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OPPOSITION ABOUT GOVERNMENT'S REPLY: NO DEMAND HAS BEEN MET IN EARNEST
POLITICS | 03.10.14 | 10:05
Photolure
GOHAR ABRAHAMYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
http://armenianow.com/news/politics/57320/armenia_opposition_trio_demands_government_rally_a rarat
Members of the Armenian opposition remain skeptical about the
government's statement that some of the demands made by four minority
parties still in early summer have been addressed. They say that no
demand has been complied with and that their struggle will continue.
One day after the deadline of September 30 set to it by the Prosperous
Armenia Party (PAP), the Armenian National Congress (ANC), Heritage
and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) still in
June, the government replied by saying that some of the demands of
the opposition have already been addressed, others are part of the
government's mid-term program and still others are unrealistic and,
in fact, unacceptable as they fall short of the requirements of
international standards and the Armenian Constitution.
In their demands the four political parties known as Quartet
specifically referred to the country's social and economic problems
- starting from abolishing the mandatory component of the funded
pension law till reducing the sales tax and fines for traffic rules
violations, including those recorded by many cameras and speed radars
in the streets of Yerevan.
The Quartet said that they would hold a public rally in autumn to
assess progress of the government in fulfilling their demands and if
the demands were not met, they would decide on further actions. The
rally is scheduled for October 10. The agenda of the rally will
also include another issue - the controversial constitutional reforms
initiated by the current administration. As unlike its quartet partners
Dashnaktsutyun supporters the reforms, it decided not to take part
in the upcoming rally.
"What we want is not words. It is clear to everyone that concrete
things have not been done, they in reality did not address even
those few points that they say they did," Hertiage's deputy chairman
Armen Martirosyan told ArmeniaNow. "They claim to have complied with
the demand regarding the pension reform, but in reality they did an
even more disgraceful thing. Or let's take the sales tax. Small and
medium-sized businesses are up in arms against this law today. It
is clear that the government's reply is another series of sentences,
there is no new situation."
Speaking at the National Assembly on Wednesday Prime Minister Hovik
Abrahamyan, replying to a question by one of the PAP lawmakers,
called on the Quartet to cooperate with the government.
"We invite you, phone the National Assembly chairman, propose meetings
with factions to present our packages before bringing them to the
National Assembly. If necessary, we can come to the National Assembly,
or the meeting can be held in the government building. The National
Assembly chairman says you have no desire for that. What is it that
you desire then? Do you want a change of power, a revolution to
take place in this country? Do you want a second 'March 1' [deadly
post-election riots] in this country?"
Martirosyan considers this statement to be a threat and thinks that
such words by the prime minister even more reveal the fears of the
authorities and the degree of danger as with such statements they
"try to intimidate the society". But the oppositionist does not think
the government will succeed in doing that.
"This means that the authorities unequivocally admit that it was
illegal and now they are trying once again to intimidate people with
illegal violence and want to remain in power forever with illegal
means. Of course, this should be a signal to the society that such
authorities must be removed as soon as possible," said Martirosyan,
adding that despite the obstacles created by the authorities, they
will continue their gatherings in provinces in preparation for the
big joint rally in Yerevan.
Since September 25 representatives of the three of the Quartet's
four parties have been making trips to the provinces where they hold
rallies and urge people to turn out for the October 10 rally in the
capital. By October 8 they plan to have visited a total of eight towns,
including Vanadzor and Gyumri. Today, October 3, the opposition forces
have scheduled rally in Ararat, where, however, the mayor's office
did not accept the notification about the event. The three forces
called it a "political order".
"The position of the mayor's office is another display of
unlawfulness. There is no ground for rejecting the bid for holding
that rally, simply it is their whim not to allow it. But the rally
will be held and I think that the population of Ararat should be very
active in participating in it," the Heritage representative concluded.
POLITICS | 03.10.14 | 10:05
Photolure
GOHAR ABRAHAMYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
http://armenianow.com/news/politics/57320/armenia_opposition_trio_demands_government_rally_a rarat
Members of the Armenian opposition remain skeptical about the
government's statement that some of the demands made by four minority
parties still in early summer have been addressed. They say that no
demand has been complied with and that their struggle will continue.
One day after the deadline of September 30 set to it by the Prosperous
Armenia Party (PAP), the Armenian National Congress (ANC), Heritage
and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) still in
June, the government replied by saying that some of the demands of
the opposition have already been addressed, others are part of the
government's mid-term program and still others are unrealistic and,
in fact, unacceptable as they fall short of the requirements of
international standards and the Armenian Constitution.
In their demands the four political parties known as Quartet
specifically referred to the country's social and economic problems
- starting from abolishing the mandatory component of the funded
pension law till reducing the sales tax and fines for traffic rules
violations, including those recorded by many cameras and speed radars
in the streets of Yerevan.
The Quartet said that they would hold a public rally in autumn to
assess progress of the government in fulfilling their demands and if
the demands were not met, they would decide on further actions. The
rally is scheduled for October 10. The agenda of the rally will
also include another issue - the controversial constitutional reforms
initiated by the current administration. As unlike its quartet partners
Dashnaktsutyun supporters the reforms, it decided not to take part
in the upcoming rally.
"What we want is not words. It is clear to everyone that concrete
things have not been done, they in reality did not address even
those few points that they say they did," Hertiage's deputy chairman
Armen Martirosyan told ArmeniaNow. "They claim to have complied with
the demand regarding the pension reform, but in reality they did an
even more disgraceful thing. Or let's take the sales tax. Small and
medium-sized businesses are up in arms against this law today. It
is clear that the government's reply is another series of sentences,
there is no new situation."
Speaking at the National Assembly on Wednesday Prime Minister Hovik
Abrahamyan, replying to a question by one of the PAP lawmakers,
called on the Quartet to cooperate with the government.
"We invite you, phone the National Assembly chairman, propose meetings
with factions to present our packages before bringing them to the
National Assembly. If necessary, we can come to the National Assembly,
or the meeting can be held in the government building. The National
Assembly chairman says you have no desire for that. What is it that
you desire then? Do you want a change of power, a revolution to
take place in this country? Do you want a second 'March 1' [deadly
post-election riots] in this country?"
Martirosyan considers this statement to be a threat and thinks that
such words by the prime minister even more reveal the fears of the
authorities and the degree of danger as with such statements they
"try to intimidate the society". But the oppositionist does not think
the government will succeed in doing that.
"This means that the authorities unequivocally admit that it was
illegal and now they are trying once again to intimidate people with
illegal violence and want to remain in power forever with illegal
means. Of course, this should be a signal to the society that such
authorities must be removed as soon as possible," said Martirosyan,
adding that despite the obstacles created by the authorities, they
will continue their gatherings in provinces in preparation for the
big joint rally in Yerevan.
Since September 25 representatives of the three of the Quartet's
four parties have been making trips to the provinces where they hold
rallies and urge people to turn out for the October 10 rally in the
capital. By October 8 they plan to have visited a total of eight towns,
including Vanadzor and Gyumri. Today, October 3, the opposition forces
have scheduled rally in Ararat, where, however, the mayor's office
did not accept the notification about the event. The three forces
called it a "political order".
"The position of the mayor's office is another display of
unlawfulness. There is no ground for rejecting the bid for holding
that rally, simply it is their whim not to allow it. But the rally
will be held and I think that the population of Ararat should be very
active in participating in it," the Heritage representative concluded.