Category: Authors

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan met on June 19 with a group of Diaspora Armenians who worked as temporary staff members at various Ministries in Armenia.

During his remarks to the group, the Prime Minister deviated from the subject matter and made senseless statements about the Diaspora. He said that “… in a large part of our history, during the history of the Third Republic, the Diaspora has often or sometimes been viewed as an auxiliary institution to the administration of the Republic of Armenia. The change that is occurring is as follows: we say that the Diaspora cannot be an auxiliary institution to the administration of the Republic of Armenia because the Republic of Armenia, like any state, is an instrument with its clear mechanisms where it is very clearly described who and how is managing that mechanism. If there is no detail or larger whole in the architecture of that mechanism, we are trying to connect that whole to that mechanism; we are inhibiting the progress of that mechanism. This is obvious. And in this logic, I think that the change that is taking place is very important and very essential. But, on the other hand, I want to look at it with reverse logic as well. In many cases, the Republic of Armenia was also perceived as an auxiliary or non-auxiliary tool for the administration of the Diaspora. I want to say that, in my understanding, this also needs to end. Why? Because in case we make the Republic of Armenia an auxiliary or non-auxiliary tool, we are placing the Republic of Armenia outside the limits of its jurisdiction and, therefore, we make the Republic of Armenia more vulnerable. Our strategy, which I have talked about, the conceptual framework of ensuring the security of the Republic of Armenia, is legitimacy which is also related to this — that we can act only where we have jurisdiction and legitimacy to act. We cannot act where we don’t have jurisdiction and legitimacy to act as a state. And because of this circumstance, social-psychological changes will inevitably take place in Armenia-Diaspora relations as well. I described what should not be as we had pictured. I mean, I understand that there is a certain gap within what I said, but I am not ready today to even attempt to fill that gap because I don’t think that’s my job or at least only my job. That requires wider discussions, and there, the Republic of Armenia or officials of the Republic of Armenia can have a say, say something, but I think that these discussions are more public and informal level discussions about how should be the new relations between Armenia and the Diaspora. They are no longer like that and will not be like that. I think that is obvious….”

If you understood nothing from Pashinyan’s rambling words, you are not alone. The problem is that he always speaks without a prepared text causing him to stray from the subject and say things that he had not planned to say.

In his lengthy statement, Pashinyan tried to refute a thought that did not exist in anyone’s mind — that “the Diaspora is viewed as an auxiliary institution to the management of the Republic of Armenia.” No one had said that. We have always envisaged the Diaspora’s role as providing humanitarian aid, investments and professional expertise to the homeland.

On the positive side, I am glad Pashinyan acknowledged that Armenia has no jurisdiction to meddle in the internal affairs of the Diaspora. He has great difficulty managing the problems facing Armenia, let alone the issues of the Diaspora — something he knows nothing about.

Pashinyan then strayed into the subject of ‘how many Armenians are there in the world.’ He said: “…There is another problem. We do not always attach big significance to arithmetic. Recently, a question arose in my head. We keep saying, ‘10 million Armenians, 10 million Armenians, 10 million Armenians.’ Is there a list of these Armenians somewhere or not? I am convinced that there isn’t. Here again is the phenomenon of sanctification. That number is sacred, do not touch it suddenly. It neither increases nor decreases. You cannot change it. It’s 10 million! If someone says that ‘it’s not 10 million, it’s 10,561,000,’ everyone will attack him and say, ‘ignorant, dilettante. How do you know that? Who counted it, etc.?’ If someone says: ‘no, it’s 9,200,000,’ they will say, ‘you scoundrel, you are belittling the global influence of Armenians. With the stroke of a pen, you wiped out 800,000 Armenians.’ This is our reality. This is about us, but we have to talk about it. If we don’t talk about it, what is the use?”

The Prime Minister is wrong that no one knows the number of Armenians in the world. He could have checked Wikipedia under the topic of ‘Armenian population by country,’ which lists the approximate number of Armenians in each one of 107 countries. There are many other sources that give the number of Armenians in the world. Since no one has counted every single Armenian in the world, naturally, the 10 million is a rough estimate.

If this subject really interests the Prime Minister, he should direct his High Commissioner for Diaspora Affairs to conduct a worldwide survey and compile a more accurate number of Armenians in the world.

