Author: Diana Dabaghian

                                        Monday, 

Pashinian Urged To Publish Sarkisian-Era ‘Secret Document’

        • Naira Nalbandian

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian, 05Aug, 2019

A leading anti-graft organization’s representative has called on Armenian Prime 
Minister Nikol Pashinian to disclose the classified information from former 
President Serzh Sarkisian’s times that he claims described Armenia as an 
“institutionally paralyzed” state.

In a Facebook video on Sunday Pashinian said his short vacation gave him more 
time to peruse a “secret” government document drawn up in 2014 that he claimed 
revealed “that institutionally our state is totally failed.”

Pashinian said the document that was on his table contained such sensitive 
information that he could not even disclose its title.

“The significance of this secret document which was written during the last 
years of the Sarkisian government and is now on my table is that it gives a 
complete picture of the state of our country or in what state it was and 
continues to be, because the problems referred to in it naturally could not 
solved within just a year. The conclusion drawn from this paper is that, in 
essence, during the [2018] revolution, before and in some sense after it our 
country has been institutionally paralyzed. In fact, this is a document that 
says that in our country state institutions are paralyzed and institutionally 
our state is totally failed. The authors of this document must have shown some 
great courage in making such evaluations,” Pashinian said, noting that studying 
this document helps him better understand what is happening in Armenia and what 
issues need to be addressed in the country.

The prime minister explained that in Armenia today “there are no institutions 
that would solve various problems that people face.” As an example, he cited 
multiple difficulties arising in such major projects as road construction.

“Reading this document, I once again made sure that in Armenia, in fact, the 
system of governance was based on corruption, and when you remove corruption, 
it turns out that there is no system of governance underneath. This is the 
biggest problem. This is the kind of challenge our government is facing. In 
fact, we have to create institutions in Armenia from scratch to solve the 
problems that our country faces,” Pashinian said, stressing that by 
institutions he also meant the judicial system and the system of state 
purchases.

“There are institutions in our country that at first glance seem to be fully 
operational, but when you go deep, you realize that under the decorative 
curtain we, in fact, have a state of institutional paralysis or partial 
paralysis. We need strong nerves to address this situation in the sense that we 
should not be running in panic after all possible problems, but should focus on 
tactical and strategic priorities, and without paying any attention to 
emotional backgrounds address these problems one after another,” the premier 
concluded.

Talking to RFE/RL’s Armenian Service (Azatutyun.am) on Monday deputy director 
of the Transparency International Anti-Corruption Center Sona Ayvazian 
suggested that information of that kind merits disclosure in the interest of 
the public.

“It is not right to provide only bits of information and leave it to the public 
to make conclusions and form opinions,” she said.


Sona Ayvazyan, deputy director of Transparency International's Anticorruption 
Center in Armenia (file photo)

Ayvazian said that a number of other similar statements made by Pashinian in 
the past were not followed up on and elicited no response from law-enforcement 
agencies.

“No steps follow such statements. At least, the public is not aware of such 
steps. I think in this case it is the same. We, of course, do not know what 
document it is… and how far it is possible for the law-enforcement bodies to 
take steps based on it. But I think it should be followed by corresponding 
reports to law-enforcement bodies. I think it would be even correct if the 
document becomes available for the public, as it talks about public interest,” 
Transparency International’s representative said.

Meanwhile, representatives of Sarkisian’s former ruling Republican Party of 
Armenia (HHK) challenged the veracity of Pashinian’s claims, challenging him to 
publish the document.

Armen Ashotian, a former HHK lawmaker and education minister in the Sarkisian 
government, contended in a Facebook post that Pashinian is seeking an excuse 
for his government’s failures.

“Why this whole fake mysteriousness? Just publish the title of the ‘report’ and 
reveal the names of its authors,” he wrote.

Vladimir Karapetian, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Pashinian, told RFE/RL’s 
Armenian Service (Azatutyun.am) later on Monday that the matter concerns 
classified information that is not subject for publication by law.



Retrial Of Former 2008 Unrest Convict Opens In Yerevan

        • Marine Khachatrian

Mushegh Saghatelian (file photo)

A lower court in Yerevan on Monday launched a retrial of the case of 
oppositionist Mushegh Saghatelian who was convicted after a 2008 post-election 
unrest and sentenced to five years in prison and now seeks acquittal.

Earlier, the Court of Cassation – the highest instance in Armenia’s three-tier 
judicial system – fully upheld the prosecutor-general’s appeal for reviewing 
the judicial acts of the lower court and the court of appeal issued in 
2008-2009 due to “new circumstances.”

The Court of Cassation overturned the rulings, referring the case to the court 
of the first instance for a retrial.

The decision comes less than a year after Saghatelian won a case against the 
Republic of Armenia at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). The 
Strasbourg-based court found that Saghatelian’s rights enshrined in several 
articles of the European Convention on Human Rights had been violated.

This ECHR decision came into force last December 20, and it is this decision 
that the prosecutor-general cited as the new circumstance in filing the 
cassation appeal.

The ECHR ruling, in particular, concerned violations of articles dealing with 
prohibition of torture, freedom and personal immunity, fair trial and freedom 
of assembly.

Saghatelian’s lawyer Seda Safarian on Monday singled out the right to a fair 
trial. “Let’s find out why the police officers who testified in cases of nearly 
a hundred political prisoners were interested in giving such testimony and how 
it turned out that the police officers who actually committed acts of violence 
against the people suddenly became victims in this case,” said Safarian.

In 2008, Saghatelian managed an election campaign of presidential candidate 
Levon Ter-Petrosian in Armenia’s northwestern province of Shirak. He was 
arrested on March 1, 2018 following a crackdown on opposition rallies 
protesting against electoral fraud and challenging the outcome of the vote that 
officially gave victory to then Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian.

