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 ARMENIA-DIASPORA RELATIONS: 20 YEARS SINCE INDEPENDENCE
YEREVAN'S 2009 MUNICIPAL ELECTION
IMPLICATIONS OF FINANCIAL CRISIS FOR ARMENIA 
ARMENIA’S 2008 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION 
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| HOME > PFA WATCH LIST |
PFA Watch List brings to public’s attention controversial legislative initiatives, government decisions, legal proceedings, and behavior of public officials with implications for developmental policy design and implementation in Armenia. PFA’s commentary will be limited only to how these controversial actions are likely to impact the policy design and conduct. This tool is intended to generate awareness to help formulate alternative views and shape public opinion.
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By some Armenia-based news agencies.
YEREVAN; (Dec. 30) -- Armenian Diaspora Ministry is going to set up the National Council of Armenians, aimed to represent the interests of Armenian people at the supranational level. The National Council members will be elected in 2010 from various structures of the Armenian communities worldwide. Based on parity basis, the National Council will comprise both, representatives from Armenia and Diaspora.
At present, Armenian Diaspora numbers 7 million people, over 30,000 institutions and nearly 20,000 Pan-Armenian organizations.
By Noyan Tapan
Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan disclosed on Friday, December 25, that the Armenian Government is in the middle of negotiations with Russia on a new $100 million loan designed to be used exclusively for the development of the jewelry business in Armenia.
If the deal goes through, the multi-million dollar loan will assist Armenia in the opening of a diamond exchange that will be used to supply Russian diamonds to local jewelry factories.
“If the negotiations are successful and we manage to come to an agreement with Russia-based AlRosa company, then the attracted loan will be used to develop the diamond cutting sector and to establish a modern diamond-exchange in order to provide Armenian companies with Russian raw material,” the prime minister said.
According to Sargsyan, Armenia’s private sector, whose representatives are involved in negotiations on the loan, will bear the main burden of the loan repayment. More... ... At the same time he said that there are no plans to receive other credit resources from Russia.
Armenia has already received a $500 million stabilization loan from Russia to fund reconstruction projects in the earthquake-recovery zone of Gyumri, the crediting of small and medium business, and the establishment of a stabilization fund for anti-crisis measures.
by ArmeniaNow.com
Prominent commanders of the Nagorno-Karabakh War, Colonel-General Gurgen Daribaltayan and Major-General Arkady Ter-Tadevosyan have appealed to President of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan, to release former MP Sasun Mikaelyan’s (veteran of Nagorno-Karabakh War). He is sentenced to eight years of imprisonment in connection with the March 1, 2008 uprising, charged with organization of mass disorders in Yerevan, and illegal possession of weapons.
The generals asked the president to consider Mikaelyan’s poor health state and “enjoying the authorization of the president of Armenia to solicit for Mikaelyan to be set free from further punishment.”
The generals mention in their letter that “regardless of the reasons why he ended up in the prison, his life is at stake, and he is someone who unconditionally dedicated himself to Nagorno-Karabakh War and the defense of our country’s borders. More... ...”
Mikaelyan, squad leader of ‘Sasun’ detachment, was taken from Yerevan-Center Penitentiary to the Hospital for Convicts on September 12, when it was found out that he had serious cardiovascular problems. He is also said to be suffering pain from several shell fragments he has carried since the war.
Meanwhile, as Major-General Ter-Tadevosyan (known as Commandos) told ArmeniaNow, they hadn’t got the answer to their letter yet, however, judging by the responses, their appeal will be refused. ( meaning comment given by Samvel Farmanyan, Spokesman of the President of Armenia, in ‘Aravot’ (Morning) Daily, where he says that “according to the Constitution and Legislation of the Republic of Armenia, the president of Armenia does not possess the authority of soliciting for a convict to be set free from further punishment because of poor health conditions.”
“I still have a hope because Sasun is a devoted person of our homeland, and his place should not be prison. But as I have already seen, there are some grounds for refusal,” says Commandos.
