Wednesday, Armenian Oppositionist Freed For Now • Naira Bulghadarian Armenia - Opposition figure Avetik Chalabian speaks at the start of his trial, Yerevan, . An Armenian opposition figure was released from custody late on Wednesday more than two months after being arrested on what he sees as trumped-up charges. Avetik Chalabian was charged on May 13 with trying to pay university students to participate in daily anti-government demonstrations in Yerevan. The charges are based on leaked audio of short fragments of his conversation with the head of the student council of the Armenian National Agrarian University. Law-enforcement authorities say it shows that Chalabian offered 2 million drams ($4,800) for the presence of 2,000 students at daily opposition rallies in Yerevan that began on May 1. Chalabian’s lawyers say that the recording, which first appeared on a pro-government website, was doctored by the authorities. They have repeatedly demanded the release of full audio of the conversation, saying that it would disprove the accusations. Chalabian, who leads a small opposition party, has described them as government retribution for his active participation in the protests aimed at forcing Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian to resign. Prosecutors deny any political motives. The 49-year-old oppositionist walked free from a prison about 50 kilometers west of Yerevan one day after the start of his trial. He was released immediately after the expiry of the duration of his detention sanctioned by a court. The prosecutors could have asked the judge presiding over the trial to extend the detention period during a court hearing scheduled for Wednesday morning. The hearing was adjourned, however, after the prison administration told the judge that Chalabian cannot attend it because of having a fever and high blood pressure. Speaking at the opening session of his trial on Tuesday, Chalabian accused Pashinian of “persecuting” him and his family. He appeared to echo allegations that his brother Ara, who holds a senior position in the Armenian Central Bank, is under strong government pressure to resign. Armenian media reports have claimed that the Central Bank governor, Martin Galstian, has told Ara Chalabian to quit his job, citing an order from Pashinian. The bank’s press service reacted vaguely to those reports while Pashinian’s office declined any comment earlier this week. Ara Chalabian also remains silent on the subject. There have been no official announcements of his dismissal or resignation so far. Armenian Judge Dismissive Of Leaked Audio Scandal • Naira Nalbandian Armenia - The Supreme Judicial Council holds a hearing in Yerevan, July 26, 2021. An Armenian judge confirmed on Wednesday that he had organized a dinner meeting the leaked audio recording of which forced the controversial head of the country’s judicial watchdog to resign. Stepan Mikaelian, who is also a member of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC), said he sees nothing wrong in the content of the 14-minute recording publicized last month. It features a February 2021 conversation between Ruben Vartazarian, the then chairman of the SJC at odds with the Armenian government, and Gagik Jahangirian, a newly appointed member of the body overseeing Armenia’s courts. It suggests that Jahangirian warned Vartazarian to step down or face criminal charges. Vartazarian ignored the warning. Two months later, he was indicted and suspended as SJC chairman while Jahangirian became acting head of the judicial watchdog. The audio secretly recorded by Vartazarian caused uproar in Armenia, with opposition figures and civic activists demanding that Jahangirian be not only sacked by also prosecuted. The latter claimed that he did not blackmail his predecessor. Still, he announced his resignation from the SJC on July 1. Mikaelian has also faced resignation calls from government critics who believe that he too was involved in the illegal pressure exerted on Vartazarian. The judge dismissed those calls when he spoke to journalists in Yerevan. “You take part in different conversations in different places. So what?” he said. Mikaelian claimed that both Jahangirian and Mikaelian are his “friends” and that he took them out to dinner to try to ease “some tension” between them. Armenia’s Investigative Committee launched last week a criminal inquiry into the leaked recording. It said it is investigating possible abuse of power and obstruction of justice. The law-enforcement body has not indicted anyone so far. Opposition Blasts Likely Choice Of Armenia’s Top Election Official • Gayane Saribekian Armenia - The Central Election Commission meets in Yerevan, 3Apr2017. A leader of the main opposition Hayastan alliance on Wednesday condemned the ruling Civil Contract party’s reported plans to install a longtime associate of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian as chairman of Armenia’s Central Election Commission (CEC). Tigran Mukuchian, the current CEC chairman who has been in office since 2011, will complete his tenure in October. His successor should be elected soon by the Armenian parliament controlled