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Armenian Revolutionary Federation launched stinging verbal attacks on the government

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YEREVAN (Azatutyun.am)–A leader of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation launched stinging verbal attacks on the government as his party began its parliamentary election campaign on Monday.

Armen Rustamyan said Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government may be trying to “replace old political and economic monopolies with new ones.” Rustamyan also claimed that Pashinyan is reluctant to limit sweeping prime-ministerial powers which he strongly criticized before coming to power in May.

Pashinyan voiced the criticism during Armenia’s controversial transition from a presidential to parliamentary system of government initiated by former President Serzh Sarkisian. He said that constitutional changes will give the prime minister too many powers at the expense of the ruling cabinet.

“We have still not abandoned what they described as a ‘super-prime-ministerial system,’” Rustamyan said at a campaign rally held by the ARF in downtown Yerevan. “We also don’t have guarantees that if [Pashinyan and his team] try to reinforce their power that will not lead to the super-prime-ministerial system’s transformation into a super-presidential system.”

Armenian Election: ARF Armenia proportional representation electoral list’s top 3 is announced

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YEREVAN. – The Armenia Supreme Body of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Dashnaktsutyun Party on Tuesday approved its proportional representation electoral list for the upcoming snap parliamentary election in the country.

Accordingly, the list will be headed by ARF Bureau member, MP Armen Rustamyan.

ARF Armenia Supreme Body representative Arsen Hambardzumyan is second on this list, and former Agriculture Minister Artur Khachatryan is third.

Arsen Hambardzumyan told Armenian News-NEWS.am that they will submit the respective documents to the Central Electoral Commission on Wednesday by no later than 6pm, which is the deadline for submitting documents to run for parliament.

The snap National Assembly election in Armenia will be conducted on December 9.

 

ARF Dashnaktsutyun to have 2 ministerial portfolios GM representative

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ARF Dashnaktsutyun to have 2 ministerial

YEREVAN, MAY 12,  ARFD will have two ministerial portfolios. Arsen Hambardzumyan, representative of the Supreme Body of the Party, informed “Armenpress” about this.

“As a result of the discussions the ARF Dashnaktsutyun will have 2 ministerial portfolios. The RA Ministry of Agriculture will be headed by former governor of Shirak Artur Khachatryan, and the RA Ministry of Economic Development and Investments, former Minister of Nature Protection Artsvik Minasyan, “he said.

Glendale, The (ARF) Zavarian Committee held a celebration of Centennial of the 1st Armenian Republic 1918 Video

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Glendale, California: The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Zavarian Committee held a celebration of Centennial of the 1st Armenian Republic 1918 on Friday, May 4, 2018. 7:30 PM with guest speaker Dr. Khatchig Mouradian and many others with talented performers.

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ARF expels Aghvan Vardanyan after surprise May 1 vote

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Aghvan Vardanyan

Aghvan Vardanyan

YEREVAN, MAY 4, ARMENPRESS. The ARF (Dashnaktsutyun) party’s Supreme Body of Armenia says it has decided to expel Aghvan Vardanyan from its ranks after examining the disciplinary issue of the MP.

The ARF had endorsed opposition leader Nikol Pashinyan’s candidacy for Prime Minister in the May 1 vote, but in a surprise move MP Vardanyan took the floor and said that he will not take part in the voting. Vardanyan noted that taking into consideration his party’s endorsement of Pashinyan, he is willing to step down if the ARF deems it necessary.

The ARF was quick to respond. It said that Vardanyan’s statement is a personal decision and contradicts the official stance of the party.

“A gross disciplinary violation was committed, which will be subjected to examination. Therefore the ARF is demanding Aghvan Vardanyan to resign as MP”, the statement said.

On May 3, Vardanyan filed for resignation in the parliament but was still a member of the party until today’s expulsion.

ARF to support PM candidate Nikol Pashinyan

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The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) is ready to support the head of Yelk bloc’s faction, MP Nikol Pashinyan for the post of a Prime Minister, representative of the Supreme Body of ARF Armenia Arsen Hambardzumyan told Armenian News- NEWS.am.

Asked whether the ARF is ready to vote for opposition MP Nikol Pashinyan, Hambardzumyan said: “It should be clear that the statement we made yesterday indicates this clearly.”

According to him, the Republican Party of Armenia made a wise decision not to nominate a candidate for a Prime Minister.

“This decision is consonant with our approach as the nomination of different candidates on May 1 elections will not lead to a political decision. Discussions with political forces represented in the National Assembly can lead to reaching common ground before April 30, since it is important not only to choose a candidate for prime ministers together, but also to find the right decision,” Hambardzumyan noted.

Asked whether ARF representatives met with other parliamentarian factions, Arsen Hambardzumyan said: “Some meetings were held, but there were no agreements or substantive discussion in this regard.”

As reported earlier, the Republican Party of Armenia (RPA) will not nominate a candidate for a Prime Minister, while the Yelk faction intends to nominate Nikol Pashinyan candidacy.

 

Armenia: Opposition leader talks crisis with ARF Dashnaktsutyun

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Leader of the civil campaign against Armenian authorities Nikol Pashinyan on Thursday, April 26 met the representatives of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Dashnaktsutyun.

