MEN MUST RESIST

os15357.html
14:09:38 – 30/09/2009

In your opinion, what is the role of the opposition within the public
and what is opposition in general?

I think I am not ready to give such total answers because I do not have
much political experience though I have been engaged in politics with
the whole nation or better to say the politics has been engaged in us
since ’88. As a representative of that generation, I was formed as an
oppositional supporter. During soviet years, being oppositional meant
being anti-soviet, after we understood that the point is not about the
name of the regime but its content, economic, ideological and political
content. In those years, we thought we were dealing with socialism
but in reality, it was a military bureaucratic rough dictatorship. In
fact, the Communistic party was a group of careerists who made their
minds very quickly and entered in other parties. Chernomirdin once
noted that any party was formed it was a communistic one. He is a
famous philosopher and I think he is right because our governmental
parties are the pieces of former Communistic party. In other words,
they are not people having communistic ideas but they only care abut
their carrier under any regime.

I started from far to understand what opposition is in the end. Is
it just a strong wish to oppose to the government and to take their
place? For my generation, opposition is resistance. I will permit
myself to recall the philosophy we were led in the beginnings of
’80 before the start of the national liberating movement. I compare
this period to France in ’40 when it was occupied by German fascists
and any type of opposition seemed ridiculous and senseless. In those
years, the philosophy of existentialism appeared the meaning of which
was that a man even in the most hopeless situation had to struggle
to defend their dignity.

The demand of this moment is that we have to do anything and everything
to ruin those outrageous protocols which will irreparably harm the
image of our nation. Everyone independently from the camp has to
unite in this crucial moment.

Recently you have repeatedly noted that we have to re-form the
opposition. What opposition force do you mean?

I mean the idealistic opposition that has to defend people’s rights
in this as Ter-Petrosyan notes very well criminal-oligarchic regime. I
agree with Ter-Petrosyan’s formula but I want to recall that he wants
to replace an oligarch with another one. When they bring the example
of Khachatur Sukiasyan, I understand that they want to replace Petros
by Poghos. And there is no difference for people. The real opposition
today is the socialism.

Once you said we did not have opposition after March 1. Did we
have before?

After March 1, we not only did not have opposition but also a state. We
had possibilities before. But March 1 was the peak of a chain which
perhaps started when the first elections in 1996 were rigged, it was
continued by October 27 and was crowned by March 1. Every time new
election gives new possibilities. People make their choice, I do not
mean those thousands of people whose votes are rigged. I needed to
meet with our newly elected president with a group of people and we
made four concrete proposals because intellectuals do not have to only
shout and cry but also make proposals. We made concrete proposals
which could remove the country from the crisis. He did not accept
any of the proposals and made his choice. But only the just will
win. Injustice does not live for ever.

The Soviet Union lived for 70 years, the German Reich lived for 12
years, it is just a glance for the world history. Do we need to sell
our motherland for 20-30 years of profit from Nabuko gas pipeline with
a ridiculous name or to enrich a number of people? It is absurd. It
will never happen.

Do you agree with the opinion that the stronger the government is
the stronger the opposition is.

You know, strength is a comparative notion. We have to first understand
what strength is. Everyone knows what is good or bad. We know what
is just and unjust, in other words, the man who say the truth is
strong. If the government says the truth it will immediately become
stronger. If the opposition lies, count how many people it gathers.

Maybe it is honest to some extent.

Honesty cannot be counted. You are either honest or not. And the
official opposition tries to be a little honest and a little not. The
reason is that the number of its supporters deceased.

Mr. Khzmalyan, there is the opinion that Turkey will not recognize
the Armenian genocide. So why do we have to live isolated?

It will. If it is forced to.

Is this not false optimism?

No, the point is that it is a particular punishment measure. This
fact harms Turkey which is the reason why Turkey spends million of
dollars annually to shift the accusation of genocide. Now, with the
help of Serge Sargsyan it spares much.

When someone is hit in head, they become duller. The March 1 was a very
strong hit. And I feel that we have the question on awaking people.

Recently, one of the leaders of Singapore was invited to
Armenia. Singapore is one of the richest countries. He said that
there are three criteria: to get rid of monopolies and oligarchs, to
get rid of corruption and to invest in education. Our prime minister
said smiling Singapore has its aims we have our ones. Apparently,
our aims are not the above-mentioned.

I understand the Armenian president is under huge repressions from
abroad which make him organize pilgrimages to convince the Diaspora
it is right. I think the RA president has to be under one repression
the one of the people and we have to organize this repression.

And the opposition is not the people with ties who hold speeches but
those women who think how they will feed their children and those
men who leave their families and go to find work in Russia and those
children who do not have future here.