RFE/RL Armenian Report – 04/12/2022

                                        Tuesday, 


Armenian Opposition Lawmakers Barred From Entering Karabakh

        • Artak Khulian

Armenia - Karabakh flags on the empty seats of opposition members of the 
Armenian parliament, .


Armenian opposition parliamentarians were barred from entering Nagorno-Karabakh 
on Tuesday to continue their campaign against far-reaching Armenian concessions 
to Azerbaijan.

The several dozen deputies representing Armenia’s two main opposition groups 
headed to Karabakh after announcing a four-day boycott of sessions of the 
National Assembly.

One of them, Gegham Manukian, said Russian peacekeepers manning a checkpoint in 
the Lachin corridor connecting Armenia and Karabakh gave no explanations after 
checking their documents and not allowing them to proceed to Stepanakert.

Manukian blamed the Armenian authorities for the ban. He said that shortly 
before reaching the Lachin checkpoint the lawmakers were stopped by Armenian 
border guards and had their personal data collected by them. He suggested that 
it was immediately passed on to the Russians.

The authorities effectively denied this through a statement released by the 
Armenian Foreign Ministry. The statement criticized the peacekeepers’ actions, 
saying that they run counter to the terms of the Russian-brokered ceasefire that 
stopped the Armenian-Azerbaijani war in November 2020.

The Russian peacekeeping contingent has previously never stopped any Armenian 
politicians from travelling to Karabakh.

A Russian peacekeeper stands guard on a road in the town of Lachin on December 
1, 2020.

Manukian and other opposition figures claimed that Prime Minister Nikol 
Pashinian engineered the unprecedented travel ban as part of his secret deals 
with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.

Aliyev and Pashinian agreed to start preparing for an Armenian-Azerbaijani 
“peace treaty” and to set up a bilateral commission tasked with demarcating the 
border between their countries when they met in Brussels on April 6 for talks 
hosted by European Council President Charles Michel.

Pashinian reiterated afterwards that Baku’s proposals on key elements of the 
treaty, including a mutual recognition of each other’s territorial integrity, 
are acceptable to Yerevan in principle. Armenian opposition leaders portrayed 
this as a further sign that he is ready to help Azerbaijan regain control over 
Karabakh.

The opposition Hayastan and Pativ Unem alliances rallied thousands of supporters 
in Yerevan on April 5 to warn Yerevan against making such concessions to Baku.

As he announced the opposition boycott on the parliament floor on Tuesday 
morning, Seyran Ohanian, Hayastan’s parliamentary leader and a former defense 
minister, accused the Armenian government of ignoring grave security challenges 
facing Armenia and Karabakh.

“We are leaving for Artsakh and Armenia’s border regions in order to continue 
directly communicating with our compatriots, to visit the sites of our country’s 
primary agenda,” he said before placing a Karabakh flag on the parliament 
rostrum.

Armenia - Pro-government parliamentarian Vahagn Aleksanian removes a Karabakh 
flag from the parliament rostrum, .

Deputies representing Pashinian’s Civil Contract party dismissed the opposition 
move as populist. One of them, Vahagn Aleksanian, removed the small flag from 
the podium.

“With this step the parliamentary is not defending Artsakh but aggravating the 
security problems of Artsakh and the Armenians,” charged another pro-government 
parliamentarian, Hayk Konjorian. “The parliamentary opposition is using the 
Artsakh issue and our security problems to stage a coup and seize power in 
Armenia.”



Another ‘Curb On Press Freedom’ Planned In Armenia

        • Marine Khachatrian

Armenia -- Photojournalists and cameramen at an official ceremony in Yerevan, 
January 10, 2019.


In what Armenia’s leading media groups see as a new restriction on press 
freedom, pro-government lawmakers have drafted legislation that would empower 
state bodies to withdraw the accreditation of journalists.

An Armenian law on mass media currently does not allow the parliament, the prime 
minister’s office and other government agencies to revoke such accreditations 
that are typically valid for one year.

Amendments to the law put forward by two deputies from the ruling Civil Contract 
party would empower the authorities to strip reporters of their press 
credentials if they are deemed to have violated “disciplinary rules” of relevant 
bodies.

One of those lawmakers, Artur Hovannisian, said on Tuesday that the proposed 
amendments are first and foremost aimed at regulating the work of parliamentary 
correspondents of Armenian media outlets. He claimed that they have frequently 
insulted and even “threatened” members of the National Assembly.

Hovannisian insisted that each state body would set clear rules of conduct that 
would not restrict journalistic activity.

“Those decisions could be very arbitrary, baseless or based on very weak 
grounds,” countered Ashot Melikian of the Yerevan-based Committee to Protect 
Freedom of Speech.

Melikian suggested that the authorities want to put in place a legal mechanism 
for barring “undesirable” journalists from covering parliament sessions, cabinet 
meetings and other major events.

Hripsime Jebejian, a parliamentary correspondent for the Aravot daily, likewise 
said that Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s political allies want to prevent 
journalists from asking them tough questions.

“When a journalist asks a [tough] question they often get agitated and perceive 
it as an offense,” Jebejian told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.

“Once again they are entering the sphere of journalistic activity and 
restricting our work,” she said.

Pashinian’s political team has already been condemned by Armenian press freedom 
groups as well as Western watchdogs such as Freedom House and Amnesty 
International for tripling maximum legal fines for “slander” and making it a 
crime to insult state officials.

Dozens of government critics have been prosecuted for offending Pashinian and 
other officials since the corresponding amendments to the Armenian Criminal Code 
took effect last September.