I would like to address another very important issue, that is what issue is of highest concern for our citizens. Our research and public opinion polls show that the most essential issue for our citizens is neither pension and salary raises, nor the issue of unemployment and creation of new workplaces, nor inflation and exchange rates, and nor even NKR and Genocide issues, but rather the issue of social justice. Everyone must be equal before the law, irrespective of the fact what post he or she occupies, what accumulated incomes and riches he or she has. This issue is going to be in the center of our attention. This issue, first of all, refers to the large-scale business. The path of the large-scale business towards regaining the public confidence is transparency in work. For the large-scale business, fulfillment of tax liabilities must be an issue of dignity. We must strive together to make this process transparent. More... ... In order to solve this issue, we are going to present two legislative initiatives to your judgment. Firstly, 500 high-rank public officials of the Republic of Armenia will be obliged to publicly present their declaration on incomes and property; and a unified electronic registry will be functioning in Armenia accessible for all citizens. In their declarations, high-rank public officials must present the property of persons related to them as well. Secondly, risk control by tax authorities implies that the large-scale business must be transparent before the public in the first place, and introduction of the institute of compulsory audit is an important step forward towards regaining public confidence for the large-scale business. It is with regret that I mark that in 2009 we do not have any achievements in this sphere, and the criticism towards the Government in this regard is justified.
November 18, RFE/RL
A prominent Armenian investigative journalist known for his stories exposing government corruption became the target of a violent attack, which he believes is connected with his reporting.
Edik Baghdasarian, who heads the Armenian Association of Investigative Journalists and runs a Yerevan-based online magazine, Hetq, left his office in downtown Yerevan at about 8 p.m. Monday and shortly was ambushed and beaten by three unknown assailants as he was going to get into his car parked in the street, according to his own account.
Baghdasarian said the attack was an unprovoked one and the assailants did not demand anything particular from him.
“Right near the car two people attacked me and began to land heavy blows. I retaliated and we were exchanging blows. More... ... I punched one of them and since I was holding a mobile phone in my hand at that moment, the phone now has blood stains on it, presumably the blood of one of the attackers,” Baghdasarian told RFE/RL.
Then, according to Baghdasarian, a third person hit him on the head from behind, presumably with a rock or some other solid object, after which, the journalist says, he fainted.
Eventually, the three of the attackers took to flight after a security worker from a nearby construction site alerted by the squabble fired a shot into the air.
An ambulance service then administered first aid to Baghdasarian on the spot and the journalist was hospitalized with a head injury. Doctors later said the injuries were not life threatening.
Baghdasarian also says he lost a computer disc with several investigative stories that he planned for publication online. The journalist says he saw the face of at least one assailant and could recognize that person if he saw him again.
A criminal case has been initiated in connection with the incident under article 113 of the Criminal Code (inflicting bodily harm of medium gravity by a group of persons). An inquiry was ongoing, police officials said.
Baghdasarian, 49, is an award-winning independent journalist known for his in-depth investigative reporting on topics ranging from politics to crime and corruption. In his latest series of investigative reports, Baghdasarian exposed cases of abuse and corruption in Armenia’s mining industry.
The latest attack became the seventh case of violence used against a media representative in Armenia this year. In August, the then acting chief of RFE/RL’s Yerevan bureau Hrach Melkumian also became a victim of an apparently politically motivated attack.
The rise in violence against media in 2008 has been slammed by local and international media watchdogs and human rights groups throughout the year.
However, none of the crimes have been revealed and no one has been punished for either organizing or committing those attacks against journalists.
The attack against Baghdasarian was condemned by Armenia’s main opposition alliance.
In a statement the Armenian National Congress led by former President Levon Ter-Petrosian, in particular, said: “This outrageous attack is more proof that the criminal regime has declared war on free speech.”
President Serzh Sarkisian’s spokesman also described the violence against the journalist as “unacceptable” and “condemnable”.
“The president of the republic has given strict instructions to law-enforcement bodies to reveal the circumstances of the case and find those responsible for the attack,” Samvel Farmanian said in a statement.
Later in the day, Prime Minister Tigran Sarkisian visited Baghdasarian at the hospital.
He expressed his concern over the attack against a journalist.
“The investigation is on and we are convinced that those responsible will be found within a short period of time,” Tigran Sarkisian told reporters.
