Levon Ananian: "I Estimate Parliamentary Elections As Two Steps Back

LEVON ANANIAN: "I ESTIMATE PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS AS TWO STEPS BACK"

Noyan Tapan
May 15 2007

YEREVAN, MAY 15, NOYAN TAPAN. "If the international observers
estimated the parliamentary elections held in Armenia on May 12 as
a step forward, I estimate them as two steps back," Levon Ananian,
the Chairman of the Writers’ Union of Armenia stated at the May 15
meeting. The WUA Chairman was the only intellectual who was nominated
by the majoritarian electoral system at electoral district No40
involving Noyemberian where famous businessman Mikayel Vardanian won
with majority of votes.

Levon Ananian stated at the beginning of the meeting that he will
speak only about the process of elections held in his electoral
district as all he saw and heard concerning only one district "is
enough for reaching conclusion."

"I was an evident of all-embracing poverty, saw an atmosphere of
fear and dread, saw empty border villages. Electoral bribe, money,
food and other household units, was given from the morning to the
evening on May 12. The Noyemberian Chief Police Officer himself gave
the electoral bribe. Open vote was implemented almost everywhere,"
L. Ananian facted.

In the Union Chairman’s words, his meetings with electors were few
times failed with efforts of local officials what is criminally
punishable. He at the same time mentioned they many times addressed
to groups of local and international observers what was ignored by
the latters.

Writer Nelli Shahnazarian who was near Levon Ananian during the
whole propaganda mission, facted that everybody is guilty of this
situation: authorities, intellectuals who lost their opposing posture:
"We are obliged to report on all we did and on everything about what
we kept silence."