Ten people, including two security personnel, were killed as security forces 
quelled the protests.

In October 2008, Saghatelian was convicted of carrying a cold weapon and using 
‘dangerous’ violence against a police officer and sentenced to five years in 
prison and a fine of 900,000 drams (about $1,900).

During the entire trial Saghatelian denied the charges. He was released on 
parole in November 2010.

During today’s hearing Judge Mesrop Makian requested medical documents on the 
health condition of Saghatelian who has been in hospital in an unconscious 
state for more than a year now. Until then he adjourned the session.

Saghatelian’s lawyer said that her client is unlikely to get well any time soon 
and in any case he will not have the ability to communicate with the court. 
“So, we have no other option than to pass on to the hearing right after the 
examination. Over 10 years have passed and it is desirable that the case be 
heard quickly. In this regard, I would not want Saghatelian’s health condition 
to hinder the trial,” said Safarian.

Saghatelian’s son, Sevada Saghatelian, told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service 
(Azatutyun.am) that the family hopes for a fair trial after the ECHR’s ruling.



Armenian PM Offers Condolences Over U.S. Mass Shootings


US - A woman places flowers at the site of a mass shooting where 20 people lost 
their lives at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, U.S. August 4, 2019.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has sent a letter of condolences to 
U.S. President Donald Trump on the mass shootings in Texas and Ohio that have 
rocked the American nation.

Nine people were killed and at least 27 injured when a gunman opened fire in 
downtown Dayton, Ohio, on August 4 only hours after a man opened fire in a 
crowded El Paso, Texas, shopping area, leaving 20 dead and 26 injured.

According to the Armenian prime minister’s official website, in his message 
Pashinian said: “I was deeply saddened to learn of the tragic events in Texas 
and Ohio that caused many deaths and injuries.

“I extend my deepest condolences and support to you, the friendly people of the 
United States, wishing courage to you and speedy recovery to the injured. We 
pray together with you for all the innocent victims and express our solidarity 
with their families and friends.”



Pashinian In Stepanakert Reveals ‘Strategic Goals’ For Armenia


Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian at a rally in Stepanakert, 
Nagorno-Karabakh, August 5, 2019

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian called for concentration of the pan-Armenian 
potential for the realization of long-term strategic goals of the nation as he 
addressed thousands of people in the central square of the Nagorno-Karabakh 
capital of Stepanakert on Monday.

In a speech likely to irk Azerbaijan that does not recognize Armenian 
sovereignty over Nagorno-Karabakh, Pashinian several times sought to emphasize 
the unity of different parts of the Armenian people, including the people of 
Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, in the realization of pan-Armenian goals.

At the rally, the popular head of the Armenian government who came to power as 
the leader of nationwide protests in the spring of 2018 also laid out what he 
described as a long-term strategic vision of goals of the Armenian government 
until 2050.

According to this vision, in the next three decades Armenia’s population should 
grow from the current 3 million to at least 5 million people.

“Our goal is to create 1.5 million jobs, provide employment for 2.5 million, 
stamp out poverty and turn Armenia into an industrial country,” Pashinian 
stressed.

In the indicated period Pashinian sees Armenia’s gross domestic product 
increasing 15 times, average salaries rising seven times, and funding for 
medicine, education and science growing 20 times.

“Our goal is to have at least five Armenian technological companies whose 
values will be over $10 billion and 10,000 working startups,” he said. “By the 
index of combat readiness our army should be at least among the world’s top 20 
armies and we should have one of the world’s top ten most efficient 
intelligence services.”

According to the Pashinian government’s vision, by 2050 Armenia will become a 
country annually attracting 15 million tourists and excelling in sports. “We 
will strive to make Armenia’s national soccer team a medal winner at a European 
or world championship, gain 25 Olympic gold medals and get an individual world 
champion in chess,” he said.

“I am convinced that many of you wonder why I am saying nothing about Artsakh 
[Karabakh]. The answer is very simple: Artsakh is Armenia. Period,” Pashinian 
said, drawing cheers from the crowd.

The Armenian premier stressed that while his government sees a comprehensive 
fulfillment of the goals by 2050, some of these goals can be fulfilled much 
earlier. “So, it does not mean that we should sit and wait until then. We start 
working on the realization of these goal already today,” said Pashinian, adding 
that it is equally important to have a “roadmap” for the realization of these 
“mega-goals”.

“The realization of these strategic goals should become the backbone of the 
pan-Armenian agenda,” he said.

At the same time, Pashinian stressed that the Armenian people should agree on a 
number of “consensuses” for the achievement of the ambitious goals. Thus, 
according to him, violence should be excluded in solving domestic issues; free 
and fair elections should be the only source of forming governments; any 
attempt to bring in foreign forces in settling domestic Armenian affairs should 
entail a strong reaction from the government; Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh 
should be free from corruption and abide by the principles of rule of law, 
equality of all before law, which includes independent courts.

Pashinian also stressed that the goal of negotiations with Azerbaijan around a 
Nagorno-Karabakh settlement should be “the defense of the results of the 
liberation struggle waged for the sovereignty and security of the Artsakh 
people.”

“Any solution reached as a result of negotiations that will be considered 
acceptable for the governments of Armenia and Artsakh can be regarded as 
acceptable only if it is popularly endorsed by people in Armenia and Artsakh,” 
said the Armenian premier.

Pashinian spoke in Stepanakert on the eve of the opening of the seventh 
Pan-Armenian games that is due to take place in Stepanakert on August 6.

The quadrennial games that will be held mostly in Yerevan through August 17 are 
bringing together hundreds of ethnic Armenian athletes from around the world.


Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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