“But when have Armenians not asked for political asylum? Ani kingdom immediately went to Cilicia asking for political asylum. We have this affliction for a long time – this living good, not being interested in the hardship of the homeland and presenting their desertion under the grievance of political processes,” so responded Republican MP Hamlet Harutyunyan in response to our question of why so many Armenians asks for political asylum in Europe.
Recall that according to a UN report, only in 2014, more than 5000 Armenian have applied for political asylum in the European countries. In the event when about 2,000 people have applied from Azerbaijan. Hamlet Harutyunyan said, “I assure you that for going abroad the family needs to have at least 50-60 thousand dollars to be able to buy a ticket and so on and so forth. We know these calculations. But if a person has 50-60 thousand dollars here, he would have a good life here too.” Hamlet Harutyunyan referred a question, “And are you sure that there are political persecutions here.”
To our observation that there are numerous examples, he disagreed, “I have not seen in other post-Soviet country that the opposition is able to give such a blasphemy to the government as our people do very quietly and easily. In many cases, they are using more rights than the government authorities. In many cases, they are using more from this trough than we do. What have they done, whose mouth have they shut down? Show me a matter to compare with Azerbaijan. If anyone in Azerbaijan tries to make the cursing addressed to the President and the government officials as our people do addressed to us.”
To our observation that only a few days ago, a member of the Founding Parliament was stabbed at the rally in Gyumri just under the nose of the police, Hamlet Harutyunyan replied, “Hooligans happen in any human gathering, they are even thieves and robbers. Is it a political prosecution that one argues with the other and taking the knife out stabs him? Political persecutions do not exist in the country for a very long time. The political parties say what they want, their leaders say what they want, we are unable even to protect us.” To our surprise that you presented yourselves so unprotected, so whether the Republican Party is so unprotected, Hamlet Harutyunyan replied, “No, I am saying in a relative sense. We are able to protect us, simply, they are so free in their words that we are barely able to protect ourselves from these attacks.”
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