Posted By: Moderator on Nov 19, 2008 11:15AM
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October 10, Radio Free Europe
A court in Yerevan opened on Friday hearings on the legality of a local government body’s decision to evict Armenia’s best-selling daily newspaper highly critical of the government from its state-owned offices.
The “Haykakan Zhamanak” daily has long leased the premises, located on the ground floor of an apartment building in downtown Yerevan, from the administration of the central Kentron district free of charge. A relevant lease agreement between the two entities was signed in 2003 and extended in 2007.
Kentron’s executive administration and legislative council decided to terminate the agreement and give the property to a little-known children’s cultural center last April, at the height of the Armenian government’s post-election crackdown on the opposition. “Haykakan Zhamanak” rejected the decision as politically motivated and challenged it in the court. More... ...
“It is hard to imagine what and how children will create on the damp ground floor of an apartment building,” its legal counsel, Tigran Atanesian, said at the start of the court hearings. “The only purpose of the decision is to restrict freedom of speech.”
Zaven Arakelian, a lawyer representing the Kentron administration, denied political motives behind the eviction order and said it did not violate any Armenian law. Arakelian argued that under the terms of the agreement with “Haykakan Zhamanak,” the administration was allowed to unilaterally end the lease.
The popular daily strongly backed opposition leader and former President Levon Ter-Petrosian’s bid to return to power as a result of the February 19 presidential election. Its outspoken editor, Nikol Pashinian, was a key speaker at Ter-Petrosian’s massive post-election rallies in Yerevan.
Pashinian was among opposition leaders who went into hiding to avoid arrest following the deadly suppression of the protests. Despite remaining on the run, he continues to regularly write hard-hitting commentaries in his paper.
Posted By: Administrator on Oct 14, 2008 02:08PM
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September 24, RFE/RL
The Audit Chamber of Armenia’s government-controlled parliament leveled on Wednesday corruption accusations against a controversial regional governor, raising new questions about his political future.
The head of the chamber, Ishkhan Zakarian, claimed that Surik Khachatrian of the southeastern Syunik region and local government officials subordinated to him have embezzled 575 million drams ($1.9 million) worth of public funds and property.
Zakarian said about one third of the sum was misappropriated by officials in the regional administration. He said they inflated the cost of procurements and failed to properly use government funds earmarked for construction work.
According to Zakarian, the mayors of local towns and villages have embezzled even larger sums through similar scams. He singled out the mayor of Syunik’s capital Kapan, alleging that the latter sold 5,200 square meters of public housing for as little as 3,500 drams ($12). More... ...
The official added that he will forward the case to state prosecutors after the Audit Chamber completes financial inspections of government bodies in Syunik by the end of this year.
Khachatrian strongly dismissed the accusations as a product of “Ishkhan’s illiteracy.” “They are all unfounded,” he told RFE/RL by phone. Khachatrian also denied the parliamentary body’s claims that his administration has partly admitted to the alleged fraud.
The extraordinary allegations are the clearest sign yet that Khachatrian, better known with his “Litska” nickname and branded a crime figure by opposition politicians and media, could be sacked by President Serzh Sarkisian soon. Earlier this year, the controversial governor, who is affiliated with Sarkisian’s Republican Party (HHK), faced an embarrassing government inquiry into a newspaper report that accused him of assaulting a teenage boy. He was eventually cleared of the allegation.
Posted By: Anonymous on Sep 25, 2008 10:23AM
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Associated Press - Hundreds of troops flooded Armenia's capital today to enforce a state of emergency after clashes between opposition activists protesting against election results and government forces left eight people dead and more than 100 injured.
The bloodshed was the worst political crisis to hit the strategically located, volatile former Soviet nation in nearly a decade. An envoy of Europe's leading security body rushed to Armenia to mediate the conflict. The United States urged both sides to exercise restraint.
President Robert Kocharian declared the 20 day state of emergency last night following a day of clashes between government forces and demonstrators protesting against alleged fraud in the February 19 presidential election.
Police used tear gas and fired in the air to disperse thousands of opposition demonstrators yesterday afternoon, after breaking up an opposition tent camp earlier in the day. More... ...
