Manvel Badeyan, a Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) MP, hasn’t heard or read about the details of President Serzh Sargsyan’s meeting with journalists yesterday yet, but suggesting that the president must have urged Raffi Hovhannisyan who was on a hunger strike in Freedom Square to stop the hunger strike, he said that he agreed with that appeal. “Raffi should take a constructive course. I also urge him to stop the hunger strike,” Manvel Badeyan told www.aravot.am. Finding out about the three options put forward by the president during a private conversation with Raffi Hovhannisyan from www.aravot.am, Manvel Badeyan said that sitting in Freedom Square like that was not a prospective option. “It would be better, if Raffi chaired the Constitutional Amendments Commission, because we really have unsolved problems and it is time to amend the Constitution in certain respects. And chairing some anticorruption institution would yield results more rapidly, because it is obvious that corruption is the main obstacle in the way of our country’s progress. If Raffi Hovhannisyan wants to be useful to the Armenian people – I for one have no doubt that he wants to be useful – I would also suggest that he choose one of those two options. It would be better, if he chose the third option. As opposed to the advisors who, using Raffi’s honesty, misinform him. I am sure that Raffi thinks that he won. However, his opinion is formed by people who, as opposed to him, lack objectiveness and are far from thinking about national interests.” Our interlocutor didn’t wish to name names, advising us to look closely at and examine Raffi Hovhannisyan’s entourage. Serzh Sargsyan said that if demonstrations in Freedom Square continued, law-enforcement bodies would act within the scope of their powers. We inquired of the RPA MP whether he was under the impression that there would be a clash, particularly given the fact that Raffi Hovhannisyan had denied Serzh Sargsyan’s clarifications and had stated about his willingness to continue the struggle at his press conference today. Badeyan said that it would be an undesirable option and accused the opposition of not leaving an alternative to the government. “You should offer the
government an opportunity not to take that path. The government must observe law and order, and that law and order is written in our legislation, which stipulates that one group’s or one person’s actions should not impede other people, except for sanctioned events. If the protesters don’t get permission to rally, but rally, the government will be compelled to act in accordance with the law, which will certainly be undesirable. However, those people who try to disrupt the order will bear the responsibility for that.” As opposed to his fellow party members who were up in arms about the shadow Cabinet formed in Freedom Square, Manvel Badeyan even thought it was a positive thing. He isn’t aware of the list made public in Freedom Square; he cannot say anything in that regard. “I am not against the phenomenon; it is a common thing in different countries around the world, because groups of professionals supervise the Cabinet’s activities. It is a useful thing. It is even a tradition in the English parliament and is very useful. Politicizing everything, trying to solve issues other than those related to the country’s development under that mask is a different matter. I am sure that if I read the list of those persons, other goals might be pursued there, particularly given the fact that this Cabinet wasn’t formed by Raffi.”
Nelly GRIGORYAN
