DASHNAKS ACCEPT VOTE RESULTS
By Ruzanna Khachatrian and Astghik Bedevian
Radio Liberty, Czech Rep.
May 15 2007
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) on Tuesday
accepted the official results of the weekend parliamentary elections
but declined to clarify whether it wants to cut another power-sharing
deal with their winner, the Republican Party (HHK) of Prime Minister
Serzh Sarkisian.
In a statement presented by its leaders, the nationalist party said
the vote moved Armenia closer to meeting international standards
for democratic elections. It also welcomed a relatively high voter
turnout reported by the Central Election Commission.
The statement added that the polls were marred by vote buying and
voter intimidation but did not specify whether Dashnaktsutyun thinks
that seriously affected their outcome. "We wish the political force
that won a majority [in parliament] success, urging it to act with
responsibility commensurate with internal and external challengers
facing our state and people," it said.
According to the preliminary CEC figures, Dashnaktsutyun won 13
percent of the vote, giving it 16 seats in the 131-member parliament.
The party, which is particularly influential in the Armenian Diaspora,
holds 11 seats in the outgoing National Assembly.
The HHK, by comparison, grabbed at least 65 seats and will indirectly
control several others, putting it in a position to form a new
government single-handedly. The Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK)
of tycoon Gagik Tsarukian will boast the second largest parliament
faction comprising 25 deputies.
Speaking at a joint news conference, party leaders were vague on
chances of Dashnaktsutyun remaining in the HHK-led government, saying
only that they will continue to support President Robert Kocharian.
"We have supported the current president, and the current president
continues to perform his duties," one of them, Armen Rustamian, said.
"We will continue that cooperation."
"We have received no offers to form a coalition," he said. "Frankly
we don’t think the picture in the new National Assembly leaves room
for such an offer."
Rustamian and other Dashnaktsutyun leaders indicated during their
election campaign that their party will remain in government only if
it gets the post of defense minister. They also said it will quit
the governing coalition if the newly elected assembly is dominated
by the Republicans and the BHK.
The HHK spokesman, Eduard Sharmazanov, told reporters on Tuesday that
the ruling party has not yet decided whether it should share power with
Dashnaktsutyun and the BHK. "The Republicans have repeatedly said that
they are ready to form a coalition for the sake of Armenia’s future,"
he said. "We already have such experience with Dashnaktsutyun."
Sharmazanov confirmed that Sarkisian will continue to serve as
prime minister at least until next year’s presidential election. He
also dismissed opposition accusations of vote rigging, saying that
Saturday’s elections were the "best" in Armenia’s post-Soviet history.