Commenting on the outcomes of local elections in Yerevan, “Azg” concludes that ‘the cautious optimism that local elections due in Armenia this fall would at least be better than the previous ones was proved erroneous during this elections".
“Brutal force and illegalities are winning for the time being,” the paper writes.
“Hayots Ashkharh” summarizes the elections using sport terminology: “Hot battles of local significance ended in a 4-0 victory of the home side, i.e. the Republican Party candidates.”
In its editorial Aravot draws its readers’ attention to a number of ‘national achievements’ that are ‘more worthy of the Guinness Book of Records than the Aragats round dance and Brabion’s kilometer-long table’.
“The record of the recent local elections can never be matched or broken by either Americans or Europeans. These not ancient and united nations will never single-mindedly go to the polls to reelect poorly performing leaders as it is done in Armenia,” writes the paper, stressing that this record seams more original and puzzling to all civilized countries and peoples. “A round dance? Well, everyone can do it!” the paper concludes.
“Aravot’s” editor writes in regards to the elections in Yerevan’s Davidashen district that local voters voted not so much for the incumbent prefect Surik Ghukasian than against Ruben Gevorkian.
“There is only one motivation for this vote: they don’t want to have a criminal as their prefect and Mr. Gevorkian’s criminal track record is known to date back to the years of Soviet stagnation,” the editor of “Aravot” reminds.
“Flower Revolution Failed”. Under this headline Haykakan Zhamanak writes that Ruben Gevorkian, nicknamed Tsaghik (Flower) has no doubts that there were riggings in the elections, but he has no intention to protest the vote outcome. The paper quotes the defeated candidate as giving the following answer: “More than a dozen candidates who participated in the first round of the presidential elections found and brought to the polling stations even the “dead cats” of Davidashen and still failed to register a turnout of more than 9,000 people, and so I rule out that 12,500 people could have participated in this election. It is clear that the turnout figures were drawn by the Central Election Commission, but I see no point in protesting anything.”
Consistent steps of the United States, the European Union and different international structures acting under their patronage towards the ongoing internal political processes in Armenia show that in the coming political autumn an attempt will be made to subject our country to two instruments of democratic pressure, “Hayots Ashkharh” predicts. The first instrument, according to the paper, is direct interference in the process of democratic reforms, while the second is the attempt to view Azerbaijan and Armenia on the same level of democratization put the sides in equally vulnerable positions in the Karabakh peace talks. In “Iravunk’s” opinion, it is unequivocal for Robert Kocharian if he meets half-way the requirements of the CE Venice Commission, then a guaranteed handover of his power to his chosen successor will become essentially difficult or even next to impossible. Iravunk predicts that the president and the defense minister will do their utmost to delay the fulfillment of these requirements as far as possible, but the paper emphasizes that “there is particularly no room left for further delays.”
Will our authorities accept the three main instructions of the Venice Commission that limit the president’s authorities? To this question of Aravot, National Democratic Union (AZhM) Chairman Vazgen Manukian answers: “Now they will try to fulfill one part using tricks and ignore the rest.”
In “Golos Armenii’s” estimation, while in the foreign policy domain Armenia views Russia as a source of military assistance, the United States as a source of financial assistance, then the united Europe is more and more being viewed from the aspect of its demands that must be met, which means “to sit in our corner and not to grumble.”
“Chorrord Ishkhanutyun”, drawing parallels between Khodorkovski, who was imprisoned for nine years in Russia, and Armenian oligarchs, writes: “It is simply difficult to image that any of our oligarchs is able to say a bad thing about the authorities. They became oligarchs not thanks to their own intellect, but with Kocharian’s ‘go-ahead’. They are appointed oligarchs and can be dismissed at any moment.”
(Hrach Melkumian)
“Brutal force and illegalities are winning for the time being,” the paper writes.
“Hayots Ashkharh” summarizes the elections using sport terminology: “Hot battles of local significance ended in a 4-0 victory of the home side, i.e. the Republican Party candidates.”
In its editorial Aravot draws its readers’ attention to a number of ‘national achievements’ that are ‘more worthy of the Guinness Book of Records than the Aragats round dance and Brabion’s kilometer-long table’.
“The record of the recent local elections can never be matched or broken by either Americans or Europeans. These not ancient and united nations will never single-mindedly go to the polls to reelect poorly performing leaders as it is done in Armenia,” writes the paper, stressing that this record seams more original and puzzling to all civilized countries and peoples. “A round dance? Well, everyone can do it!” the paper concludes.
“Aravot’s” editor writes in regards to the elections in Yerevan’s Davidashen district that local voters voted not so much for the incumbent prefect Surik Ghukasian than against Ruben Gevorkian.
“There is only one motivation for this vote: they don’t want to have a criminal as their prefect and Mr. Gevorkian’s criminal track record is known to date back to the years of Soviet stagnation,” the editor of “Aravot” reminds.
“Flower Revolution Failed”. Under this headline Haykakan Zhamanak writes that Ruben Gevorkian, nicknamed Tsaghik (Flower) has no doubts that there were riggings in the elections, but he has no intention to protest the vote outcome. The paper quotes the defeated candidate as giving the following answer: “More than a dozen candidates who participated in the first round of the presidential elections found and brought to the polling stations even the “dead cats” of Davidashen and still failed to register a turnout of more than 9,000 people, and so I rule out that 12,500 people could have participated in this election. It is clear that the turnout figures were drawn by the Central Election Commission, but I see no point in protesting anything.”
Consistent steps of the United States, the European Union and different international structures acting under their patronage towards the ongoing internal political processes in Armenia show that in the coming political autumn an attempt will be made to subject our country to two instruments of democratic pressure, “Hayots Ashkharh” predicts. The first instrument, according to the paper, is direct interference in the process of democratic reforms, while the second is the attempt to view Azerbaijan and Armenia on the same level of democratization put the sides in equally vulnerable positions in the Karabakh peace talks. In “Iravunk’s” opinion, it is unequivocal for Robert Kocharian if he meets half-way the requirements of the CE Venice Commission, then a guaranteed handover of his power to his chosen successor will become essentially difficult or even next to impossible. Iravunk predicts that the president and the defense minister will do their utmost to delay the fulfillment of these requirements as far as possible, but the paper emphasizes that “there is particularly no room left for further delays.”
Will our authorities accept the three main instructions of the Venice Commission that limit the president’s authorities? To this question of Aravot, National Democratic Union (AZhM) Chairman Vazgen Manukian answers: “Now they will try to fulfill one part using tricks and ignore the rest.”
In “Golos Armenii’s” estimation, while in the foreign policy domain Armenia views Russia as a source of military assistance, the United States as a source of financial assistance, then the united Europe is more and more being viewed from the aspect of its demands that must be met, which means “to sit in our corner and not to grumble.”
“Chorrord Ishkhanutyun”, drawing parallels between Khodorkovski, who was imprisoned for nine years in Russia, and Armenian oligarchs, writes: “It is simply difficult to image that any of our oligarchs is able to say a bad thing about the authorities. They became oligarchs not thanks to their own intellect, but with Kocharian’s ‘go-ahead’. They are appointed oligarchs and can be dismissed at any moment.”
(Hrach Melkumian)