Member of the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) Gagik Melikyan said the political dialogue between the authorities and Armenian National Congress (ANC) only will not be accepted by the public.
“It will undermine credibility of both opposition forces and coalition parties not only among separate political forces, but also the public,” Melikyan told a press conference in Yerevan.
According to him, the format suggested by President Serzh Sargsyan three years ago and supported by various political forces – Dialogue with All at Once – is more efficient.
Melikyan believes that ANC will approve this format and conceive that the demand of early elections is unacceptable for the authorities.
From February 20, 2008, the Armenian opposition led by first president Levon Ter-Petrossian, who ran for presidency in 2008, but was not elected, held rallies in the central part of Yerevan, protesting against the election results. The protest actions resulted in unrest and clashes between the police and rally participants on March 1-2. According to the Office of RA Prosecutor General, around 200 people were injured, 10 people were killed, and over 100 people were arrested.
In May 2011, President Serzh Sargsyan offered the National Assembly to declare amnesty on occasion of the 20th anniversary of Armenia’s independence, the proposal being based on article 81.1.1 of the RA Constitution and article 90 of the law on National Assembly regulations. With a vote 91-0, the Armenian parliament approved the proposal for amnesty for 396 people to be released and 379 to have their sentence cut.
During a recent political council session, Armenian National Congress (ANC) named the composition of ANC delegation to negotiate with the authorities. The delegation includes ANC coordinator Levon Zurabyan, representative of the central bureau David Shahnazaryan, a member of ANC economic committee, the head of ANC structure in Malatya Vahagn Khachatryan, People’s Party of Armenia secretary Felix Khachatryan and deputy head of Armenian National Movement Samvel Abrahamyan.
