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Armenian Police Use Force Against Opposition Mayoral Candidate

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YEREVAN — Police in Armenia’s capital, Yerevan, used force against an opposition mayoral candidate, during city council elections on May 14, according to her party and video footage.

Zarui Postanjian and her daughter Lilit Drampian were forced out of the campaign office of incumbent Mayor Taron Margarian, where they had come to check whether reports about lists of voters who allegedly agreed to receive money for their votes were true.

Officials of Postanian’s Erkir Tsirani (Country of the Apricot) party told RFE/RL that Drampian, 22, was hospitalized after the incident and diagnosed with a concussion.

Meanwhile, the Central Election Commission said on May 15 that, according to a nearly complete count, the ruling Republican Party received more than 71 percent of votes for city council.

According to the commission, Erkir Tsirani received less than 8 percent of the vote, and candidates from the Elk (Exit) political bloc won about 22 percent.

By law, the Yerevan City Council appoints the capital’s mayor.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/armenia-yerevan-mayor-candidate-postanjian-removed-margarian/28489363.html?ltflags=mailer

Iran’s election campaign heats up as presidential poll nears

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Iran’s election campaign heats up with the six presidential hopefuls vying for the position of the country’s chief executive.

In an address to his female supporters in a stadium in the capital Tehran on Tuesday, President Hassan Rouhani, who is seeking reelection, said his performance obviously reflects his opposition to “gender discrimination” and “gender oppression.”

“The [1979 Islamic] Revolution was a success because women entered the scene. Today, if women step on the election scene, if all go to the polls, we will definitely be successful,” he said.

The Iranian people have chosen the path of social and political freedom as well as freedom of thought and expression, Rouhani said, adding that he is seeking “genuine security” along with unity.

‘Revolutionary management key to progress’

Addressing his supporters in the city of Kerman, another candidate Seyyed Ebrahim Raeisi highlighted the economic woes gripping Iranians and said the resource-rich nation of Iran does not deserve to be held back by such problems as absolute poverty, youth unemployment and corruption.

He furthered underlined the importance of “self-esteem,” stressing that “revolutionary management” could produce “great honors” for the nation.

Raeisi, a senior judicial official and head of Astan Qods Razavi, also noted that the “main problem in our country is not lack of liquidity, equipment and resources, but rather weak executive and economic management.”

Qalibaf to go for national welfare

Another rival, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, told his supporters in the southwestern city of Ahvaz that he will strive to create “welfare, peace and security” for all people, if elected president.

He also highlighted his achievements as the mayor of Tehran and said poverty has no place in the society, blaming poor management for the high poverty rate in a resource-rich country.

Aqa-Mirsalim urges focus on human resources

Presidential contender Mostafa Aqa-Mirsalim also told students in the city of Isfahan that human resources have fallen into oblivion in Iran, saying progress would be achieved only with the help of educated, dedicated and clean-handed lecturers and students.

The former culture minister also accused the current government of failing to adhere to the principles of resistance economy.

Inflation was lowered under Rouhani’s administration, but it still exists, he pointed out.

Hashemi-Taba wants enhanced investment

Mostafa Hashemi-Taba also said in a televised speech that the main task facing the next administration is to use domestic capital and boost investment.

The former vice president also criticized the distribution of monthly cash subsidies among people and called for moving in the direction of implementing the resistance economy.

Jahangiri stresses ‘justice’

First Vice-President Es’haq Jahangiri, who is also running for presidency, said all Iranians should enjoy social and economic justice.

He defended the Rouhani administration’s policies and highlighted the importance of social and economic justice. He also said that the private sector should be assured that it is “the basis for Iran’s economic development.”

“Today people trust the government and this trust serves as a huge resource for the government,” he said.

Iranians will go to the polls on May 19 to elect the country’s next president. Over 56 million people are eligible to vote.

The six presidential candidates have outlined their plans in two live TV debates so far, with the third televised program scheduled for May 12.

