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Jun
9
A Test of Will: Opposition plans rally as Council of Europe prepares to judge freedom in Armenia
Filed Under ArmeniaNow Weekly
While Armenia’s authorities continue to insist that they have the political will to fulfill demands set out by the Council of Europe, the opposition plans to put those intentions to the test.
It has called a public rally on Liberty Square for June 20, just days before the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) considers whether Armenia has met the conditions set out in Resolution 1609.
“Taking into account the cynical disrespect of the authorities to the demands of Resolution 1609, as well as the expiration of the term for their fulfillment stated in the resolution, the Popular Movement has decided to hold an all-republican public rally in Liberty Square on June 20 that will summarize the process of the fulfillment of the above-mentioned requirements and discuss what the people is to do in restoring basic democratic freedoms,” a statement by the Popular Movement said.
Resolution 1609 contained more than two dozen points and was adopted during the PACE session in Strasbourg in mid-April as a guide for easing political tensions in Armenia following the violence of March 1, when 10 people died in clashes between security forces and protesters.
“I believe that Armenia’s authorities and the Armenian people will embark already on a democratic path within the short period before June,” co-rapporteur of the PACE Monitoring Commission, George Colombier, stated in Strasbourg.
The resolution demanded that Armenia’s authorities hold an independent and transparent inquiry into the March 1 events, attached particular importance to a dialogue between the government and the opposition and, among other provisions, demanded the “urgent release of persons detained on seemingly artificial and politically motivated charges”.
The PACE said that it would consider suspending the voting rights of the Armenian delegation to the Assembly at its June 2008 part-session commencing June 20, if considerable progress had not been made on these requirements by then.
The June 20 public rally has become a focal point of discussions inside and beyond political circles in Armenia as the deadline for the June session approaches.
After the March 1 events, more than a thousand people were detained by police, about 100 were arrested, including a large number of prominent opposition figures, and a presidential state of emergency banned public demonstrations. The National Assembly hastily adopted legislative reforms that placed sever restrictions on marches and public rallies after the state of emergency was lifted.
The PACE resolution demanded that the Armenian authorities immediately invalidate the amendments to the Law on Meetings, Public Rallies, Marches and Demonstrations in line with proposals from the Venice Commission. But the opposition says that changes have been of a purely “cosmetic” nature.
Levon Ter-Petrosyan’s press secretary Arman Musinyan told ArmeniaNow that the opposition had applied to Yerevan’s municipality more than 50 times in recent months for permission to hold a public rally, but were refused each time. Musinyan says that they will soon apply to the municipality for permission to hold the rally on June 20.
“I think that, proceeding from simple logic, the authorities will allow the rally this time,” political analyst Aghasi Yenokyan says. “Considering the fact that no such rallies have been held in recent months, and that people have a great desire to hear what opposition leaders will say, I think the public rally will be allowed, will take place and will draw quite large crowds.”
Levon Zurabyan, an opposition member and former spokesman for the first president, expressed confidence at a press conference on June 3 that “the authorities cannot endlessly reject one of the basic rights of the Armenian people”. He stressed that the rally would go ahead anyway.
“The public rally of June 20 will take place and will take place with the participation of Levon Ter-Petrosyan,” Zurabyan said. “The rally will be held in Liberty Square in any case.”
He said that he expected the authorities to appoint police to maintain public order on that day, as otherwise “the authorities will bear responsibility for all possible developments”.
Governing Republican Party of Armenia spokesman MP Eduard Sharmazanov says that any process in Armenia should be within the boundaries of law.
“And it is within the limits of law that police are to perform their duties,” Sharmazanov told ArmeniaNow. “The opposition should understand that the time of speaking with ultimatums is over.”
By Marianna Grigoryan
ArmeniaNow reporter
Source: http://www.armenianow.com
