Epress.am News from Armenia
8:50pm: After an over 8-hour session, the Armenian parliament failed to elect a Prime Minister, with sole candidate Nikol Pashinyan getting 45 votes in favor and 55 against. The Parliament is supposed to gather in seven days for another election.
8։24pm: Republican faction leader Vahram Baghdasaryan announced that their faction “recognizes the victory of the national movement, agrees with their criticism and has answered the criticism with the resignation of the Prime Minister.” Nevertheless, Baghdasaryan said the Republican faction would be voting against Nikol Pashinyan’s candidacy “to try and prevent the dangerous wave that could quickly arise in the country.”
8:15pm: Tsarukyan and ARF factions officially announced they would vote in favor of Nikol Pashinyan. ARF MP Aghvan Vardanyan had earlier said in his speech that despite his faction’s stance, he would be voting for Pashinyan. The ARF has since demanded that Vardanyan hand in his mandate.
7:35pm: Ararat Mirzoyan, Yelk faction: [Addressing Republicans] I want to help you to sensibly assess the situation. You’ve lost touch with reality. From Meghri to Ashotsk, in the streets, in cafes… Everyone is watching you and they all want you to vote for Nikol Pashinyan. You’re talking about a “group of people.” This is not a group of people; you are the “group of people” right now. The police, the lower, middle, higher levels of the state apparatus, village administrations, your children’s classmates, your neighbors, your relatives – everyone wants you to vote for Nikol Pashinyan. We are going to win no matter what.
6:50pm: Nikol Pashinyan on Facebook: Dear people, please wait for us in the Republic Square.
6:05pm: Edmon Marukyan, Yelk faction: Dear Republicans, you are talking about Artsakh, economy, sanctions… Do you want Artsakh to be safer? Then you need to vote for Pashinyan. Do you want economic development? You need to vote for Pashinyan. Do you want Armenia not to fall under sanctions. Vote for Pashinyan. Do you want the tanks – that you say are coming but which in fact are not – not to advance? Then you need to vote for Pashinyan. Because stability can take our country out of political crisis.
4:10pm: Deputy NA Speaker, Republican faction member Eduard Sharmazanov’s speech:
– The ruling authorities have shown exceptional, I repeat, exceptional restraint and tolerance over the past days. History will put everyone in their place. The Republican party is open for a dialogue, but never to ultimatums.
National values should have no alternatives. Democracy is a race that is open to participation. We all have to respect pluralism and dissent; influencing MPs through pressure is unacceptable to me. We are all the people’s chosen ones. We are electing not a national tribune or a good speaker, but an executive leader, who has to have political predictability and a clear political ideology.
A politician can’t be part socialist, part liberal, and part conservative. A politician has to have a clear ideology – from Washington to Paris, from Brussels to Moscow.
You have not convinced me, Mr. Pashinyan. And it’s political, not personal. I don’t see you as our supreme commander.
Q&A with PM Candidate Nikol Pashinyan
3:15pm: Rustam Makhmudyan, RPA faction: I want to know if the national minorities living in Armenia have equal rights with the citizens of Armenia? I would like to know what are the shortcomings on the part of the current ruling authorities with regard to minorities, which, if elected, you plan to eliminate?
Pashinyan: The ethnic minorities in Armenian are an integral part of our national identity. Their rights have to be fully protected.
The situation with the rights of ethnic minorities in Armenia is not too bad; however, there is a field in which the opportunities of national minorities are substantially limited. It’s the opportunity to engage in opposition political activities. This is one of the main shortcomings. Representatives of national minorities in Armenia have always felt obligated to remain loyal to any acting authorities and not to criticize them since it could lead to undesirable consequences for this particular minority group.
I guarantee that ethnic minorities will be given the opportunity to exercise their rights to self-expression, to political activity, including – opposition.
2։50pm: Hakob Hakobyan, Republican Party faction: You voted against the program on the growth of the Armenian population to 4 million by 2040.
Pashinyan: We voted against the program because it was a lie; it was merely a smoke screen, through which Serzh Sargsyan was trying to perpetuate his power. The situation, however, has changed [since Sargsyan’s resignation]. I’m getting dozens of calls from wealthy Diasporans, who say that they will soon come to Armenia and make investments. The reason for not coming here in the past was that they did not want to face the situation that existed in Armenia 20 days ago. Our economy is expecting a sharp growth not thanks to a magic wand or a magic trick, but due to an upcoming inflow of investments from the Diaspora. We expect an increase in budget funds, which will lead to creation of jobs and poverty reduction.