BREAKING NEWS The centrist Emmanuel Macron will be France’s next president,

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Sunday, May 7, 2017 2:03 PM EDT
Emmanuel Macron, a youthful former investment banker with little political experience, was well ahead in France’s presidential election on Sunday, suggesting that his call for a new centrist approach to politics would handily defeat the staunch nationalism of his far-right opponent, Marine Le Pen, according to projections based on preliminary results.
Polls closed at 8 p.m. in France, and official results will be tabulated through the night.
If he wins, Mr. Macron, 39, will become the youngest president in the 59-year history of France’s Fifth Republic, after leading an improbable campaign that amounted to a stinging rebuke of the country’s long-dominant political establishment.

Turkey Major election fraud suspicion in Viranşehir

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Major election fraudRıdvan Yılmaz, spokesperson of HDP Election Committee, claimed that block votes were cast in 60 neighborhoods in Viranşehir district of Urfa. In Viranşehir, there are 13,067 “yes” and 58 “no” votes.

HDP stated that there are 13,067 “yes” and 58 “no” votes in Viranşehir, since AKP forced block voting.

According to Dihaber, Rıdvan Yılmaz, spokesperson of HDP Election Committee, stated that polling clerks were subjected to pressure and sent away, unstamped ballots and envelops were used and block votes were cast in many rural neighborhoods.

Block vote in 60 neighborhoods

Sharing the findings of the investigation for revealing the irregularities in referendum, Yavuz stated that block votes were cast in many rural neighborhoods. He said that Viranşehir district is an example to that. A trustee was assigned to the municipality of Viranşehir, where 13,067 “yes” and 58 “no” votes were cast in referendum.

Yılmaz said: “This result doesn’t make any sense. We expect SBE (Supreme Board of Election) to act morally. Many villages in Viranşehir voted for HDP in previous elections. If there weren’t block voting, the result of the referendum would have been different in those villages. This shows that people of Viranşehir doesn’t accept the trustee, but they were denied the right to vote freely and a forced ‘yes’ was achieved with pressure and fraud.”

Yavuz also added that this kind of fraud took place in more than 1,200 villages in Urfa city, they collected all documents and objected to results in many ballot boxes.

Source: agos.com

Armenia News questionnaire: the responses of Ms Marine Le Pen

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As we had agreed with the presidential candidates who agreed to reply to the questionnaires of News of Armenia Magazine (CF NAM 238), we republished their answers on armenews.com all week. They are listed in alphabetical order. Tuesday April 18th: Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, François Fillon. Wednesday 19 April: Benoît Hamon Marine Le Pen. Thursday 20 April: Emmanuel Macron Jean-Luc Mélenchon.

News from Armenia Magazine: Since 2012, the genocide of Armenians is commemorated every April 24 by the Republic, with the participation of the President of the Republic and / or a minister. If you are elected, do you intend to continue this tradition? Can you promise that April 24 will be officially considered a national day of commemoration of the Armenian genocide and will be included as such in the Republican calendar?

Marine Le Pen: I will continue to commemorate the genocide of which the Armenian people have been victim since it is the first great crime against humanity of the twentieth century. Moreover, the arrival of many Armenians in France in 1915 was an important event in the history of our country because they contributed greatly to our nation and contributed to its reconstruction after the First World War and were perfectly assimilated. I think, however, that the calendar of the Republic must be limited to the historical events which constitute the collective memory of the French people. It is important to keep alive the memory of the tragedy experienced by the Armenians but this is not part of the official calendar.

News from Armenia Magazine: What is your view on the Armenian community of France, constituted by the survivors of the genocide of 1915? In the face of the denial of the Turkish state, do you understand its fight for the international recognition of genocide and do you think it is fair for France to support it?