Seven civilians and one officer were killed in the clashes, and at least 131 other protesters and troops were wounded, officials said today. The authorities accused the opposition of firing at police and Health Ministry spokeswoman Russian Gevorkian said 16 troops had bullet wounds, the Interfax news agency reported. The opposition vehemently denied using weapons.
The demonstrators supported opposition presidential candidate Levon Ter-Petrosian, who was being prevented from leaving his residence. Ter-Petrosian called on his supporters to go home and refrain from further protests while the emergency order is in place, but vowed to continue efforts to force a new election once it is lifted.
"We shall not retreat. Acting within the law, within the framework of the constitution, we shall struggle to the end, until the removal of this hateful and criminal regime, this bandit and kleptocratic regime," Ter-Petrosian told reporters in his house in central Yerevan.
Hundreds of helmeted servicemen, wearing bulletproof vests and wielding Kalashnikov assault rifles, patrolled the centre of a tense Yerevan. Police closed several major streets where the violence occurred. Troops were warning residents by loudspeaker not to gather in groups.
Some streets were littered with the hulks of burned cars, many shop windows had been broken and kiosks looted.
Ter-Petrosian finished a distant second to Prime Minister Serge Sarkisian in the official results from the election. He appealed to the Constitutional Court on Friday to overturn the results.
The bloodshed raised concerns about stability in this country, which borders Iran and lies on a transit route from the energy-rich Caspian Sea region to Western consumers. Europe's leading security organisation, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, was sending an envoy to Armenia to mediate the crisis.
Western observers issued an overall positive assessment of the election, but noted serious flaws, especially during the vote count.
The opposition says Sarkisian stole the election by resorting to vote-buying, ballot stuffing and pressuring media to skew coverage in his favour. Several opposition members said they were beaten on election day to prevent them from monitoring the vote. The government denies any wrongdoing.
Posted By: PFA Team on Mar 03, 2008 11:27AM
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PanARMENIAN.Net/ The Armenian Constitutional Court has pinned the suits brought in by Tigran Karapetyan and Levon Ter-Petrosyan on February 27 and February 29 respectively. The hearing on appeal of the presidential election outcomes is due on March 2, the CC press division reported.
The decision on disputes over the presidential election results is to be taken within 2 days.
According to the RA CEC, Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan was elected President of Armenia with 52,82 per cent of votes. Levon Ter-Petrosyan came second with 21,5 per cent. Tigran Karapetyan was backed by 0,6 per cent of votes.
Posted By: PFA Team on Mar 03, 2008 11:20AM
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Associated Press
Yerevan, Armenia — Armenian police early Saturday morning forcefully dispersed a demonstration by several hundred opposition supporters who had camped out in the capital for more than a week to protest the results of presidential elections.
The police moved in before 7 a.m. and began forcing protesters onto buses. A few clashes broke out on the central Yerevan square.
The Armenian Health Ministry said 31 people, including six policemen, had sought treatment for injuries in the clash; it said 10 people were hospitalized, but did not state the severity of their injuries nor how many of them were police.
The opposition has protested the results of the Feb. 19 presidential election results and tried to force a new vote. Rallies daily have drawn tens of thousands of people; a few hundred remained at the square each night in tents. More... ...
About 2,000 demonstrators marched through Yerevan on Saturday afternoon, but many downtown streets and the square that had held the camp were closed off by police. Demonstrators threw trash on some cars and pounded on a police vehicle.
Officials say Prime Minister Serge Sarkisian — the favored successor of outgoing President Robert Kocharian — won the vote outright. But supporters of opposition candidate Levon Ter-Petrosian have rejected the results, alleging fraud.
The observer mission from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said there were concerns about the vote count, but it issued a generally positive assessment.
Ter-Petrosian, a former president of Armenia, appealed to the Constitutional Court on Friday to overturn the results.
The standoff has raised concerns of instability in the poor Caucasus nation at the junction of the energy-rich Caspian Sea region and southern Europe, with Russia and Iran nearby.
By AVET DEMOURIAN
Posted By: PFA Team on Mar 01, 2008 10:44AM
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