The ruling party has also been widely criticized for seriously restricting last 
summer journalists’ freedom of movements inside the parliament building in 
Yerevan. Parliament speaker Alen Simonian cited security concerns and the need 
for greater media respect for parliamentarians.

Journalists and media associations rejected that explanation. They also 
expressed outrage at Simonian’s attempts to block press coverage of an August 11 
parliament session that descended into chaos amid bitter insults traded by 
pro-government and opposition deputies. Security officers entered the press 
gallery overlooking the chamber and ordered journalists present there to stop 
filming or photographing the ugly scenes.

Simonian, who is a close Pashinian associate, on Tuesday defended the proposed 
regulation of media accreditations while urging journalists to “gather and draw 
up” rules of conduct for themselves.

“Or else, you will face rules set within [state bodies] and will have to obey 
them,” warned the speaker.



Armenian Government Wants To Expand Russian-Language Education

        • Gayane Saribekian

Armenia - Education Minister Vahram Dumanian gives a press conference, Yerevan, 
April 23, 2021.


Armenia is ready to open more Russian classes in its schools, Education Minister 
Vahram Dumanian said on Tuesday, citing a recent influx of migrants from Russia.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov spoke last week of the Armenian 
government’s desire to expand Russian-language education in the country.

“In response to Yerevan’s desire, Russia is helping to increase the number of 
Russian schools,” Lavrov said after talks with his visiting Armenian counterpart 
Ararat Mirzoyan. “We are interested in seeing the Russian language receive 
continued support from the friendly government.”

Dumanian clarified that his government wants to increase the number of classes, 
rather than entire schools, where courses are taught in Russian.

“The Republic of Armenia is intent on offering this opportunity to children in 
both elementary and high schools,” he told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service.

Armenian has been the country’s sole official language ever since the break-up 
of the Soviet Union. A law enacted in 1991 also made it the principal language 
of instruction for Armenian children enrolled in both public and private schools.

Forty-five schools currently have Russian-language sections for Russian citizens 
as well as those Armenian children who lived in Russia and only recently 
returned to Armenia. The latter are allowed to study there only temporarily.

Armenia - A Russian family strolls in downtown Yerevan, March 7, 2022.

Dumanian said that more such classes should be set up now because thousands of 
Russians have relocated to Armenia since the start of Russia’s invasion of 
Ukraine. He declined to give any estimates of the number of school-age children 
who have arrived from Russia of late.

In written comments to RFE/RL’s Armenian Service sent on Monday, the Armenian 
Ministry of Education said that the number of students in the Russian classes 
has increased by only 75 in recent weeks.

Most of the Russian migrants are young professionals who are thought to have 
left Russia for primarily economic reasons.

Armenia also has five schools financed and run by the Russian government. Most 
of their students are children of Russian military personnel serving in the 
South Caucasus state.



Opposition Lawmakers Boycott Parliament, Visit Karabakh

        • Artak Khulian

Armenia - Karabakh flags on the empty seats of opposition members of the 
Armenian parliament, .


Armenia’s two main opposition groups said on Tuesday that their lawmakers will 
not attend this week’s parliament sittings and will visit Nagorno-Karabakh 
instead as part of their campaign to prevent far-reaching Armenian concessions 
to Azerbaijan.

The Hayastan and Pativ Unem alliances rallied thousands of supporters in Yerevan 
on April 5 the day before Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian met with Azerbaijani 
President Ilham Aliyev in Brussels.

Aliyev and Pashinian agreed to start preparing for an Armenian-Azerbaijani 
“peace treaty” and to set up a bilateral commission tasked with demarcating the 
border between their countries.

Pashinian reiterated afterwards that Baku’s proposals on key elements of the 
treaty, including a mutual recognition of each other’s territorial integrity, 
are acceptable to Yerevan in principle. Armenian opposition leaders portrayed 
this as a further sign that he is ready to help Azerbaijan regain control over 
Karabakh.

Seyran Ohanian, Hayastan’s parliamentary leader and a former defense minister, 
announced a four-day opposition boycott of the National Assembly. Speaking on 
the parliament floor, Ohanian accused the Armenian government of ignoring grave 
security challenges facing Armenia and Karabakh.

“We are leaving for Artsakh and Armenia’s border regions in order to continue 
directly communicating with our compatriots, to visit the sites of our country’s 
primary agenda,” he said before placing a Karabakh flag on the parliament 
rostrum.

Armenia - Pro-government parliamentarian Vahagn Aleksanian removes a Karabakh 
flag from the parliament rostrum, .

Deputies representing Pashinian’s Civil Contract party dismissed the opposition 
move as populist. One of them, Vahagn Aleksanian, removed the small flag from 
the podium.

“With this step the parliamentary is not defending Artsakh but aggravating the 
security problems of Artsakh and the Armenians,” charged another pro-government 
parliamentarian, Hayk Konjorian. “The parliamentary opposition is using the 
Artsakh issue and our security problems to stage a coup and seize power in 
Armenia.”


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.

 

Emil Lazarian

“I should like to see any power of the world destroy this race, this small tribe of unimportant people, whose wars have all been fought and lost, whose structures have crumbled, literature is unread, music is unheard, and prayers are no more answered. Go ahead, destroy Armenia . See if you can do it. Send them into the desert without bread or water. Burn their homes and churches. Then see if they will not laugh, sing and pray again. For when two of them meet anywhere in the world, see if they will not create a New Armenia.” - WS