Marine Le Pen: I do not really like the term “community”. I am of course sensitive to the personal history of individuals and to the importance they have in their lives, and it seems to me quite normal that people of Armenian descent maintain their common memory and seek to support it. It seems to me important that the genocide of 1915 is widely recognized by all the countries of the world and that Turkey is at last beginning a serious reflection on this terrible page of its history. France must absolutely support the struggle for recognition because of its status as a homeland of human rights and the large number of Armenians who have found refuge there and have successfully integrated themselves.

News from Armenia Magazine: Are you for Turkey’s accession to the European Union?

Marine Le Pen: Very clearly, no. Unlike the other major parties, MEPs of the National Front have always voted against the opening of new accession chapters of Turkey, and we are the only ones to oppose it firmly and unambiguously. On this subject, I am the only candidate to have never changed opinions and to be credible.

News from Armenia Magazine: Do you think that France should continue to maintain a special relationship with Armenia?

Marine Le Pen: Yes, France must continue to maintain specific diplomatic relations according to the particular history it has with the different countries. In the Middle East, it must find a leading role, especially that of protector of the Christians of the East, which it has assumed since Francis I but has neglected too much in recent decades.

News from Armenia Magazine: Are you in favor of France’s recognition of the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh?

Marine Le Pen: Of course, the administrative borders of the former USSR have become too fast and without reflection on international borders, but rather than an independence, I believe it would be desirable for Azerbaijan and Armenia to reach a Agreement allowing Nagorno-Karabakh to be attached to Armenia.

News from Armenia Magazine: Would you be for the creation in Paris of an Armenian center of civilization and memory and would you be ready to help in its realization?

Marine Le Pen: I am not opposed to the creation of cultural centers, whatever they are, of course, and it seems to me perfectly legitimate. There are already several Armenian cultural centers in France. Their development is not problematic in itself. On the other hand, it is not, in my view, the responsibility of the State to finance it.

News from Armenia Magazine: What message would you like to address to the 500,000 French of Armenian origin?

Marine Le Pen: I would like to salute these well-assimilated Frenchmen who have contributed so much to our country in very diverse fields, including sectors as varied as culture, research or even politics! They are perfect examples of what I often say: French nationality is inherited or deserved.

Wednesday 19 April 2017,
Ara © armenews.com

France: PRESIDENTIAL 2017 Armenia News questionnaire: the replies of Mr François Fillon

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As we had agreed with the presidential candidates who agreed to reply to the questionnaires of News of Armenia Magazine (CF NAM 238), we republished their answers on armenews.com all week. They are listed in alphabetical order. Tuesday April 18th: Nicolas Dupont-Aignan, François Fillon. Wednesday, April 19: Benoît Hamon, Marine Le Pen. Thursday 20 April: Emmanuel Macron Jean-Luc Mélenchon.

News from Armenia Magazine: Since 2012, the genocide of Armenians is commemorated every April 24 by the Republic, with the participation of the President of the Republic and / or a minister. If you are elected, do you intend to continue this tradition? Can you promise that April 24 will be officially considered a national day of commemoration of the Armenian genocide and will be included as such in the Republican calendar?

François Fillon: Like my predecessors, if I am elected President of the Republic I will commemorate April 24th. It is important not to forget the thousands of victims. This genocide removed the Armenians from the eastern provinces of Asia Minor of the Ottoman Empire. 1.5 million people, or ¾ of the Armenian population were affected.

In France, eleven annual national days have been instituted by legislative or regulatory texts, for example, the commemoration of the victory of 8 May 1945, the commemoration of the Armistice of 11 November 1918 or the national day of homage to Harkis of 25 September and the death toll of the Algerian war and the fighting in Morocco and Tunisia on 5 December. The French of Armenian descent also insists on writing April 24 in our Republican calendar. It is legitimate.

What is your view of the Armenian community of France, constituted by the survivors of the genocide of 1915? In the face of the denial of the Turkish state, do you understand its fight for the international recognition of genocide and do you think it is fair for France to support it?

