(Saturday, June 16)
“Zhoghovurd” reports that Armenia’s Special Investigative Service (SIS) has urged citizens to provide it with any information that could shed light on the 2008 deadly post-election violence in Yerevan. The paper hopes that the SIS is really keen to solve the deaths of eight protesters and two police servicemen, rather than cover them up. It says that the SIS already has “a fairly large number of pieces of evidence” at its disposal.
“Hraparak” says Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian does not quite need a continued alliance with Gagik Tsarukian’s Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK) and the Armenian Revolutionary (Federation). The paper says the fact that they signed no power-sharing agreements or declarations means that “the new government does not want to inhibit itself with extra commitments.” “Pashinian needs these forces or, more precisely, their votes [in the parliament] only in the short run,” it says.
“Zhamanak” believes that pre-term parliamentary elections in Armenia are inevitable. “The only question is their date,” writes the paper. “There seems no doubt that the elections will not be held earlier than the end of this autumn. And that is the best-case scenario.”
“Aravot” welcomes the release from prison of Samvel Babayan, Karabakh’s former military leader, saying that his involvement in arms trafficking or money laundering was not proved during his recent trial. “Babayan is obviously no Mother Theresa,” editorializes the paper. “He is a former field commander with a corresponding level of education and peculiar ideas about the state. But that cannot justify any incomprehensible criminal charges levelled against him.” The paper finds credible Babayan’s claim that he was jailed because of being a key member of the opposition ORO alliance.
“Aravot” considers the release of another prominent war veteran, Zhirayr Sefilian, “more controversial,” saying that he has not renounced violent methods of political struggle. “It is logical to suggest that one day Sefilian may not like Nikol Pashinian’s rule and may again decide to exercise his ‘right to revolt,’” warns the paper.
(Tigran Avetisian)
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