According to a Facebook post by Pashinyan himself, he and Arsen Hambardzumyan and Armen Rustamyan discussed the “internal political situation in Armenia and the possible ways out.”

The ARF pulled out of the ruling coalition with the Republicans on Wednesday, while acting ministers and governors of province representing the party resigned the following day.

Pashinyan had earlier met Gagik Tsarukyan, the head of opposition Tsarukyan bloc which has been supporting the movement for several days now.

An opposition leader from Yelk bloc and the founder and head of Civil Contract party, Pashinyan leads the campaign against the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (RPA).

Former prime minister Serzh Sargsyan was forced to resign on Monday, and Pashinyan is now seeking the appointment as prime minister by the National Assembly of what he calls “the people’s candidate,” the formation of a temporary government and snap parliamentary elections.

Pashinyan and acting prime minister from the ruling party Karen Karapetyan were scheduled to meet on Wednesday, April 25 but the meeting was canceled. Pashinyan urged demonstrators to resume the rally, with the protesters paralyzing traffic on several major avenues and streets in Yerevan and gathering at the Republic Square again.

On Thursday, the protests will move to Gyumri, Armenia’s second biggest town in the country’s north.

Later on Wednesday, the ruling Republican Party of Armenia declared it is ready to discuss any issue with all the parties.

Pashinyan on Thursday invited Karapetyan to negotiations before the media, no response has been received though.

ARF acting ministers, governors step down

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ARF governors step down

ARF governors step down

Acting ministers and governors from the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) Dashnaktsutyun have resigned on Thursday, April 26.

According to a statement released by the party, the resigned officials are Acting Minister of Territorial Administration and Development Davit Lokyan, Acting Minister of Education and Science Levon Mkrtchyan, Acting Minister of Nature Protection Artsvik Minasyan, as well as Governors of Shirak and Aragatsotn regions Artur Khachatryan and Ashot Simonyan.

The ARF announced a decision to pull out of the coalition with the ruling Republican Party of Armenia on Wednesday.

ARF Western US Statement on Protests in Armenia “FYI ARF Armenia voted for Sargsyan as PM”

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Published on Asbarez For the past several days, a significant sector of the population in Yerevan has resorted to protests and other civil disobedience measures demanding that the election of Armenia’s former president Serzh Sarkisian as prime minister be nullified.

The Armenian Revolutionary Federation believes that it is our people’s inalienable constitutional right to free speech and assembly and to stive for social justice. Hence, the current protests, as long as they are taking place within the confines of the law, are the legal and moral right of the protesters.

It is our conviction that Armenia’s prosperous future lies with the hopes placed on our youth and students. It is also our belief that every step must be taken to avoid bloodshed in the process of resolving issues.

The peaceful and legal transition of power determined by the Constitution is a tenet of complete democracy. Last week, we witnessed the peaceful and lawful transition from a presidential to a parliamentary system of government.

The same tenets must apply to the transition of prime minister’s powers within the new system of government. There can be no objection to this process, and the protesters in Yerevan are also not objecting to the process. It seems their opposition is to the newly appointed prime minister.

According to the Constitution, the party that holds a majority in parliament has the right to nominate a prime minister candidate.

Hence, the protesters and all political forces today are faced with the imperative for solution that is acceptable by all. This solution cannot circumvent the country’s constitutional order, but rather, based on the provisions of the constitution, a proper solution must be derived, in order to benefit the people and the homeland. In the quest to find an acceptable solution, on the one hand, the leaders of the protest and on the other the appointed prime minister and his party have come to an impasse, which demands from each side understanding and political maturity.

As always, our party can only support an equitable outcome where the concept of the state is paramount and the situation is properly untangled.

Thus, we call on our compatriots and organizations in our community to work together and, through political maturity and for the sake of our statehood, maintain our unity and confidence, in order for our homeland and our people to emerge victorious from this crisis.

We expect Serzh Sargsyan to ‘complete reforms undertaken’ – ARF-D member

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By expressing support to Serzh Sargsyan’s candidacy for the prime minister of Armenia, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaksutyun (ARF-D) expects him to successfully complete the process of the reforms initiated, a lawmaker of the governing coalition said Monday.

Speaking to reporters at the National Assembly, Armen Rustamyan reiterated their party’s stance ruling out personalized or individualized approaches. “We never ruled out the possibility that Serzh Sargsyan may hold some government office in the future,” he said, citing a constitutional provision allowing the parliament to impeach the prime minister every six months.

“Serzh Sargsyan must prove that those changes [constitutional amendments] were really for the people. Even the worst-case scenario should pave the way to a balanced government in our country. The main threat we see today is the [fear] lest they should opt for a return to a presidential [government],” he said.

The ruling Republican Party of Armenia convened its Council and Executive Body on Saturday to consider the third president’s candidacy for the prime minister’s post. The proposal received a unanimous approval by the members. In an official statement issued later the same day, the ARF-D expressed its support to the decision.

As for the party’s ministerial portfolios, Rustamyan said they do not expect essential changes.

“But I do not rule out future changes in the cabinet given the priority attached to individual management-related problems,” he said, highlighting ministers’ responsibility for achievements in specific fields.

Armenian News – Tert.am