François Fillon: The French of Armenian origin and the Armenian community of France constitute an example of integration, of success, of patriotism. Everyone loves France but all also have a bit of their heart in Armenia. With the law of January 29, 2001, France publicly acknowledged the Armenian genocide of 1915. By recognizing the existence of the first genocide of the twentieth century, the French Republic symbolically gave the Armenian drama a place in the collective memory of mankind.

But the recognition of the genocide of 1915 could not be a completion, it was necessary to go further to avoid any competition of memories and any unequal treatment between the victims of the genocides recognized by French law and their descendants.

Why is the issue of the recognition of the 1915 genocide and denialism important?

François Fillon: The five hundred thousand Frenchmen of Armenian descent felt abandoned, left helpless by the Republic they had defended, sometimes at the cost of their blood. The descendants of Holocaust victims against Holocaust deniers were protected by law. The descendants of the survivors of the Armenian genocide had to face, alone and disarmed, an unprecedented phenomenon: the negationism of State. Turkey is very wrong not to look at its past. Every nation has its share of shadow and gains to recognize it.

The French Republic has a duty to protect all its citizens, including our citizens who have found asylum, homeland and freedom in France. It is up to the justice of the Republic to act to ensure respect for its citizens. An important legislative work had to be carried out in order to draw all the legal consequences of this recognition, that is to say, the penalization of denial.

Valerie Boyer has campaigned to penalize Holocaust denial in the name of human dignity and justice. I thank her for her commitment on this issue, not forgetting all the parliamentarians, associations and lawyers who have been mobilized for many years.

Today, repressing the denial of genocide is echoing a burning current, in the context of persecutions against the Christians of the East in Iraq and Syria in particular, described by Ban Ki-Moon as crimes against humanity.

I also visited Iraq, in 2009, 2014 and 2016, in particular in Erbil, and in June 2015, I wished to organize an evening of support for the Christians of the East at Cirque d’Hiver Which brought together more than 2,000 people.

Today, it emerges from the various testimonies that a hundred years later, History begins again. That is why it is normal that this fight against Holocaust denial has finally come to fruition thanks to the mobilization of deputies and senators.

Are you for Turkey’s accession to the European Union?

François Fillon: On this issue, I have always been consistent. I have never changed my opinion: Turkey’s accession to the European Union is neither possible nor desirable. I regret that France and Europe do not have the courage to say it sincerely to the Turkish authorities.

Do you think that France should continue to have a special relationship with Armenia?

François Fillon: Today our country has 500,000 French Armenians. The links between France and Armenia have always been strong. In 1909, the French navy helped the Armenians of Cilicia. Our ships were also there in 1915.This tragic story has created unfailing links.

France was the first to welcome surviving, driven, massacred Armenians. They were stateless, they became French. They also paid the price of blood by fighting alongside us during the two world wars.

Today, I also want to pay tribute to the educational cooperation between our two countries, which I have always been keen to preserve. Like the French university in Yerevan. It should also be noted that Armenia is an associate member of the International Organization of la Francophonie.

Let us also not forget our economic relations since France is the first European investor in Armenia.

These relationships are strong and continue to grow. The Franco-Armenian friendship has long and beautiful days before it …

Are you in favor of the recognition by France of the Republic of Nagorno-Karabakh?

François Fillon: In April 2016, for six days, the Southern Caucasus had once again flamed.

Confirmed by international indifference, Azerbaijan had tried to retake by force Nagorno-Karabakh. This murderous offensive ended with a precarious ceasefire.

Today our French citizens of Armenian origin are worried and I am also worried because the Nagorno-Karabakh region is a powder magazine. Let us not forget that the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh is due to Stalin, who arbitrarily detached him from Armenia to Azerbaijan in 1921. Now there is no choice but to find a Peaceful and lasting solution through the United Nations.

Would you be for the creation in Paris of an Armenian center of civilization and memory and would you be ready to help in its realization?

