A wave of protests of Armenian opposition and its supporters began on May 1. The movement is led by two opposition parliamentary factions – Hayastan (Armenia) and I Have the Honor. Oppositionists are demanding the resignation of the prime minister. They believe that Nikol Pashinyan is pursuing a flawed policy of surrendering the territories of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh”. They claim that the change of power is the only way out of this situation. However, so far the opposition leaders have not communicated their plans on “saving Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.”
Protesters block the streets, hold marches and rallies, but so far there is no critical number of protesters on the streets. Experts believe that the problem of the opposition is that they repeat the methods of street fighting used by the leader of the Velvet Revolution Nikol Pashinyan in 2018. In addition, according to political scientists, a new, alternative content of the movement is needed, which is not yet available.
Another factor that, according to experts, does not allow the opposition to gather more supporters is the unwillingness of the inhabitants of Armenia to return to the past, that is, to allow the return of the “former” authorities. The fact is that behind both parliamentary factions, which call on the people to take to the streets, are politicians from the former governments. These are the ex-presidents of Armenia Robert Kocharyan and Serzh Sargsyan, who are considered by society as politicians with a pro-Russian orientation.
