ARMENIAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES NOT TO OBEY MUNICIPALITY’S CALL TO REFRAIN FROM HOLDING RALLIES

Aravot
Jan 18 2008
Armenia

No brochures and leaflets

[Presidential candidate and former foreign minister of the unrecognized
republic of Nagornyy Karabakh] Arman Melikyan yesterday [17 January]
presented his election manifesto in the Hayatsk club.

"Of course, there is a financial problem. But for the people who have
a belief work is more than brochures, leaflets and so on," he said.

Asked by Aravot who has been financing your election campaign, he
replied:" I do not expect much donations and I will not make big
expenses. Thus, this issue is not a priority for me." Melikyan also
does not trust results of opinion polls and believes that society’s
distrust in opinion polls stems from distrust in the authorities.

In the context of Armenia’s foreign ties, the following is the
candidate’s regional and geopolitical analysis: "The Nagornyy Karabakh
conflict is in reality what hinders the programmes of the European
Union in this region. This is why the European Union does not think
about the fair and legal settlement of the issue, and only thinks about
establishing peace in the region in order that communications open and
there will be no threat to them in future. I believe this is a very
serious threat to our strategic interests, as today’s negotiations
process does not include elements based on main concepts and principles
of human rights. I particularly mean the interests of the Armenians
of Azerbaijan [who used to live in Azerbaijan before the conflict]
and the issue of recognizing the right for self-determination of the
Nagornyy Karabakh republic [NKR]."

In response to the last statements by the [OSCE Minsk Group]
co-chairs that the sides could reach if not a written, at least
a verbal agreement in 2008, Melikyan said: "We have been hearing
similar statements for years. At the moment, they speak about the
verbal agreement as against the written one. Then who are signatories
to this agreement? A president will be replaced in Armenia and no
one can say what policy the next president will carry out in regard
to the NKR issue."

If elected president, Melikyan says he will try to proceed from the
logic of the issue back in 1988 [when the conflict started] and to
find the settlement from the point of view of human rights. Asked
by Aravot: you are constantly speaking about the rights of Armenian
refugees, what do you think about Azerbaijani refuges, Melikyan said
:"A refugee is a refugee, but in regard to the Azerbaijanis one should
realize what part of them can be considered refugees?

Armenians faced violence in Azerbaijan and were expelled starting
from cases in Sumqayit [killings of Armenians in the town of Sumqayit
in 1988], and violence against Azerbaijanis in Armenia was recorded
starting from the end of 1988. But most part of them left Armenia
much earlier, by the way under conditions beneficial for them –
they [Azerbaijani refugees] exchanged their basic property here with
quite good apartments in Baku and Kirovabad [former name of the city
of Ganca]. In addition, they also received compensation from the
Armenian government, I believe 110m dollars. So, see the problem of
the 500,000-strong "army" of the Armenian refugees, and the problem
of the 160,000 Azerbaijanis who used to live in Armenia."

Arman Melikyan raised this issue before international institutions
when he was NKR foreign minister. But this point of view received no
reaction as "they [international institutions] do not have an answer
to this question and will not answer to it as long as Armenia does
not raise it officially," he said.