Tweet
POLITICAL MAUSOLEUM OF EX-PRESIDENTS
Hakob Badalyan, Political Commentator
Comments - Friday, 28 February 2014, 12:25
Russia has become a shelter for ex-presidents, literally and
politically. The ex-presidents of Armenia also seek "protection"
in Russia. Robert Kocharyan has found employment in Russia, he is a
member of the board of one of the big Russian companies.
Levon Ter-Petrosyan could be an exception who resigned in 1996 after
his reelection in 1996 through fraudulent elections but he returned
to politics in 2007 and seemed to be putting everything in their
right places - Ter-Petrosyan relied on the society, on the people.
He launched an efficient movement which brought together not only
Ter-Petrosyan's supporters and those whose faith in him was almost that
of worship but also those who had a negative attitude to Ter-Petrosyan
but joined the movement. One thing that distinguished and empowered
the movement was the content of the movement itself, not the person
who led it.
However, a few months after the violent clampdown of March 1, the
movement headed by Ter-Petrosyan gradually became prone for worship
of individual and those who disagreed were humiliated. The movement
ended up in another political party. But the problem is content, not
only format. The movement established by declarations on democracy and
power of people eventually drifted to a pro-Russian line, refraining
from any critical word about the Russian policy.
Instead of relying on people Ter-Petrosyan went on to seek protection
in Moscow, renouncing those fighting for sovereignty as "marginal"
and announcing that Armenia cannot have an anti-Russian movement.
The anti-Russian sentiment is a bait of propaganda that is used
everywhere when the Russian government goes against the interest of the
given state and encounters counteraction of citizens. For example, the
Russian propaganda is seeking for anti-Russian or pro-West sentiment
in Ukraine to excuse and justify its own destructive actions, blackmail
and threat.
They have been looking for anti-Russian or pro-West sentiment in
Armenia, trying to interpret expressed concerns about the sovereignty
of Armenia and the imperialistic policy on Armenia as anti-Russian
or pro-West sentiment.
And the first president of Armenia has actually got down to this task.
On the eve the ANC member Gagik Jhangiryan announced in parliament that
there will be no repetition of Maidan and anti-Russian movements in
Armenia. He announced this in answer to Hrant Bagratyan's question
about the draft resolution on setting up an ad hoc committee on
March 1.
Jhangiryan and Ter-Petrosyan are one of those people in Armenia who
know a lot. And they know better than anyone else how Armenia gained
independence and when it started losing it, giving away the country
to electoral fraud and having to look for an influential sponsor in
the face of Russia.
Afterwards Ter-Petrosyan stood an exceptional chance to form a
government that enjoyed public support. This was his special role in
the club of ex-presidents. He did half of the job - formed a movement
that enjoyed public support.
It seemed that knowledge would become Ter-Petrosyan's weapon to carry
out a reform of the movement and set the idea of independence at its
basis and to shape public mentality with sovereignty as its goal and
then as its tool.
Meanwhile, the opposite happened, and knowledge became his weakness,
returning him to the traditional Armenian political mechanisms of an
imperial province.
- See more at:
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/comments/view/31999#sthash.iRcI91CC.dpuf
Hakob Badalyan, Political Commentator
Comments - Friday, 28 February 2014, 12:25
Russia has become a shelter for ex-presidents, literally and
politically. The ex-presidents of Armenia also seek "protection"
in Russia. Robert Kocharyan has found employment in Russia, he is a
member of the board of one of the big Russian companies.
Levon Ter-Petrosyan could be an exception who resigned in 1996 after
his reelection in 1996 through fraudulent elections but he returned
to politics in 2007 and seemed to be putting everything in their
right places - Ter-Petrosyan relied on the society, on the people.
He launched an efficient movement which brought together not only
Ter-Petrosyan's supporters and those whose faith in him was almost that
of worship but also those who had a negative attitude to Ter-Petrosyan
but joined the movement. One thing that distinguished and empowered
the movement was the content of the movement itself, not the person
who led it.
However, a few months after the violent clampdown of March 1, the
movement headed by Ter-Petrosyan gradually became prone for worship
of individual and those who disagreed were humiliated. The movement
ended up in another political party. But the problem is content, not
only format. The movement established by declarations on democracy and
power of people eventually drifted to a pro-Russian line, refraining
from any critical word about the Russian policy.
Instead of relying on people Ter-Petrosyan went on to seek protection
in Moscow, renouncing those fighting for sovereignty as "marginal"
and announcing that Armenia cannot have an anti-Russian movement.
The anti-Russian sentiment is a bait of propaganda that is used
everywhere when the Russian government goes against the interest of the
given state and encounters counteraction of citizens. For example, the
Russian propaganda is seeking for anti-Russian or pro-West sentiment
in Ukraine to excuse and justify its own destructive actions, blackmail
and threat.
They have been looking for anti-Russian or pro-West sentiment in
Armenia, trying to interpret expressed concerns about the sovereignty
of Armenia and the imperialistic policy on Armenia as anti-Russian
or pro-West sentiment.
And the first president of Armenia has actually got down to this task.
On the eve the ANC member Gagik Jhangiryan announced in parliament that
there will be no repetition of Maidan and anti-Russian movements in
Armenia. He announced this in answer to Hrant Bagratyan's question
about the draft resolution on setting up an ad hoc committee on
March 1.
Jhangiryan and Ter-Petrosyan are one of those people in Armenia who
know a lot. And they know better than anyone else how Armenia gained
independence and when it started losing it, giving away the country
to electoral fraud and having to look for an influential sponsor in
the face of Russia.
Afterwards Ter-Petrosyan stood an exceptional chance to form a
government that enjoyed public support. This was his special role in
the club of ex-presidents. He did half of the job - formed a movement
that enjoyed public support.
It seemed that knowledge would become Ter-Petrosyan's weapon to carry
out a reform of the movement and set the idea of independence at its
basis and to shape public mentality with sovereignty as its goal and
then as its tool.
Meanwhile, the opposite happened, and knowledge became his weakness,
returning him to the traditional Armenian political mechanisms of an
imperial province.
- See more at:
http://www.lragir.am/index/eng/0/comments/view/31999#sthash.iRcI91CC.dpuf