When visitors of Armenia see our oligarchs who wander around the city followed by 4-5 cars of their “guards”, a question probably occurs to them “what sins have they committed to fear so much for their lives”. Furthermore, saying “oligarch” we mean not only the businessmen themselves, but also the leaders of some communities of Yerevan, ministers, law-enforcers and even clergymen. They are certainly the same businessmen – they are just formally perceived as serving some religious or secular duties that certainly contributes to their “success” in business life. It may seem to a naïve foreigner that the “cream” of society is very afraid that unknown bad guys will attack them and take their precious lives. However, we know quite well that this abundance of bodyguards has nothing to do with security, it is just a lifestyle, a symbol of “power”, as jeeps resembling buses, mansions decorated with “Rambouillet” and MP seats. Those attributes of no practical importance create a character of “big boss” among the entourage.
Now the establishment has decided to deal with the issue of bodyguards, after 6-7-year delay when former bodyguard Hamo of Bangladesh displayed heroism in 2005 near Nairi cinema and stood out during a battle in “Tetsi krug” and now wanders around with “guards”. The National Assembly will probably decide that oligarchs (in the wide sense of this word, as I’ve already mentioned) have the right to keep not more than three bodyguards nearly in the same way, as the Muslims are not allowed to marry three women at the same time. The number of accompanying cars will be restricted – only one “bus” may follow a “secured person”. However this is the field that cannot be regulated by the law, because oligarch MPs lie that they don’t do business, but are just shareholders the same way, as they will say in the case of bodyguards that 10 or 20 people other than those 3 are just assistants, referents, “office workers”, guards of the territory and merely friends. One can prove nothing by the law here – something called political will is needed.
…In September 1994, I was going to interview Vazgen Sargsyan for a TV channel and asked him to take me to Nork with him. He came to the Press building in his own car – it was a dark red jeep, if I am not mistaken, and he was driving it. There were “guards” neither in the car, nor in front of it, nor else behind it.
ARAM ABRAHAMYAN
