OPPOSITION BLOC UNVEILS NEW ECONOMIC MANIFESTO
Ruzanna Stepanian

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23.02.2010

The main opposition Armenian National Congress (HAK) unveiled on
Tuesday a detailed plan of actions which it said are necessary for a
"radical transformation" of Armenia’s flawed economic system.

The 15-page program was developed by a team of economists led by
former Prime Minister Hrant Bagratian. It lists 100 policy measures
which the HAK believes would end the monopolization of key sectors
of the Armenian economy, improve the country’s business environment
and ensure a more equitable distribution of wealth among its citizens.

The opposition bloc led by former President Levon Ter-Petrosian
specifically wants to shift the main tax burden from small and
medium-sized enterprises to a handful of government-linked "oligarchs"
whom it accused of "strangling free enterprise" in the country. This
would be done through the introduction of a progressive income tax
scale as well as sharp increases in other taxes paid by the wealthiest
Armenians.

The program also calls for a substantial toughening of Armenia’s
anti-trust legislation and a strict separation of business and
politics. It says these measures would put an end to "the extreme
concentration of the country’s economic resources in the hands of a
few oligarchs and their families."

Armenia would also be able to quickly double the volume of its state
budget, according to the program. It says that would in turn allow
for sharp increases in pensions and public sector salaries as well
as government spending on education and public services.

"These authorities cater for the oligarchy and are simply unable to
implement this program," the HAK’s central office coordinator, Levon
Zurabian, said, presenting the program at a news conference. He said
the bloc would itself take such measures if it succeeds in toppling
the government.

Zurabian claimed that the HAK is getting ready for snap national
elections in view of what he called continuing government "failures."

"If the failures continue at this pace, power will simply fall on
our head, and we must be prepared for that," he said.