Ara Abrahamyan has taken a dangerous step; if he loses in politics, he will lose everything — Arbak Khachatryan

First Informational’s interviewee is Moscow-based independent human rights defender Arbak Khachatryan.

— Mr. Khachatryan, Ara Abrahamyan has announced that he is entering Armenia’s political arena and has a program. Are you familiar with his political or economic programs?

— I do not know about his programs and do not want to discuss what I do not know. Frankly, I did not expect such a step.

— Ara Abrahamyan knows very well that he cannot stand in the upcoming elections. In your view, why did he decide to enter Armenia’s political arena?

— For decades, Armenia’s political arena was changed however they wished; the Constitution and laws were changed. But we all understand very well that for 15 years Armenia’s politics has been conducted outside the country, not from within. They change the Constitution, and someone living abroad has no right to be elected. I say this not in connection with Ara Abrahamyan but generally. Both financially and politically, the people wait to see what happens outside to understand what effect it will have inside.

Today the Constitution prevents even someone who dedicated his entire life to Armenia from being elected. These approaches are used to win within a short time. As for Ara Abrahamyan’s decision, I can say it is dangerous for him. What happened in Armenia over recent months—Russia’s entry into Armenia’s economic arena and now its political arena—showed the people that Russia does not trust today’s leader, and if these people lose, they will lose completely. It is a blow from two sides. It is difficult to say this was a personal decision, which means Russia wants something.

Therefore this is a very dangerous step for Armenia. I do not know what it will lead to, because I do not know the program or the facts.

— Could Ara Abrahamyan be trying to “fill” the gap left after Gagik Tsarukyan?

— They can hardly be compared. Neutralizing a member of parliament from its second political force through a single person means there was no political arena at all. That is the first point. Secondly, the state apparatus had enormous levers against Tsarukyan to strike in the financial arena. Those levers do not exist in Ara Abrahamyan’s case, and framing the issue as taking someone’s place is the wrong approach. That is my opinion. Analysis shows these are different approaches, and every step has its own particular features.

— What makes this step dangerous, Mr. Khachatryan?

— When Europe and America work in Armenia, they create structures—banks, student organizations—whereas steps taken by Russia are discussed in the media. The forces existing in Armenia are not trusted. Local people discuss this too. Since everything in Armenia is politicized, this is discussed as well. In other words, the trust connected with Serzh Sargsyan doing everything at Moscow’s direction is called into question. People with resources enter politics and lose everything if they are defeated. Everything rests on certain steps. It is difficult to say whether Ara Abrahamyan’s step is good or bad for Armenia. It may be good. But today I cannot discuss it or make forecasts.

— Do you consider cooperation between Ara Abrahamyan and Robert Kocharyan possible?

— I cannot say anything about that. Things happened in Armenia—he means 27 October, editor’s note—that made me doubt there could be forces whose leaders stayed rather than resigned immediately. It is difficult to discuss, because if the events that occurred in Armenia had happened in another country, its leaders could not have remained afterward. But there is definitely distrust toward Russia: we see that Russia does not intervene in any way in what is happening on the border. You understand what would happen if this occurred in other Customs Union countries. This creates distrust. I can say people would not take such a step if they did not have certain approaches, because defeat means losing everything.

Nobody can say what percentage Ara Abrahamyan will receive. Everything is possible in Armenia, because people’s hopes are entirely connected with finances from outside; there has never been politics inside. It is wrong to discuss today what will happen tomorrow. Nobody knows which levers will be used, how Serzh Sargsyan will change, which article of the Constitution will change, and so on. Armenia has so many gaps and questions that planning what will happen in a year is extremely difficult.