Tuesday,
Ruling Bloc Mulls Easier Dissolution Of Armenian Parliament
• Gayane Saribekian
Armenia -- Deputies from the ruling My Step bloc attend a session of the
Armenian parliament, Yerevan, January 22, 2021.
Lawmakers representing the ruling My Step bloc discussed on Tuesday a potential
constitutional amendment that would make it easier for them to dissolve the
Armenian parliament and pave the way for fresh general elections.
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has expressed readiness to hold such elections in
response to opposition demands for his resignation sparked by the Armenian
side’s defeat in the autumn war in Nagorno-Karabakh.
Under Armenia’s existing constitution, snap polls must be called only if
Pashinian resigns and the National Assembly twice fails to elect another prime
minister. His bloc officially controls 83 seats in the 132-member parliament and
should in theory be able to easily prevent the election of another premier
nominated by the opposition minority.
Nevertheless, Pashinian demanded earlier this month that the two parliamentary
opposition parties formally pledge to refrain from such nominations in the event
of his tactical resignation.
Both parties, Prosperous Armenia (BHK) and Bright Armenia (LHK), refused to do
that. Their senior representatives say Pashinian fears that pro-government
lawmakers would break ranks and vote to install another premier.
My Step deputies stoked the opposition speculation when they met on Tuesday to
discuss the possibility of enacting a constitutional amendment that would allow
the parliament’s pro-government majority to dissolve the National Assembly
without Pashinian’s resignation.
“It was a very tentative discussion,” one of them, Hamazasp Danielian told
reporters after the meeting. “Most members of our parliamentary faction were not
present at the meeting … and it’s really too early to formulate any position.”
To pass, the would-be constitutional amendment must be backed by at least 88
parliamentarians. A senior My Step lawmaker, Vahagn Hovakimian, admitted that
Pashinian’s political team cannot enact it without opposition support.
Hovakimian did not clearly explain the rationale for amending the constitution
instead of activating the existing constitutional mechanism for the parliament’s
dissolution. “This idea is designed not only for the current political
situation,” he said.
Armenia -- Edmon Marukian (L), the leader of the opposition Bright Armenia
Party, talks to senior pro-government lawmakers on the parliament floor,
Yerevan, January 18, 2021.
Meanwhile, opposition lawmakers insisted that Pashinian does not trust his own
parliamentary group.
“Why is Nikol Pashinian afraid of resigning?” said the BHK’s Naira Zohrabian.
“Even if he resigns and the BHK or the LHK nominate a prime-ministerial
candidate we won’t have enough votes without being backed by a large number of
My Step deputies. This means that Pashinian does not trust even his own
political team.”
“They are not sure their team would not elect, say, [LHK leader] Edmon Marukian
as prime minister,” agreed the LHK’s Gevorg Gorgisian. “That is why they are
choosing this option.”
Five deputies have defected from My Step since a Russian-brokered ceasefire
agreement stopped the war on November 10. One of them publicly demanded
Pashinian’s resignation last week.
Virtually all Armenian opposition groups want the fresh elections to be held
after Pashinian’s resignation. President Armen Sarkissian has also called on the
prime minister to step down and hand over power to an interim government.
Armenian President Discharged From Hospital
Armenia -- President Armen Sarkissian addresses the nation, November 16, 2020.
President Armen Sarkissian has been discharged from hospital but has not yet
fully recovered from COVID-19, his office said on Tuesday.
The office said in a statement that Sarkissian is “continuing his treatment at
home.”
“The Armenian President’s condition has relatively improved, there is a positive
dynamic in his health state, but he is still monitored by doctors,” the
statement said, adding that he is continuing to perform his duties remotely and
will return to Armenia “immediately after the doctors' permission.”
According to the presidential press office, Sarkissian tested positive for the
coronavirus days after travelling to Britain late last month to spend New Year’s
Eve with his sons and grandchildren living in London.
The office announced on January 13 that the 67-year-old head of state was
hospitalized there after developing double pneumonia and showing other symptoms
of the disease.