I also suggest that the Prime Minister’s aides write his speeches, so he can read from a written text and not stray into whatever comes to his head at the moment.

The Armenian government had two options to resolve peacefully the popular uprising against the regime:

1) Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan could have resigned, turning over the reins of power to a coalition government which in six months would hold new parliamentary elections and choose a new Prime Minister;

2) Pashinyan could have accepted the offer of the new leader of the opposition, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, to sit down with him and discuss a negotiated solution to the current political crisis.

Regrettably, Pashinyan chose neither one of the above options. He chose to attack the opposition by having his “well-fed” police beat and arrest a large number of protesters, including journalists and even clergymen, some of whom are in a hospital recovering from injuries they suffered at the hands of the police. The Prime Minister has secured the blind loyalty of the police officers by increasing their salaries several times and giving them constant bonuses. It is said that there are more policemen in the streets of Armenian cities than soldiers protecting the country’s borders.

This is not surprising since Pashinyan, as an incompetent and inexperienced leader has mismanaged just about every decision he has made in the past six years. He is stubbornly clinging to his seat of power, dealing a mortal blow to the survival of the country.

After initially calling his takeover of power a “velvet revolution,” Pashinyan quickly switched to what he described as a “steel revolution.” Incredibly, he campaigned during the parliamentary elections of 2021, holding a hammer in his hand and promising to bash the heads of his domestic opponents. He also threatened to slam them into the wall and flatten them on the asphalt. Furthermore, Pashinyan boasted that no judge would dare to deviate from his orders. Even though the Prime Minister claims to be a democrat, his behavior is more like that of a dictator. Pashinyan came to power in 2018 closing down the streets of Yerevan, ordering his followers to block the entrances of the Parliament and courthouses, smashing the doors of the State Radio station, and violating many other laws. However, when the opposition is now peacefully walking in the streets or even on the sidewalks, they are brutally attacked, punched and arrested by the ever-present police.

Not surprisingly, the heads of Azerbaijan and Turkey have expressed their concern about Pashinyan remaining in power. Some Azeri and Turkish analysts even suggested that their countries dispatch armed troops to Armenia to protect Pashinyan, so he can continue making concessions.

Another indication that Pashinyan is working against the interests of Armenia is the support he is getting from the West because he is doing what they are telling him to do which is in their interest, but contrary to the national interests of Armenia.

Western countries only pay lip service to human rights, but maintain good relations with even the most dictatorial regimes in the world. That is the reason why not one critical word has been said by any Western state while Pashinyan’s police is brutalizing Armenia’s citizens.

Fortunately, several non-governmental international organizations have condemned the lack of human rights in Armenia and criticized police brutality.

On May 28, five major non-governmental organizations issued a joint statement against “mass detention” of protesters, “violence against some participants” and physical assault against a member of the Armenian Parliament which is a violation of Armenia law. The five organizations are: Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly Vanadzor Office, Transparency International Anticorruption Center, Protection of Rights without Borders NGO, Law Development and Protection Foundation, and Democracy Development Foundation.

The joint statement deplored that Armenian law enforcement officers “continue to engage in unlawful and disproportionate use of force, illegal detentions, and violations of the right to liberty during the exercise of the right to freedom of assembly. The use of such methods by the police is the result of a longstanding policy of impunity within the system, leading to the use of violent force becoming the main tool of the police.”

The joint statement further said that citizens have the freedom for peaceful assembly and the right to express their opinions freely “without fear of police violence.”

Reporters Without Borders issued a separate statement calling “for an end to deliberate police violence against reporters.” At least five journalists were targeted by the police.

The U.S. Freedom House also issued a statement saying: “We are concerned by mounting reports of police violence in Armenia. We urge Armenian authorities to investigate this pattern of excessive force and inhumane treatment and work with civil society to foster and implement meaningful reform.”

The most shameful behavior was Pashinyan’s order to obstruct the entry of Catholicos of All Armenians Karekin II into the Sardarapat Memorial on May 28, Armenia’s Independence Day. To make matters worse, the Prime Minister lied when he was asked why the Catholicos and his entourage of clergy were hindered from placing a wreath at the Memorial, is a public venue.

All police officers and government officials must be aware that after Pashinyan is gone they will be held responsible for their illegal and anti-Armenian actions.

