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    Categories: 2019

Is it correct to resolve the Amulsar problem through a referendum? – Comments by politicians

Azatutyun, Radio Liberty/Radio Free Europe
Aug 21 2019
Is it correct to resolve the Amulsar problem through a referendum? – Comments by politicians
Gayane Saribekyan
[Armenian News note: the below is translated from the Russian edition of Azatutyun]

A deputy of the ruling My Step faction [in the Armenian National Assembly], Hovik Aghazaryan, is against resolving the problem of the Amulsar gold mine, [which has given rise to widespread environmental concerns], through a referendum.

According to the MP, the votes of the residents of Jermuk, [where the gold mine is located] and communities adjacent to the mountain, are not going to reflect the real situation as regards the need, as their position is predictable. "It is clear that the residents of Jermuk will say that they do not want this," Aghazaryan said.

The Armenian Revolutionary Federation – Dashnaktsutyun [ARFD] proposed to resolve the problem of operating the Amulsar gold mine through a referendum. A representative of the ARFD, Artsvik Minasyan, held the post of environmental protection minister in 2016.

The opposition ARFD urged the government not to regard the published [positive] conclusion by the international ELARD company as a final basis for the operation of the gold mine and to make through a referendum a decision acceptable to the public and the state.

The representative of the government [Aghazaryan] responded that the operation of a mine is not a question that is to be resolved through the votes of citizens, as it is a complicated question. People gave a vote of confidence to [Prime Minister] Nikol Pashinyan to govern the country and it is the government that should make a decision on the basis of the interests of the country.

"This is simply a question for the whole state and a question of the consistency of the state. It is true that we came to power through a revolution and thanks to the power of people, but anyway, there is a state and its obligations, contacts with the world, international obligations, and the observance of agreements. In this sense, the question has become common for the whole state," Aghazaryan said and added: "Everyone understands that the mining industry inflicts damage on the environment. All of us understand this. It is a question of the size of the damage and the potential to counter the damage".

The secretary of the executive body of the Citizen's Decision party that is not represented in parliament, Suren Sahakyan, supports the idea of resolving such issues through referendums, as such decisions are democratic. However, as regards Amulsar, he regards the need in a referendum as doubtful, because, as he said, there is a professional conclusion on the operation of the mine that is negative, so it is not necessary to open it.

"Even without a referendum, we can see that the professional conclusion on the operation of Amulsar is negative. This was done for another purpose, but we can see that it is fraught with a lot of dangers. I question the need in a referendum, but the practice of resolving such issues through referendums can only be welcomed and this is one of the foundations for the creation of our party," Sahakyan said in conversation with radio Liberty.

He said that the Amulsar conflict should have another solution – the operation of the mine must be forbidden. "Two sides of the conflict are taking shape: The government and the public. In the meantime, this conflict does not have these two sides: There is the former corrupt system plus the Lydian company that obtained the mine through swindling and illegal methods. Three laws were amended to enable Lydian to operate the mine. This is one side. The public and the government they have elected are the other side. In other words, this conflict was to be resolved through criminal cases filed against the former government. Our approach is as follows: The sides to this conflict are Lydian and the former government on the one hand and the public and the government on the other. Therefore, the government should simply have prohibited the operation of the mine," the representative of the Citizen's Decision party said.

MP Sergei Bagratyan of the Prosperous Armenia faction reminded that summing up the first 100 days of his rule back a year ago, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan declared the Republic Square, [where large rallies in support of Pashinyan were held during the 2018 velvet revolution], as a platform for making most important decisions of the government in the political and economic life in Armenia. Pashinyan said that people should authorise the government to take or not take specific steps or prohibit the government from taking specific actions.

Bagratyan, who was governor of Vayots Dzor Region until 2012, also supports the idea of holding a referendum. "The government has inherited this problem. However, it bears responsibility for this problem. It received documents prepared by the previous government. It would probably be correct in this case, if the government left this issue to the discretion of people. We say that we are building a democratic country and it is people, who should decide their future. This should not be regarded as a contradiction between people and the government. On the contrary, it is necessary to coordinate these opinions. If everything is all right in the documents, as the previous government used to say, it is not necessary to look at the documents. It is necessary to look at the mood of the people."

The representative of the government, Hovik Aghazaryan maintains that the Amulsar problem is extremely professional, multilayered, and complicated. Therefore, people should entrust the government with it.

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