added.
Public Forum at Liberty Square 17.03.13
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BYk9eIxsUk&feature=youtube_gdata