Armenia crisis: Opposition leader suspends nationwide protests

Armenian opposition leader Nikol Pashinyan has suspended nationwide protests after the governing Republican Party indicated it would support his bid to be interim prime minister.

The demonstrations brought much of Armenia to a standstill on Wednesday.

Mr Pashinyan told supporters that the party's position needed clarifying but protests would be suspended for a day.

Republicans blocked Mr Pashinyan's bid to become prime minister in a parliamentary vote on Tuesday.

In a statement on Wednesday, the party did not mention Mr Pashinyan by name but said they would back a candidate nominated by a third of MPs at next week's vote in parliament. It said it would not put forward its own candidate, leaving Mr Pashinyan as the only nominee.

Democracy Is Held Back in Armenia

Viken Berberian

 

On Tuesday, electoral arithmetic defeated democratic sentiment in Armenia after the Republican Party of Armenia, the majority party, used its numerical strength to back a discredited government and block the election of the opposition leader Nikol Pashinyan as the new prime minister.

A chorus of defiant honks expressing the collective angst filled the streets of Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, as the disappointing result became public. Tens of thousands of people had been singing and chanting outside the parliament throughout the day in support of Mr. Pashinyan’s election.

Mr. Pashinyan, a former crusading journalist and opposition leader, had led the massive protests against the government in April, which culminated in the resignation of the former president and prime minister, Serzh Sargsyan.

The opposition leader has called upon his supporters to continue civil disobedience and block roads, railways and airports.

Did the Armenian People Win the Battle or the War?

The Zoryan Institute

 

Today April 29, the people of Armenia won!
The three parliamentary parties agreed to support the “people’s choice,” Nikol Pashinyan, for prime minister. The fourth, the ruling party, has promised not to object to it.
“Nikol Pashinyan was right. I was mistaken,” Armenian Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan said after leaving his post on the fifth day of an unprecedented popular protest against his regime, lead by Nikol Pashinyan.
Sargsyan added, “The movement in the streets is against my tenure. I am fulfilling your demand. I wish our country peace, harmony and common sense.”
“We are in Euphoria. We took down a powerful man,” said one of the protestors. He then added, “We are back in charge of our self-rule and have regained our national pride and integrity.”
But this is bittersweet. What was won? A battle or the war?

People power worked in Armenia. It won’t work everywhere.

Anne Applebaum

 

“When I saw the masses of East German citizens there, I knew they were in the right.” A quarter-century later, that was how Lt. Col. Harald Jäger explained his decision to open the gates and let his fellow citizens through the Berlin Wall. Jäger was guarding a border checkpoint on Nov. 9, 1989, in the hours after East German leaders had announced that the travel rules were changing. As Berliners flocked to the wall, demanding to cross into the West, he asked repeatedly for clarification from his superiors, but nothing was forthcoming.

In the end, the crowds persuaded him to act: “At the moment it became so clear to me . . . the stupidity, the lack of humanity. I finally said to myself: ‘Kiss my arse. Now I will do what I think is right.’ ” That moment is one of the clearest illustrations of how and why street demonstrations can sometimes create political change. They can appeal to a deeper morality and thus persuade people in power to change course, to abandon a repressive regime, to stop using force.

Armenia unrest: Protesters rally after leader detained

Rayhan Demytrie

 

Thousands of anti-government protesters have rallied defiantly in the Armenian capital Yerevan after riot police seized their leader.

Nikol Pashinyan was arrested after televised talks with Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan collapsed.

In a tense exchange, the opposition MP insisted the PM should quit and Mr Sargsyan accused him of "blackmail".

The opposition object to Mr Sargsyan clinging to power after serving two consecutive terms as president.

A very potent protest movement is emerging in Armenia

Anna Ohanyan

 

In Armenia, a small nation of three million located just south of Russia, spring has ushered in mass protests. Thousands of people, young and elderly, women and men, have taken to the streets to rally against the ruling regime, newly gussied-up in a revamped parliamentary system.

The movement has been challenging outgoing President Serzh Sargsyan, who took over as prime minister on Tuesday. In his second, and final term as president, Sargsyan led the effort to replace the semi-presidential system with a parliamentary one in order to avoid the term limits set by the constitution.

The move enhanced the powers of the prime minister and relegated the presidency to a ceremonial role. The president and his Republican Party argued that this change was necessary in order to democratise Armenia's political system, insisting that Sargsyan did not intend to assume the office of prime minister.

In Praise of the New Prime Minister: Serzh Sargsyan’s Achievements

Nerses Kopalyan

 

If we equate stability with security, and security with longevity, then clearly we abide by the laws of continuity, hence providing the conceptual basis for the continuation of Serzh Sargsyan as the country’s leading political figure. We can better understand this through a more nuanced framework. Wisdom is a virtue possible only through experience; experience is a condition predicated on competence and competence is a quality innate to a refined politician. That Serzh Sargsyan is a refined politician is beyond debate. That Serzh Sargsyan is competent is a foregone conclusion. That Serzh Sargsyan is extraordinarily experienced cannot merit disagreement. And that Serzh Sargsyan, a consummate student of strategy, exudes wisdom, is only evident by merely observing his accomplishments. A selfless public servant who has devoted his life to the advancement and betterment of the Armenian nation, Serzh Sargsyan assumed the Presidency in 2008, amid turmoil and uncertainty, only to steer the nation toward development, growth, and security.

It’s the People, Stupid: Debunking the Myths on Protests in Armenia

Asbed Kotchikian

Since April 13, 2018 protesters in Armenia’s capital Yerevan have been gathering in public spaces, barricading roads and demonstrating against the apparent continuation of the country’s leadership under former President (and newly minted Prime Minister) Serzh Sargsyan.

Sargsyan’s move to continue his rule came as he supported and spearheaded through his Republican Party of Armenia (HHK in Armenian) constitutional amendments in late 2015, which effectively transformed the Republic from a presidential to a parliamentary system of government.

While Sargsyan initially dismissed the claim that he was seeking the office of PM, in early 2018 representatives of his HHK party as well as his ally, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutyun (ARF-D), started floating the idea that Sargsyan was the only apparent and qualified candidate to continue managing the country as PM.