It remains unclear whether Sarkissian, who has consistently observed physical
distancing rules during his official engagements, was infected with COVID-19 in
Armenia or the United Kingdom. Both countries have been hit hard by the
coronavirus pandemic.
Opposition Leader Threatens ‘Uprising’
• Robert Zargarian
Armenia -- Opposition leader Vazgen Manukian meets with opposition supporters in
Ararat, .
The Homeland Salvation Front should stage an anti-government “uprising” if it
fails to topple Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian with conventional street
protests, a leader of the alliance of 17 Armenian opposition parties said on
Tuesday.
“We are now following the constitutional path in trying to kick out Nikol
Pashinian,” Vazgen Manukian told hundreds of opposition supporters in the
southern town of Ararat. “If the constitutional path proves fruitless we should
organize an uprising.”
“This is a natural right of the people. It is enshrined in the U.S. declaration
of independence which says that if the government fails to fulfill its
obligations the people have a right to revolt,” he said.
“At stake is the future of our country and people. We will either get destroyed
or move forward,” added Manukian.
Speaking to journalists after the indoor meeting, Manukian explained that the
uprising favored by him would involve nonviolent seizures of government
buildings.
It was not clear if the comments reflected only his personal views or also those
of the parties making up the alliance. Manukian was nominated by them late last
year to serve as a prime minister in an interim government which they believe
should be formed after Pashinian’s resignation.
The opposition alliance blames Pashinian for Armenia’s defeat in the war with
Azerbaijan stopped by a Russian-brokered ceasefire on November 10. It staged a
series of demonstrations later in November and December in a bid to force him to
resign. The protests did not attract large crowds.
The alliance coordinator, Ishkhan Saghatelian, told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service on
Monday that the opposition forces are now exploring a “new tactic” for their
push for regime change.
Pashinian has rejected the opposition demands and offered to hold fresh
parliamentary elections instead. The opposition says that such polls must take
place only after his resignation.
Armenian Trucks ‘Attacked In Georgia’
Armenia -- A commercial truck enters Armenia from Georgia through the Gogavan
border crossing, November 29, 2018. (Photo by the Armenian State Revenue
Committee)
Armenian heavy trucks were pelted with stones and damaged early on Monday as
they drove through a region in Georgia mostly populated by ethnic Azerbaijanis,
according to the Armenian Embassy in Tbilisi.
A statement released by the embassy said the incident took place near the
village of Qvemo Ponichala just outside Tbilisi. It said unknown persons threw
stones at the trucks and smashed some of their windshields before fleeing the
scene.
“The trucks were then escorted by [Georgian] road police to the
Georgian-Armenian border and crossed it,” read the statement.
The embassy added that Georgian law-enforcement authorities have launched a
criminal investigation and that it is “actively working” with them to ensure
that the attackers are brought to justice and to “prevent a repeat of such
incidents.”
The Georgian Interior Ministry issued no statements on the reported attack.
The Yerevan.today news service reported that more than 30 Armenian trucks were
damaged in the incident. “Cargo shipments through Georgia are becoming very
dangerous,” it quoted one of their drivers as saying.
The online publication also posted a mobile phone video that showed a truck cab
littered with broken glass.
Qvemo Ponichala is located along a highway connecting Tbilisi to the main
Georgian-Armenian border crossing. It also passes through other
Azerbaijani-populated towns and villages.
Armenia - Trucks at the main Armenian-Georgian border crossing at Bagratashen,
December 5, 2020.
The Sadakhlo-Bagratashen crossing was effectively shut down on September 28 the
day after the outbreak of the war in Nagorno-Karabakh. Citing security reasons,
Armenian and Georgian authorities told commercial trucks with Armenian license
plates to use another, more remote and smaller border checkpoint leading to
Georgia’s Javakheti region mostly populated by ethnic Armenians.
The Sadakhlo-Bagratashen crossing was reopened for cargo traffic on December 1,
three weeks after a Russian-brokered ceasefire that stopped the war.
Georgia serves as the main transit route for Armenia’s trade with the outside
world. Armenian trucks mainly use Georgian territory for cargo shipments to and
from Russia as well as European countries.
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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