A HOUSE BUILT FROM THE ROOF

Hayots Ashkharh Daily Newspaper
18 Aug 2007
Armenia

Today we bring to an end our series of articles about the principles
of democracy. In this article we will speak about the peculiarities of
the present-day democracy built in our reality.
Those who usually criticize the president state, ‘During Robert
Kocharyan’s government democracy has fallen in Armenia.’ In our view
this statement is not right. Democracy has neither increased nor
decreased in our reality, it has simply changed its nature.
Actually, during the recent ten years many initiatives have been
taken in the country that from the first sight can be considered
restriction of democracy. Whereas the `restriction of democracy’ is far
not the principle goal of the acting power. After the coup d’йtat in
1998 the first problem faced by the country was the lack of governance,
to be more precise a real anarchy. That is why Robert Kocharyan had to
choose the guideline of establishing a comparably more effective
governing system.
The calculation was based on bureaucracy and state apparatus, as
institutions like powerful parties and social organizations, powerful
local self-governance, accomplished juridical system simply didn’t
exist.
We should be fair: even before Robert Kocharyan democracy was far
from being perfect in Armenia and the enumeration of its shortcomings
is really very boring. The logic of the authority after the coup
d’йtat, judging from all, was as follows ` first: to build a governing
vertical (because it is simply impossible to work with the ungovernable
system moreover it is even dangerous), after which with the help of
this system to complete the democratic elements that the statehood
lacks (the same juridical system etc.)
To be able to understand the model of democracy built in the country
lets speak about the most important component ` the parties.
The multi-party system formed in 1998 was obviously in crises. The
parties ceased to be the `motors’ of democracy (if they have ever
been). The population became more apolitical and it was at that time
that the huge army of `man-parties appeared’. Due to the absence of
real contact with the masses the parties were becoming levers
interfering in the countries internal life.
It was indispensable to improve the party system that is why the
amendments in the law on political parties were initiated, according to
which the parties had to go with certain strict standards, including
the number of members and their representations in the provinces. We
should underscore that the state doesn’t manifest strictness in
controlling the parties but the process goes forward, though slowly,
but the political domain really purifies, in the positive sense of this
word.
In addition to this from election to election the number of majority
seats decreases, which promotes the formation of the system of so
called big parties that is improved by Robert Kocharyan.
In parallel to this the implemented constitutional reforms; the
formation of coalition governments and the perfection of election
legislation raised the role of the parties. The thing is about real
parties, because the change of the game rules leads to the withdrawal
of dwarf parties from the political domain. The recent parliamentary
election is a bright example.
The present day democracy built in Armenia is all over again far
from being perfect, but absolutely not because it doesn’t bear a
resemblance to the western models and not because the President puts
restriction on democracy. The subjective factor has always been in the
history but it is absolutely not decisive.
The main reason is quite different: in Armenia democracy reminds of
a house that has been built from the roof. Probably because at the end
of 80-ies and in the beginning of 90-ies the implantation of democracy
was not a manifestation of social activeness (don’t mix it up with
democratization of Karabakh movement), but ` a revolution from the
top’. In the euphoria of building that structure unfamiliar to Armenia
they simply forgot about the foundation and the walls of the building.
Today it is not only regretful but also dangerous to ruin the
existing roof. Better to start building the `foundation’ and the
`walls’ little by little.