Epress.am News from Armenia
Rector of the Armenian State University of Economics' Gyumri campus Samson Davoyan claims there are no representatives of the Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) in the members and electoral candidates of the student union, and they have no information that they will become Republicans in the future, but "you don't have to be Republican in title to be Republican in spirit," said Asparez Journalists' Club President, Gyumri City Council member Levon Barseghyan during Epress.am's Week in Review program [AM].
"Now, being a Republican has become a privilege not unlike being a communist was during the Soviet Union. Not everyone was given the right to be a communist. Now it's not like they want to make Republicans out of all of us en masse. There was such a stage in 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011, to provide support for Serzh Sargsyan in the next parliamentary and presidential elections, but now it's different: you have to work, suffer, and prove that you have the virtues to be a Republican," said Barseghyan.
According to him, the student union presidential election was not held only due to the student revolt.
"Those same self-defense forces of [Yerevan Mayor] Taron Margaryan would've turned into sheep in Gyumri. If you watch the videos, you'll see that those who were cursing the young journalists in Yerevan had become obedient kids. Such behavior in Gyumri would've simply turned into fighting: they would tear off their heads if even a single sexual expletive was uttered from their mouths. 'Ok, ok, if you don't want, we won't have the meeting, we'll postpone it' — that's what they said. Yeah, friend, we don't want; you can't come and do such things in Gyumri," he said.
Photo credit: Asparez Journalists' Club