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IS SERZH SARGSYAN WEAKER TODAY THAN HE WAS 5 YEARS AGO?
May 2 2013
"The second 'victory' won by Serzh Sargsyan doesn't mean at all that
he is stronger today than during his first term in office. On the
contrary, I have reasonable grounds to claim that he is much weaker
today than he has been over the past five years, and that he will
gradually become weaker," Levon Ter-Petrossian, the first President
of the Republic of Armenia, stated at a rally in Freedom Square.
www.aravot.am inquired of representatives of different political
forces whether there were tendencies toward the strengthening or
the weakening of Serzh Sargsyan's position. Arsen Hambardzumyan,
the alternate representative of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(ARF) Supreme Body, stated in response to our question: "Taking into
account the electoral mechanisms and factors that impact elections
and guarantee the victory of the ruling political force, in this case
the head of state, from this perspective, we must assert that the
President of the Republic of Armenia hasn't become stronger after the
latest election. He will be a president who gradually becomes weaker.
The explanation is obvious; the president is elected for a five-year
term, and his position weakens every day, particularly given the fact
that one can see no intention of making radical changes as yet. On
the contrary, we have reasonable grounds to claim that basically
no serious conclusion has been drawn from the violations committed
during the election and the problems raised by the opposition." Armen
Martirosyan, the deputy leader of the Heritage Party, thinks that S.
Sargsyan has become weak mostly because of "not being elected and
defending the interests of the system. Taking into account the fraud
committed during the election and the fact that Serzh Sargsyan is de
facto the president; naturally, he is basically a weak president,
since he doesn't have legitimacy." Political scientist Hrant
Melik-Shahnazaryan doesn't agree with the above-mentioned claim. He
explained: "Merely political exploitations underlie such statements.
Thus, Levon Ter-Petrossian tries to convince his supporters that the
government's position is weak. Whereas as compared to the previous
elections, this year's election was peaceful and controllable; besides,
there was a positive response from the international community. All
this has strengthened S. Sargsyan's position as president; after this
election, he will be able to decide his future actions more freely
and independently. Therefore, after overcoming the 2008 crisis, the
president's position has been strengthening so far. I am more than
convinced that this social opposition is the product of S. Sargsyan's
presidency, which is a result of liberalization of the political
system and is in the government's interests; as a result of that
checks and balances are created." Artak Zakaryan, the chairman of
the National Assembly Foreign Relations Standing Commission, stated
that this statement of Levon Ter-Petrossian "shows that he is under
delusion, and that our oppositionists continue to assess political
processes inadequately. The fact of the matter is that one should be
convinced in the opposite that the second term will make it possible
to solve more essential and important problems. And problems are
economic problems, and those are an inalienable part of our countries'
priorities, which are the focus of the government's attention, and
every project will aim at solving the citizen's social problems. And
I relate politicizing social issues to the city council election,
which will die away soon." Tatev HARUTYUNYAN
Read more at: http://en.aravot.am/2013/05/02/154069/
© 1998 - 2013 Aravot - News from Armenia
May 2 2013
"The second 'victory' won by Serzh Sargsyan doesn't mean at all that
he is stronger today than during his first term in office. On the
contrary, I have reasonable grounds to claim that he is much weaker
today than he has been over the past five years, and that he will
gradually become weaker," Levon Ter-Petrossian, the first President
of the Republic of Armenia, stated at a rally in Freedom Square.
www.aravot.am inquired of representatives of different political
forces whether there were tendencies toward the strengthening or
the weakening of Serzh Sargsyan's position. Arsen Hambardzumyan,
the alternate representative of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(ARF) Supreme Body, stated in response to our question: "Taking into
account the electoral mechanisms and factors that impact elections
and guarantee the victory of the ruling political force, in this case
the head of state, from this perspective, we must assert that the
President of the Republic of Armenia hasn't become stronger after the
latest election. He will be a president who gradually becomes weaker.
The explanation is obvious; the president is elected for a five-year
term, and his position weakens every day, particularly given the fact
that one can see no intention of making radical changes as yet. On
the contrary, we have reasonable grounds to claim that basically
no serious conclusion has been drawn from the violations committed
during the election and the problems raised by the opposition." Armen
Martirosyan, the deputy leader of the Heritage Party, thinks that S.
Sargsyan has become weak mostly because of "not being elected and
defending the interests of the system. Taking into account the fraud
committed during the election and the fact that Serzh Sargsyan is de
facto the president; naturally, he is basically a weak president,
since he doesn't have legitimacy." Political scientist Hrant
Melik-Shahnazaryan doesn't agree with the above-mentioned claim. He
explained: "Merely political exploitations underlie such statements.
Thus, Levon Ter-Petrossian tries to convince his supporters that the
government's position is weak. Whereas as compared to the previous
elections, this year's election was peaceful and controllable; besides,
there was a positive response from the international community. All
this has strengthened S. Sargsyan's position as president; after this
election, he will be able to decide his future actions more freely
and independently. Therefore, after overcoming the 2008 crisis, the
president's position has been strengthening so far. I am more than
convinced that this social opposition is the product of S. Sargsyan's
presidency, which is a result of liberalization of the political
system and is in the government's interests; as a result of that
checks and balances are created." Artak Zakaryan, the chairman of
the National Assembly Foreign Relations Standing Commission, stated
that this statement of Levon Ter-Petrossian "shows that he is under
delusion, and that our oppositionists continue to assess political
processes inadequately. The fact of the matter is that one should be
convinced in the opposite that the second term will make it possible
to solve more essential and important problems. And problems are
economic problems, and those are an inalienable part of our countries'
priorities, which are the focus of the government's attention, and
every project will aim at solving the citizen's social problems. And
I relate politicizing social issues to the city council election,
which will die away soon." Tatev HARUTYUNYAN
Read more at: http://en.aravot.am/2013/05/02/154069/
© 1998 - 2013 Aravot - News from Armenia