Armenian opposition will continue boycott and not return to parliament
Armenian opposition to continue boycott
The autumn session of the Armenian Parliament has begun. The opposition parties “Hayastan” (Armenia) and “I have honor” announced that they would continue their political boycott. Opposition MPs did not attend the first meeting; instead they organized an extra-parliamentary discussion on the topic “Armenia’s Real Agenda”.
On May 1, 2022, the parliamentary opposition began street fighting, setting up tents and blocking France Square, located in the very center of Yerevan. Their demand was the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan. The protests began after the prime minister said that “the international community expects Armenia to lower the bar on the status of Nagorno-Karabakh.”
A month and a half later, when it became clear that the protest movement was not gaining enough supporters, the opposition removed the tents from France Square. The rallies became less frequent. The leaders of the opposition announced that they were changing tactics – expanding the range of actions, planning to create regional structures, to connect NK and the Diaspora to the movement. However, there were no significant changes.
In the summer the opposition took a break. At the end of August they promised that they would take to the streets again in September, and that rallies and protests would continue.
Since the beginning of the protests, opposition deputies have not participated in the National Assembly. The ruling faction “Civil Contract” discussed the issue of depriving them of their mandates, but took no practical steps. At the first meeting of the autumn session, the Speaker of Parliament said that a decision on this issue would be made at the end of this session, in December.
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What is the “real agenda of Armenia”? Extra-parliamentary discussions
During the street struggle, the opposition repeatedly stated that it would return to parliament only with “its own agenda”. They emphasized that the projects that the ruling party is discussing without the opposition have nothing to do with challenges facing Armenia.
On the first day of the autumn session, the opposition factions organized an extra-parliamentary discussion on the topic “Real Agenda for Armenia”. One of the leaders of the protest movement, Ishkhan Saghatelyan, said that the real and priority agenda is to ensure the security of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, and that, for its fulfillment, “the establishment of a national state course” is required. According to him, they had received mandates from the citizens of Armenia to carry out this agenda.
Speaker of the Parliament Alen Simonyan announced that it is not serious to boycott the Parliament’s session and organize a discussion outside the walls of the National Assembly.
“Let them create an alternative state,” the speaker said.
According to Simonyan, the actions of the opposition cannot impede the work of the parliament, since it has the highest legitimacy. Meanwhile the opposition itself, according to the speaker of parliament, has “the lowest legitimacy” in the entire history of the country.
Will the opposition be able to affect a change of power?
Oppositionists do not give a clear answer to this question. They only hope that more people will take to the streets, because “disappointment and dissatisfaction with the authorities are growing day by day.” Gegham Manukyan, a member of the Hayastan opposition faction, expressed a similar opinion:
“Our people are receiving a new blow, and the events of recent days are a vivid confirmation of this. This government completely has washed its hands of the Artsakh problem, shifted the burden onto the people of Artsakh and the leadership of NK, and nothing has happened.”
Deputies of the ruling party criticize the oppositionists for having gone on “holidays” and not continuing their struggle in the summer. Oppositions say they did not take a break and were actively working both in the capital and in the regions of Armenia.
The opposition will not give up its intention to announce a vote of no confidence on the prime minister, but currently does not have enough seats in parliament for this.
“Every day this government remains in power is a new threat to the security of our country, weakening its foreign policy role, increasing the risk of expulsion of Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh,” opposition MP Gegham Manukyan states.
“We will talk about revocation of the mandate at the end of the year”
A few months ago, Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan said he was “determined” to deprive opposition deputies of mandates for disrespectful absences. On the day the autumn session began, September 12, in an interview with reporters, he said that this issue would be put on the agenda “when the number of allowed absences runs out.”
“In December, when the session ends, it will be possible to talk about it. I’m sure they will try to somehow avoid this – either they will present doctor’s notes, or they will try to ensure participation in the meetings, ostensibly with their own agenda. It’s not clear what that means though. And at the end of the year, when the session ends, the issue [of deprivation of mandates] will be discussed by the Council and a decision will be made,” he said.
The NA Speaker stated that the ruling party could have deprived the oppositionists of their mandates by referring the case to the Constitutional Court, but did not take such a step, showing “constructiveness” in this matter as well.
Alen Simonyan considers it unacceptable that deputies are not coming to work, but they and their assistants continue to receive salaries:
“If they do not return before the end of the year and the number of passes for specific deputies exceeds the allowable limit, I am sure that the Constitutional Court will make the right decision. And they will be replaced by those who understand that being a deputy means working.”
In July, due to disrespectful absences the ruling Civil Contract party stripped Ishkhan Saghatelyan, one of the opposition leaders, of the post of vice speaker. Another opposition MP, Vahe Hakobyan, lost his position as chairman of the commission on economic issues. Thereafter most of the oppositionists voluntarily resigned their posts in parliament, retaining only deputy mandates.
Armenian opposition to continue boycott