by Civil Contract. Armenian newspapers reported earlier this month that Pashinian’s party will nominate one of its senior lawmakers, Vahagn Hovakimian, for the post. Hovakimian did not deny the reports when he spoke to RFE/RL’s Armenian Service last week. The National Assembly is also due to appoint the six other members of the body administering general and local elections and releasing their results. Its factions had until July 25 to make initial nominations for the CEC positions. Civil Contract has still not named its candidates. The leader and the secretary of its parliamentary group did not answer phone calls from RFE/RL’s Armenian Service on Wednesday and earlier this week. Maria Karapetian, another parliament deputy from the ruling party, said it is still discussing possible candidacies. She too did not deny that Hovakimian could become the CEC’s next chairman. Armenia - Opposition leader Artsvik Minasian, . Artsvik Minasian, a senior lawmaker representing Hayastan, decried the possible choice of Hovakimian, saying Pashinian is seeking full and direct control over electoral process in the country. “For them [the current authorities] there is no more important thing that appointing members of their gang to key positions,” charged the opposition leader. Minasian argued that Armenia’s former leaders did not install their confidantes or overtly partisan figures as CEC chairpersons. “These people are trampling underfoot everything and openly violating all principles,” he said, referring to Pashinian and his political team. The Armenian constitution stipulates that the chairperson and members of the CEC cannot be affiliated with any political party or engage in political activities otherwise during their tenure. Mukuchian, the outgoing CEC chairman, had been installed by former President Serzh Sarkisian’s administration. Pashinian for years accused the former Armenian authorities of rigging elections. But he apparently did not try to replace Mukuchian after coming to power in 2018. Remittances To Armenia Soar In 2022 • Sargis Harutyunyan Armenia - A schoolboy walks past a currency exchange sign in Yerevan, 17Dec2014. Money transfers to Armenia have risen sharply this year amid an influx of thousands of skilled Russians which followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Data from the Armenian Central Bank shows that local commercial banks processed a total of $1.27 billion in incoming remittances from individuals in January-May 2022, up by 70 percent year on year. Cash inflows from Russia accounted for three-quarters of this gain. They more than doubled in absolute terms, totaling almost $680 million during the five-month period. By comparison, remittances from the United States rose by 21 percent to about $257 million. Thousands and possibly tens of thousands of Russian nationals, many of them tech professionals, relocated to Armenia following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine on February 24. An even larger number of Russians is thought to have opened Armenian bank accounts. The South Caucasus state also receives multimillion-dollar remittances from hundreds of thousands of its own citizens working in Russia. The Russian ruble is now stronger against the U.S. dollar than it was before the war despite crippling Western sanctions imposed on Moscow. The Armenian dram has similarly strengthened by 15 percent against the dollar and 29 percent against the euro since February 24. Armenia - Newly arrived Russian citizens in Yerevan, March 7, 2022. Gevorg Papoyan, the pro-government chairman of the Armenian parliament committee on economic issues, claimed on Wednesday that the soaring remittances to the country are the result of government policies. “Our economic policy of attracting investors and protecting their rights, maintaining financial stability and ensuring fair competition has been a success,” he said. Tadevos Avetisian, an opposition lawmaker and economist, dismissed the claim, linking the increased cash inflows to economic consequences of the Ukraine war. “These ‘hot money’ inflows will fall as quickly as they have increased if this accidental factor disappears,” Avetisian told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service. “So pinning big hopes on them or setting ambitious objectives because of them is just wrong.” Both lawmakers agreed that the sharp rise in remittances is significantly contributing to economic growth in Armenia. Right after the outbreak of the war, the growth was projected to practically grind to a halt this year given Armenia’s closer economic ties with Russia. But it on the contrary accelerated in the following months. The Central Bank governor, Martin Galstian, said last month that the Armenian economy is now on course to expand by 4.9 percent. “This has mainly to do with the presence of foreign visitors in Armenia and the Russian economy’s short-term performance which is not as bad as we expected earlier,” Galstian said. Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL Copyright (c) 2022 Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty, Inc. 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.