Author: John Hovhannisian

                                        Wednesday, 


Opposition Bloc Ends Boycott Of International Bodies


Armenia - Deputies from the opposition Hayastan bloc wear T-shirts emblazoned 
with pictures of arrested opposition figures during the inaugural session of the 
recently elected National Assembly, Yerevan, August 2, 2021.


The main opposition Hayastan alliance said on Wednesday that it will stop 
boycotting sessions of international parliamentary bodies because the Armenian 
authorities have freed three of its lawmakers and lifted travel bans imposed on 
several others.

The bloc announced on December 7 that its parliament deputies not charged with 
any crimes will not join Armenian parliamentary delegations travelling abroad 
out of solidarity with their colleagues facing what they see as politically 
motivated charges.

Two days later, the Constitutional Court declared the arrest of the three 
Hayastan deputies illegal, saying that they enjoy immunity from prosecution. 
They were set free the next day.

In a statement, Hayastan’s parliamentary group said their release was followed 
by the lifting of some of the travel bans.

“Given that a considerable part of our demands for the lifting of illegal 
restrictions on the deputies’ activities have been fulfilled, the Hayastan 
faction has decided to resume its participation in the work of international 
organizations,” read the statement. It did not specify which of those lawmakers 
can now go abroad.

As of December 7, twelve of the 29 Hayastan deputies were not allowed to leave 
Armenia because of having been indicted in various criminal cases. They included 
the bloc’s parliamentary leader Seyran Ohanian, deputy speaker Ishkhan 
Saghatelian and Armen Gevorgian, the chairman of the parliament’s Committee on 
Regional and Eurasian Integration.

Gevorgian is the sole full-fledged opposition member of the Armenian delegation 
in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). He and Hayastan’s 
top leader, former President Robert Kocharian, are standing trial on corruption 
charges strongly denied by them.

The judge presiding over the trial refused to allow Gevorgian to attend the 
PACE’s winter session held in Strasbourg late last month. Earlier, she also 
banned Kocharian from visiting Moscow at the invitation of Russia’s ruling party.

Hayastan condemned those decisions, saying that they were made under strong 
government pressure. The bloc expressed confidence on Wednesday that it will 
also succeed in forcing the authorities to scrap the remaining travel bans and 
free several other opposition figures still held in detention.



Authorities Still Vague On Constitutional Changes

        • Naira Nalbandian

Armenia -- Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian speaks at an official ceremony outside 
the presidential palace in Yerevan, September 21, 2019.


Justice Minister Karen Andreasian declined to shed more light on constitutional 
changes planned by Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian after chairing on Wednesday a 
second meeting of an ad hoc body formed for that purpose.

Pashinian called for major changes to the Armenian constitution last spring. He 
said at the time that his administration will consider restoring the 
presidential system of government. But he stated afterwards, most recently in 
late January, that Armenia should remain a parliamentary republic.

Andreasian insisted that the premier’s remarks on the subject were 
“complementary, not contradictory.”

“The purpose of all those statements is this: to find the most optimal way of 
resolving the government order in Armenia and to distribute the powers of all 
government branches in a way that will give people a sense of justice and at the 
same time ensure efficient governance,” he told reporters.

He would not be drawn on which concrete articles of the constitution could be 
amended and how.

Andreasian heads a constitutional reform “council” that consists of state 
officials, pro-government politicians and representatives of non-governmental 
organizations. It is due to nominate five legal scholars who will be tasked with 
drafting constitutional amendments.

The two opposition alliances represented in the Armenian parliament were offered 
to appoint two other council members. But they refused, saying that the purpose 
of the planned amendments is to help Pashinian cling to power.

Former President Serzh Sarkisian, faced similar accusations when he engineered 
Armenia’s transition to the parliamentary system through sweeping constitutional 
changes enacted in 2015. Sarkisian’s attempt to remain in power as prime 
minister after completing his second and final presidential term in 2018 sparked 
mass protests that brought Pashinian to power.

Andreasian confirmed that his council will discuss the wisdom of reverting back 
to the presidential system of government.

“A political decision on what form of government Armenia should choose will 
start from this council,” he said. “I can assure you that no other body has made 
such a political decision.”



Armenia's Vaccine Rollout Slowing Down Despite Health Pass Rule

        • Marine Khachatrian

Armenia - A medical worker fills a syringe with COVID-19 vaccine at a mobile 
vaccination center in Yerevan, January 14, 2022.


The pace of coronavirus vaccinations in Armenia has slowed further since the 
recent introduction of a mandatory health pass for entry to cultural and leisure 
venues.

The requirement, effective from January 22, means that only those people who 
have been vaccinated against COVID-19 or have had a recent negative test are 
allowed to visit bars, restaurants, museums, theaters or other public venues.

The Armenian government hoped that this will boost the country’s vaccination 
rate which remains the lowest in the region. Government data shows an opposite 
trend, however.

According to the Ministry of Health, the daily number of people receiving the 
first dose of a coronavirus vaccine averaged roughly 3,200 from January 23 
through February 13, down from about 3,370 earlier in January and more than 
5,100 in December.

About 877,000 people making up approximately one-third of the country’s 
population were fully vaccinated as of February 13. Only 15,539 of them also 
received “booster” shots. The vaccination rate is especially low among elderly 
Armenians.


Armenia -- Customers at a cafe in Yerevan, May 4, 2020.

There is growing anecdotal evidence that many Armenian bars and restaurants have 
stopped checking the health passes of their customers. Government agencies 
tasked with enforcing the requirement are not known to have fined any of them.

Some restaurant owners strongly criticized the introduction of the health pass 
last month, predicting a major loss of their revenues.

Davit Melik-Nubarian, a public health expert, suggested on Wednesday that the 
vaccination numbers are falling also because Armenians are now less worried 
about the more contagious but less severe Omicron variant of the coronavirus.

Omicron was the main driving force behind the latest wave of coronavirus 
infections in Armenia that began in mid-January. The daily number of cases 
recorded by health authorities reached a new record high of over 4,500 on 
February 2. But it has fallen significantly since then, with an average of 
roughly 1,500 cases a day reported in the last few days.


Armenia - People line up outside a mobile vaccination center in Yerevan's 
Liberty Square, September 24, 2021.

Still, the number of coronavirus-related deaths reached 145 in the first half of 
February, sharply up from 81 fatalities reported in the whole of January. On 
Tuesday alone, 28 people died from COVID-19, according to the Ministry of Health.

“We have virtually no vacant beds right now,” said Petros Manukian, the deputy 
director of Yerevan’s Surb Grigor Lusavorich Medical Center, the largest 
hospital treating COVID-19 patients.

“During the previous wave [of infections,] we admitted many young and 
middle-aged citizens with infected lungs and serious breathing difficulties 
whose condition deteriorated rapidly,” Manukian told RFE/RL’s Armenian Service. 
“The picture is a bit different at this stage. There are more patients with 
underlying diseases that are aggravated by COVID-19 and often cause their 
deaths.”


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