François Fillon: We need a place of sharing and meditation. But beyond the existence of an Armenian center of civilization and memory, I wonder about the future of the Armenian Museum of France (MAF) at the Musée Guimet.

Indeed, in recent years, the Musée Guimet, on which the Hôtel d’Ennery depends, has begun renovation work. The Armenian Museum was then asked to move some of its collections, with the assurance given by the Minister of Culture to be able to return to the site at the end of the site. It must be noted that this undertaking was not kept.

While the MAF funds represent the largest Armenian art collection in Europe: nearly 1,200 works recounting 3,000 years of history, the Government remains vague. Why not save the MAF? I attach great importance to the preservation of our national heritage, of which the collection of the MAF is now a part.

What message would you like to address to the 500,000 French of Armenian origin?

François Fillon: I want to salute the memory and the courage of the Armenians who became French, known or anonymous. They fought for truth, dignity, social success. They are the example of a successful assimilation. They participated in the construction of our national narrative. As Charles Aznavour says so well, they knew how to remain “100% French and 100% Armenian”. I want to pay tribute to them.

Tuesday, April 18, 2017,
Claire © armenews.com

Armenian Opposition Bloc Calls On Constitutional Court To Annul Election Results

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Armenian Opposition Bloc Calls

Armenian Opposition Bloc Calls

The opposition election bloc comprising former President Levon Ter-Petrossian’s Armenian National Congress (HAK) and the People’s Party of Armenia (HZhK) headed by Stepan Demirchian announced on April 7 it will appeal to the Constitutional Court to annul the outcome of the April 2 parliamentary elections, RFE/RL’s Armenian Service reported.

The bloc claimed that “large-scale and systematic violations of the electoral process,” including widespread vote-buying and the intimidation of voters by government loyalists, precluded the free expression of the people’s will.

According to the official preliminary election results, just four of the five political parties and four electoral blocs that participated will be represented in the new legislature, in which the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) retained its majority. The Congress-HZhK bloc was not one of them: it polled just 1.65 percent of the vote, far less than the 7 percent minimum required for electoral blocs to win representation.

The bloc’s allegations of malpractice, and specifically vote-buying, are partially corroborated by the preliminary assessment of the election by observers deployed by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), the European Parliament, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, and the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. Their joint statement assessed the vote as “tainted by credible information about vote-buying, and pressure on civil servants and employees of private companies.”

Speaking at a press conference in Yerevan on April 3, Heidi Hautala, who headed the observers from the European Parliament, similarly expressed regret that the election “process was undermined by credible, recurring information of vote buying, intimidation of voters, notably civil servants in schools and hospitals and employees of private companies, as well as abuse of administrative positions.”

Allegations of vote-buying surfaced soon after the election campaign formally got under way on March 5. Just days later, senior HShK member Levon Zurabian described how a group of voters showed up at Congress headquarters in Yerevan on the mistaken assumption that it was a government office, and asked to sign up for the financial aid they had been promised in return for voting for the HHK, RFE/RL’s Armenian Service reported.

Environment Minister Artsvik Minasian of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutiun, the HHK’s junior coalition partner, similarly said “various candidates or individuals have promised money or services [to voters].”

Varuzhan Hoktanian, the head of Armenia’s leading anticorruption watchdog, which is affiliated with Transparency International, was more specific, telling RFE/RL that reports his NGO had received “lead us to conclude that vote bribes are mainly paid by the ruling party.”

He described vote-buying as “a really serious problem.”

Other Armenian media, too, reported suspected widespread vote-buying and decried as lacking credibility pledges by senior officials — such as police chief Vladimir Gasparian — to combat such abuses.

The HHK was, however, not the only party that sought to win over voters by offering material incentives.

Bargavach Hayastan, which is headed by wealthy businessman Gagik Tsarukian, also promised such benefits, for which the party received a formal reprimand in early March from the Central Election Commission.

