“Yes to rivalry, but not to confrontation”

  is convinced Mher Shahgeldyan, the Deputy Head of the RLP (the Rule of Law Party

– How do you assess the present state of the government-opposition relationship?

-That situation is typical for the relative peace. It is plain that the existing tensions should be overcome, and that is only possible through the political dialogue. The dialogue is important and necessary between different political powers in any situation, because Armenia has to be able to summarize all the resources that the people have, keeping the opportunities of the democratic rivalry. On the other hand, every political power constructs its approach by itself. From this point of view, some fields, to which the positions of powers acting in different camps correspond, are possible; e.g. integration into the European structures, Armenian-Russian relations, the revision and refreshment of the terms of the military bases agreement. This was acceptable among the Armenian political powers, there was an agreement, a consensus notwithstanding the fact, in which camp the power acts.

-We have to consider an important issue, i.e. the reforms are consistently continuing in our country. And these reforms are related to all the spheres of the social-political life, including agriculture, taxes, customs, police, defense, particularly those spheres that have the most direct connection to the social issues etc. E.g. in the agricultural sphere the policy of real assistance will be carried out by the government, particularly subsidization of loans, decrease of the agricultural payments and other steps. The Rule of Law Party since its establishment has struggled for this approach. In our very first pre-election project the slogan of the RLP was, “State assistance for those who squeeze bread out of stone”. It is no secret that because of the Global Financial Crisis almost all the countries face the hardest challenges. Our country is not an exception. The political coalition announcing the reforms, advances, and I am convinced that in the near future the results of those reforms will be more visible, which will also contribute to the ease of tensions.

-It is a pre-election year and one can feel that, because of not only the governmental reforms, but also the opposition activities. In your opinion, how can the political situation tense, and can it reach the climax, do you not see a possibility of a new confrontation?

-Firstly, I want to state that the reforms are not caused by the pre-election year, but have their logic of developing Armenia. At the same time, of course, it is a pre-election year, and the political powers are preparing for general elections, try to position themselves. This is normal. As of the coalition, its policy is clear, and the same coalition memo gives a hint that the reforms carried out will be continuous and long-term. I think, yes, there is a rivalry in our country, but there is no confrontation. Certainly, there will be political statements, rallies, political actions – this is natural, the country is preparing for the elections, but I do not think there will be a confrontation. We believe that the rivalry is one thing, but the state stability should be secured. We have to think about carrying out the most active economic reforms, about solving the accumulated social issues, about the growth rates and of course, about the security. This is the position of both Artur Baghdasaryan and the RLP.

-Now everyone is concerned how the ruling coalition will go for the elections with one general list, or else the coalition parties will take part in the elections separately.

-Only time can tell. One cannot deny both of possibilities. Today there is no such discussion inside the coalition; the issue is more discussed in the press. The RLP has always had its own place, its own weight and position in the political life of the country, we always implement political-organizational, ideological and informational works both inside the party and among large masses of people. We, along with the other political powers, are preparing for the elections. In addition, your question has not been brought up in that way yet and has been discussed neither inside the coalition, nor in the RLP.