Epress.am News from Armenia
Heritage Party parliamentary faction MPs boycotted the National Assembly meeting today, reports RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun Radio).
Heritage Party founder and leader Raffi Hovannisian made a statement at the start of the regular four-day session.
Referring to the ruling coalition’s new declaration in particular, he said, “Recently, the acting president signed an unconstitutional, unlawful declaration with his coalition partners the meaning of which was not only before its time, a nomination of his own candidacy violating all corresponding laws, but also a message to the public that ‘I am the state, and there’s no game before me’.”
Hovannisian said the policy “that… yields to our statehood and national interests will continue for at least 7 years; that internal policy that deepens inequality, unlawfulness and emigration will continue for at least 7 years.”
“This parliament’s objective picture is a reflection of the next mutilated, rigged elections, but, unfortunately, the existing correlation of forces between the majority and the opposition doesn’t satisfy the [governing] party leaders’ appetite, and they’ve set their sights on these few opposition seats. It’s not necessary to rig the next election, as the sacred liturgy says, with love, with truth and never with irony, take, eat, this is your heritage,” he said.
After these remarks, the Heritage Party National Assembly deputies left the meeting.
Updated on Mar. 1, 2010, at 12 pm: “this proportion doesn’t satisfy the majority and opposition party leaders’ appetite, and they’ve directed their view on these thin opposition seats” replaced with “the existing correlation of forces between the majority and the opposition doesn’t satisfy the [governing] party leaders’ appetite, and they’ve set their sights on these few opposition seats” for clarity and improved translation.