“Serzh Sargsyan tries to break his own terms. The main challenge is for Armenian citizens to self-organize and make Serzh Sargsyan fulfill the terms of his contract”, Head of the oppositional “Yelq” faction Nikol Pashinyan told at a press conference.
We noted that in 2015, when “New Armenia” rallies were taking place and Pashinyan was invited to participate, he said, “we will not lead the people to defeat”, and we asked whether where he leads the people now by inviting them to participate in a rally. Pashinyan responded: “There are two scenarios: either Serzh Sargsyan become Prime Minister, or we succeed in preventing Serzh Sargsyan’s third term. If we suppose we do not lead the people anywhere and we do not make any proposals, and Serzh Sargsyan becomes Prime Minister without any obstacles, it is already a defeat for the people. Absence of action already leads the people to defeat, hence our action creates a chance for victory. If Armenian citizens decide to take advantage of this opportunity, they will win, we all will win together”.
In response to the question whether their fight is against a person or a party, and whether we will have a better and fairer country if Serzh Sargsyan resigns, and Pashinyan’s party has a majority in the parliament as the Republicans currently have, Pashinyan said: “I want us to record something which even Republican representatives state that the Republican Party has no other prime minister candidate besides Serzh Sargsyan. If we manage to hinder Serzh Sargsyan being nominated as a candidate, or being elected as Prime Minister, it means that tens, hundreds of thousands of Armenian citizens have expressed their will and took political processes into their hands. If Armenian citizens succeed to hinder Serzh Sargsyan to be a prime minister candidate, then they can succeed through the same logic and actions to not let the Republican Party have a candidate at all. A question arises: who will be a prime minister candidate then? If hundreds of thousands of people went out to the street with to show their will, the candidate for the prime minister will be the people’s candidate, whoever will be chosen at the square”.
In response to the question whether they negotiate with other forces to join them in the fight, Pashinyan said that they keep in touch with some forces, but they have some principles for cooperation: “The most important of all concerns the non-violent methods of political struggle, we do not only reject violence as an act but also as an anti-activity. This does not mean that we imagine the process of political struggle as a fragile, delicate, sacred thing. We are ready to cooperate with all the forces that accept this condition unconditionally, and agree to form guarantees that the political process will be within the framework of these principles”.
Pashinyan was invited to join the “For the Sake of the Armenian State” front. Pashinyan responded to this that the most fundamental principle for them is to carry out a non-violent struggle, they reject violence, and that “For the Sake of the Armenian State” front voices various assessments. Unless there is a clear statement on behalf of the Front, the problem will remain suspended.
Hripsime JEBEJYAN