Even since Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan with his thousands of followers started marching towards Yerevan, many wondered what would happen on May 9 once they reached the Republic Square where Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s offices are located.

After arriving in Yerevan, Bagrat Srpazan gave one hour to Pashinyan to resign. When the hour was over and he did not resign, Srpazan announced that there would be acts of civil disobedience throughout the country beginning the next day. He urged his followers to act peacefully and not to commit any acts of violence.

Pashinyan was hoping that the number of protesters would dwindle over time and the movement would fizzle out. The regime did everything in its power to vilify and defame Srpazan and the protesters. Government propagandists announced that there were merely around 20,000 protesters in the Republic Square on May 9, whereas most observers estimated the crowd to be several times larger. After misleading the Armenian public for six years with thousands of lies, Pashinyan continued his deceptive practices by claiming without any evidence that the protesters are Kremlin’s agents who were paid money to participate in these protests. Government leaders ridiculed not only Srpazan, but also the Armenian Church, an institution that has shepherded the nation ever since 301 AD, particularly during the absence of an Armenian state.

To the disappointment of Prime Minister’s diminishing number of supporters, as his rating has gone down from 80% six years ago to 8% now, Srpazan held a second rally in the Republic Square with tens of thousands of followers in attendance. Despite the brutal actions of Pashinyan’s police which viciously attacked the peaceful protesters, the movement grew stronger rather than fizzling out. During the past week, Srpazan held separate meetings with groups of lawyers, doctors, retired military officers, artists, and dozens of opposition leaders.

Srpazan proved the falsehood of Pashinyan followers’ repeated mantra that no one else can replace the Prime Minister. Srpazan succeeded for the first time to unite the various opposition groups under his leadership. Large segments of the public, livid at Pashinyan’s defeatist concessions to Azerbaijan, responded enthusiastically to Srpazan’s peaceful, but urgent message for change.

Finally, Srpazan’s long-awaited big rally took place on May 26 during which several important announcements were made. The crowd was told that Srpazan would temporarily replace Pashinyan after which a coalition government will be formed, followed by parliamentary elections which will choose a new Prime Minister. Even though the Constitution requires that the Prime Minister be exclusively a citizen of Armenia for the preceding four years, Srpazan’s followers believe that his dual citizenship of Armenia and Canada would not prevent him from temporarily acting as Prime Minister. Srpazan made the commitment that he will be guided exclusively by legal requirements. Ironically, Pashinyan’s regime, which has violated just about every existing law, is demanding that the protesters comply with the laws of the country.

During the May 26 rally, Srpazan also announced that after consulting with other high-ranking clergymen and Catholicos Karekin II, it was decided that he will freeze his 30-year-long spiritual service in order not to combine political activities with his religious position.

Srpazan is attempting to topple Pashinyan the same way the latter toppled Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan. Pashinyan and his followers violated dozens of laws to come to power, blocking the streets, the Parliament building, the courthouse, and smashing the locked doors of the Armenian radio station. However, Pashinyan thinks that he is the only one who can get away with breaking the law. Amazingly, he even boastfully proclaimed: “is there a judge in Armenia who cannot do what the Prime Minister says?” If anyone else does what he did, his barbaric police are ordered, as he himself announced during the Parliamentary campaign in 2021 while holding a hammer in his hand, to smash the heads of his Armenian opponents, even though he falsely claims to be a democrat. Ironically, Pashinyan never uses such vile language against the real enemies of Armenia — Azerbaijan and Turkey — whose leaders make the most offensive comments about Armenia.

At the end of the mass rally in the Republic Square on May 26, Srpazan marched with his followers to the Prime Minister’s mansion and demanded that he meet with him and tell him to resign. However, it turned out that Pashinyan was not at home, visiting the flooded areas of Northern Armenia.

Srpazan then led the large crowd back to the Republic Square where the rally had started several hours earlier. He urged his followers to engage in acts of civil disobedience throughout the country to pressure Pashinyan to resign.

This is Armenia’s last chance to save the country from Pashinyan, a defeated and incompetent leader, who is willing to follow Aliyev’s and Azerbaijan’s orders, and make illegal and endless one-sided concessions, until the total loss of Armenia, after the loss of Artsakh!