During a gathering in honor of New Year and Christmas at the National Assembly, reporters asked former Vice Speaker Arpine Hovhannisyan what she will be doing now. “Davit Harutyunyan and my colleagues have founded a legal center, where I will be working on my profession. I took a legal test years ago, but did not receive a license. I will likely be working on that. There are plans to remain in public politics, but I will not discuss that now. I can promise that I will not avoid public politics, nor will I avoid meetings with you,” she said.
When asked if she will leave the country, Arpine Hovhannisyan said, “No. I hope that the government will not create such an environment where emigration is inevitable. Even then, however, I am not planning on leaving. Armenia is my homeland and I will continue my work here. It may sound heroic and pathetic, but I feel responsible for several developments. I think that the sectors which I have chosen for my future will allow me to make Armenians’ voices heard and for me to protect them.”
When asked if she will participate in state building if she receives such an offer from the authorities, Arpine Hovhannisyan said, “I have already spoken about my plans.”
She was also asked if her social situation got better over the past 8 months and whether the authorities’ decisions had any affect on her. “Taking into consideration the fact that I will be jobless in two days and I am jobless due to those circumstances, it is difficult for me to say that my social situation got better. I think that, in the upcoming months, the price of gas will not only have an affect on me, but you, too.”
Hripsime Jebejyan