1:15pm: Shushan Sardaryan, Republican Party faction: Talk about the mechanisms that will allow for early parliamentary elections, in full accordance with the Constitution. Assuming that you’re elected Prime Minister and a new Government is formed.
Pashinyan: There are several options, and the selection of one depends on discussions. One of the options is the following: the Government is formed, but the Parliament does not approve its program, and fails twice to elect a PM. The National Assembly is then dissolved, and new parliamentary elections are held.
Tigran Urikhanyan, Tsarukyan faction: What are your views on the Karabakh conflict? What do we do if the power centers interested in conflict escalation propose an undesirable plan for us? What’s your vision in this scenario?
Pashinyan: You are right to say that for a very long time, since the very first day of the Karabakh conflict, our most serious national concern has been the possibility of imposing any decision on us. In the course of these processes, we also have taken a step to rule out such a possibility: the prevention of this is in our national unity and national awakening. Which has already happened. We should all understand that under these conditions, when Azerbaijani leader Ilham Aliyev does not miss an opportunity to threaten Nagorno-Karabakh, Armenia, and even talks about his intention to seize the Armenian capital… we have to realize that negotiations in this situation will always be of a purely formal nature. There can be no settlement as long as there’s no proper atmosphere for it; it is an axiom. The negotiations will have an actual meaning only if Azerbaijan sends a clear message to the international community that it undertakes to respect and recognize the norms of international law and is ready to settle the conflict within these norms. And I hope that the the OSCE Minsk Group co-chairs will use their authority and influence to deter Azerbaijan from implementing its belligerent rhetoric. As long as there’s a threat of violence, we, as a people, as a nation and state, must draw the appropriate conclusions and rally all our potential to protect our homeland from hostilities.
12:40pm: Excerpts from Nikol Pashinyan’s opening speech:
Despite thousands of people protesting in the streets, Serzh Sargsyan was on April 17 elected Prime Minister in a Parliament surrounded by razor wire and military equipment. Sargsyan’s election, however, only further exacerbated the internal political situation in Armenia.
[…] Serzh Sargsyan’s resignation at first seemed like the final solution, but the ruling Republican Party of Armenia began looking for its own salvation in his resignation.
They thought that since the Reject Serzh slogan had been realized, the people would put up with another Republican Prime Minister.
However, they did not take into account that the slogan “Make your step – reject Serzh!” slogan was not directed against a single person, but against the system that Serzh stands for.
Nevertheless, the Republican elite, headed by Serzh Sargsyan, continues to play cat and mouse with their own people; they have yet to say whether they will vote for the people’s candidate.
Rumor has it that Serzh Sargsyan and Robert Kocharyan have since yesterday evening been threatening the MPs of all factions, saying that they should under no circumstances vote for the candidate of the people.
I want to explicitly state that, gentlemen, you still don’t fully understand the situation in Armenia. I want to directly warn you that taking the national movement’s tolerance as weakness can lead to unpredictable consequences.
Your behavior can cause a political tsunami.
[Addressing NA MPs] Brothers and sisters, this is not only the Armenian people’s liberation hour, but also yours. We have always been on different sides of political barricades, but here we are not dealing with personal issues, but the issue of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh. You do not need to make sacrifices; you only need to vote in favor of the candidate of the people.
[…] If I become Prime Minister, Armenia will remain a member of the Eurasian Economic Union and the Collective Security Treaty Organization. This position derives not from an individual desire, not from a view change, but from the logic of the national movement that brought victory to the people of Armenia.
We have always considered and continue to consider Russia Armenia’s strategic partner, and this nationwide movement does not bear any threats to the Armenian-Russian relations.
We will deepen our relations with the European Union; we will do everything to establish a visa-free regime for Armenian citizens.
We need to give a new impetus to our friendly relations with the United States. We aim to promote cooperation in different fields.
The relations with China will also deepen.
[…] We will quickly put an end to the corrosive atmosphere of fear. No citizen of Armenia should have to feel weak or insignificant for lack of a “back.” The Armenian Constitution should be this “back.”
Everyone is equal before the law, and this will first and foremost be true for the family and relatives of the Prime Minister. The use of political power in promoting one’s businesses will be ruled out. If I become Prime Minister, there will be no economic monopolies, no one will be banned from importing anything.
10:55pm: Tens of thousands of people have since early morning gathered in the Republic Square in anticipation of the Tuesday noon Prime Minister elections in the National Assembly.
