Armenia has just sworn in a new president and this week the parliament is set to elect a new prime minister, concluding a controversial transition from a semi-presidential system of government to a parliamentary one. However, many remain skeptical. Last Monday, Armen Sarkissian, a former ambassador to the United Kingdom, was sworn in as the country’s fourth president, while parliament is slated to vote for a new prime minister tomorrow. Sarkissan briefly held the prime minister’s post in the 1990s and has many high-profile connections in international scientific and business circles. As President, his new role will have largely ceremonial function, while power will now be with the prime minister.
On Wednesday, the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) announced its intention to nominate former president Serzh Sargsyan, who has been in office for the last ten years, for the powerful prime minister’s office. Amid criticisms that Sargsyan is simply maintaining his iron-grip on power, supporters say security reasons make his continuing rule necessary. Armenia is blockaded by Turkey and Azerbaijan amid an armed confrontation with the latter over the Nagorno Karabakh conflict. In April 2016, renewed fighting lasted four days during which hundreds died on both sides.
Sargsyan’s plan for constitutional change dates back to 2014. The following year, a referendum on the constitutional amendment received a resounding 63% of the vote, according to official data. But the political opposition disputed the results, which they claim had been rigged in order for Sargsyan to maintain his power. In July of 2016, Sargsyan repelled an attempt to force him out of power. A group of armed men stormed and occupied a police patrol department, demanding his resignation. Over the following days, large-scale demonstrations were held in solidarity with the gunmen. After negotiations that lasted a little over two weeks, the gunmen agreed to surrender. Three police officers were killed, and dozens of citizens were hurt over this period. Following the events, a new government was formed with the appointment of former ArmRosGazprom chief executive Karen Karapetyan to the prime minister’s office.
Given the parliamentary majority of Sargsyan’s Republican Party and its coalition partner, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF), he is unlikely to face any obstacles to his election as premier. Republican Party deputy chairman Armen Ashotyan, meanwhile, rejected accusations that the political shift was anti-democratic. “It’s hard to explain how a parliamentary model of government can be less democratic than a semi-presidential one,” Ashotyan said.
Describing the opposition’s presence in parliament as unprecedented, the lawmaker says 40% of National Assembly represents the opposition, while a further 25% of the parliamentary leadership posts and 33% of standing committees are given to the opposition. The latter two, however, are comprised exclusively of the Tsarukyan bloc. According to him, the country is now in the process of obtaining a parliamentary government experience. “The current solutions certainly presuppose more transparent, democratic and participatory management than previously,” he says.
Ashotyan also argued no official decision had been made on Sargsyan’s possible tenure as the country’s prime minister, and that critics of the ruling party misinterpret the current situation. “The RPA and its coalition partner ARF formed a majority in 2017, which means political decisions will be implemented by the political majority,” the lawmaker said. “So the issue of reproducing or continuing Sargsyan’s rule was not the question. This is only about the vote of confidence that the RPA received in 2017 and the formation of a new parliamentary system by 2022." He also drew comparisons to EU countries, adding, "Meanwhile, in some member states of the European Union, like Germany and Hungary, personal leadership is gaining even a fourth term.”
The key goal of the shift in the form of government seems to be to distribute power among the various branches of government. With many Armenians disenchanted by their own authorities, the ruling party and the opposition, the public is asking how any of these changes will trickle down to de facto benefits for the people in the long run.
By MSEAP Cyber Secretariat (mseap@assembly.go.kr) |
