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In Armenia, A "Barevolution" Takes Shape. Its Future? Uncertain

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  • In Armenia, A "Barevolution" Takes Shape. Its Future? Uncertain

    IN ARMENIA, A "BAREVOLUTION" TAKES SHAPE. ITS FUTURE? UNCERTAIN

    ianyan magazine, USA
    Feb 27 2013

    Posted by Liana Aghajanian on February 27, 2013 at 2:42 am

    Something is brewing in Armenia. What was meant to be a routine
    presidential election that saw incumbent President Serge Sargsyan
    return to office has left in its aftermath not just questions,
    but rallies, student protests, a meeting with the two presidential
    frontrunners and among outcry from a small, active group of diasporans,
    contradictory statements from two of its most well-known faces. No,
    that doesn't include the Kardashians.

    Nicknamed the orange-colored "Barevolution," (Barev meaning 'hello'
    in Armenian) a nod to the meet and greet campaign style of opposition
    candidate Raffi Hovannisian, the streets from Yerevan to Vanadzor
    have been filling up with thousands of people who have come out in
    support of Hovannisian, or at the very least, in a show of defiance
    against Sargsyan and the ruling Republican Party. Hovannisian has
    even been joined by various political entities in the country at his
    rallies, including opposition activist and editor of Haykakan Zhamanak
    newspaper Nikol Pashinyan, who served a 2 year prison term for his role
    in 2008â~@²s post-election violence as well as high-ranking members
    of ARF (Armenian Revolutionary Federation) Dashnakstutuyn members,
    who did not have a candidate in the elections but controversially
    urged supporters to vote for anyone but Sargsyan.

    While the Central Election Committee (CEC) officially declared Sargsyan
    the winner, receiving 59 percent of the vote, while Hovannisian came
    second with 37 percent, the latter remained defiant, calling on the CEC
    and those involved in election irregularities to remain accountable.

    "This is not my struggle anymore, nor the struggle of my 'team,'"
    he said. "Let people not think that this is an issue that will be
    resolved in a day."

    Last week, Sargsyan and Hovannisian met face to face at the
    Presidential Palace in which Hovannisian said he urged Sargsyan to
    recognize "the victory of the people."

    Sargsyan of course, gave a simple, yet firm reply: "no."

    As Hovannisian's "victory tour" continued, a bevy of foreign leaders
    stepped up to congratulate Sargsyan, including French President
    Francois Holland and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from Iran, an ally
    of the South Caucasus country whose borders remain closed with Turkey
    and Azerbaijan.

    With an interest to continue and expand relations between Armenia
    and Iran, Ahmadinejad sent well wishes of health and success,
    "prosperity and glory to the friendly people and government of
    Armenia," President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said in his message," the
    presidential press reported.

    This week, students, who historically have played vital roles in
    revolutionary movements across the world, got involved. On Monday,
    Yerevan State University students announced a boycott of classes to
    protest what they called the fraudulent elections in Armenia. "We are
    against the fraudulent election and do not recognize the official
    vote results," said Norayr Hovhannisyan, a history student who was
    quoted in local investigative outlet Hetq.

    Photo: Students jumping over the gates of Yerevan State University
    after authorities allegedly locked them. Text reads "Revolution"
    in Armenia. /Illustration via Facebook

    Soon, word spread across social media networks about authorities
    locking doors and gates to keep students inside. Some jumped over
    the gates, opening windows to let other students out.

    Meanwhile, members of several Armenian organizations have publicly
    voiced an action plan as both candidates refuse to step down. Eight
    NGOs, including the Women's Resource Center, Asparez Journalism Club,
    Transparency International Anti-Corruption center and others have
    demanded the publication of voter lists to verify the election results,
    Armenia Now reports.

    Photo: A Hovannisian rally draws large crowds in Yerevan/ Photo
    courtesy Sara Anjargolian

    In a rather strange development, an unexpected exchange, perhaps
    some might say a battle of words has gone public, festering across
    the oceans as segments of the diaspora become involved in the
    "Barevolution" aftermath of Armenia's fourth presidential elections.

    System of a Down front man and Armenian-American Serj Tankian has
    released a scathing open letter to Sargsyan, calling on him to protect
    the country from enemies foreign and domestic - including those who
    conduct fraudulent elections.

    Like most diasporan Armenians, I have always been reluctant to
    criticize your government directly and publicly," Tankian wrote in
    the letter published by the Armenian Weekly. "But the avalanche of
    people suffering under your rule due to corruption and injustice is
    tipping the scale for us all."

    But then, it got stranger. Sargsyan replied to Tankian, a reply which
    also took the form of an open letter, a badly written and overall
    confusing one (confusion being a strong theme in post-election Armenia
    at the moment), which led us to a slightly clearer conclusion.

    "You asked me if I was really sure, deep inside, whether I was the
    true chosen leader of our people or not," Sargsyan wrote.

    "I respond to it that I have always been sure in whatever I have done
    be that battle command or organization of elections."

    Tankian took the opportunity to write yet another letter, while Charles
    Aznavour, the revered bastion of Armenian identity on the other side
    of the world took the opportunity to congratulate Sargsyan calling his
    "unbending will power and determination" and selfless dedication to
    Armenia invaluable for the country.

    Photo: The unofficial social media symbol of the "Barevolution."

    Hundreds of Facebook users in Armenia have already changed their
    profile pictures to reflect Hovannisian's campaign.

    As Serj and Serzh continue to exchange letters in the Armenian
    press, concerns are mounting over the message and momentum of the
    Hovannisian led "Barevolution." With scheduled visits to Armenia's
    southern cities today, what exactly will Hovannisian continue to do
    in the face of a defiant incumbent, CEC results and an election with
    a stamp of approval from Organization for Security and Cooperation
    in Europe observers? Will he let the crowds that have gathered for
    him in and out of Armenia know of his plans? As time passes without
    concrete demands, many are left wondering if the movement is destined
    to stumble and fall.

    "I have a feeling that March 1 will be the final deadline, the make it
    or break it point for this post-election round," writes the Armenian
    Observer.

    But despite the confusion surrounding the immediate plans and future
    of the movement, perhaps something else, something a little more
    cultural and something a little less tinged with apathy is shifting.

    "In Armenia, the process of political transformation would culminate
    in a bottom-up renegotiation of the now-flawed constitutional compact
    that was foisted upon Armenians during the 1990s, and distorted in
    subsequent years through constitutional coups, rigged elections, the
    violent repression of opposition demonstrations, a distorted media
    landscape, and the cartelisation of an already small economic pie,"
    writes Security, in the Caucasus and Beyond. "A fresh start is what
    is needed in Yerevan, not some tinkering at the edges by the same
    old faces people have been seeing over the past twenty years."

    Is Armenia waking up? Only time will tell.

    http://www.ianyanmag.com/2013/02/27/in-armenia-a-barevolution-takes-shape-its-future-uncertain/




    From: A. Papazian
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