The newspaper Hraparak described how “desperately poor” people “besieged” Tsarukian at his meetings with voters to beg for financial assistance. (The party placed second, with 31 parliament mandates.)

The initial assessment of the election by the international observer mission said that “some government officials indicated that vote-buying had become an entrenched part of political culture, stating that accepting money or other benefits in exchange for votes was often justified by extreme poverty and lack of economic opportunities.”

In the wake of the vote, HHK spokesman Eduard Sharmazanov implicitly admitted that vote-buying had taken place, while insisting that it did not have “a substantial impact” on the outcome of the ballot. That latter assertion is open to question, however. The opposition bloc Yelk (Way Out), which placed third with nine parliament mandates, claimed in an April 4 statement that “tens of thousands of citizens were involved in the chain of vote-bribe distribution and acceptance.”

The HHK polled enough votes to give it the 54 percent of parliament mandates that constitutes a stable majority (58 of 105) and thus obviates the need to form a new coalition. In 2012 and 2007, the HHK garnered 69 and 64, respectively, of the 131 parliament mandates.

Even if the HHK victory was not the direct result of malpractice, this election represented a shift in the prevalent pattern of procedural violations that had led international observer missions to characterize the parliamentary ballots in 1999 and 2003 as falling short of Armenia’s OSCE commitments and of other standards for democratic elections.

In previous ballots, the most frequent and egregious violations registered by international observers took place during the actual vote (multiple, proxy, or absentee voting) or the vote count and tabulation. In 2012, for example, there were major glitches in the use of the ink used to mark voters’ fingers in an attempt to preclude multiple voting, which faded shortly after application. And observers assessed the vote count as “bad” or “very bad” in almost 20 percent of the polling stations where they were present (24 of 125.) The corresponding figure in 2007 had been 17 percent.

Two factors may have contributed to the change in the incidence of various forms of fraud. The first is the disastrous economic situation (a World Bank report released late last year assessed the number of Armenians living below of the poverty line of $2.5 per day at almost one in four) and the eclipse of ideology as a factor motivating voters. A commentary posted on JAMnet opined that “there is an ongoing process in Armenia, where forces lacking ideology are winning over ideological ones…. People tend to vote not for words, but rather for a road to be built in a village, for doors or windows to be installed in a house, for a salary; they tend to vote depending on the affiliation of their employer to this or that party, depending on where they live.”

In other words, given only minor differences in the programs of the various parties seeking election, economic necessity may have been deciding factor determining which party people voted for.

ARFD: High voter turnout in Armenian elections needs special examination

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The Armenian Revolutionary Federation Dashnaktsutyun on Wednesday, April 5 called for a special probe into the unexpectedly high voter turnout in the April 2 parliamentary elections.

Armenian parliamentary elections hada voter turnout of some 61%. Based on results calculated in all the 2009 polling stations, the Republican party leads with 49.12% of votes (771 247 ballots), followed by the Tsarukyan bloc with 27.32% (428 965), YELQ with 7.77% (122 049) and the ARF Dashnaktsutyun with 6.57% (103 173). Voter turnout stood at 60.86% on Sunday, April 2.

The high voter turnout, according to ARF, was a commendable display of civil activity on the one hand, and “an evil phenomenon caused by the use of financial and administrative resources” on the other.

Elections, ARF said, were commendable in terms of free competition and a civilized campaign by participating forces .

Also, the party cited “the crystallization of politics as a reason behind the society’s rejection of defeatist ideas.”

Armenian Assembly of America releases statement on Armenia’s parliamentary elections

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The Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) is encouraged by the initial report of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA), the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), and the European Parliament (EP), which noted that the elections were “well administered and fundamental freedoms were generally respected” with the election day “generally calm and peaceful but marked by organizational problems and undue interference in the process, mostly by party representatives.” The Assembly congratulates the people of Armenia for its participation in the election process with voter turn-out of over 60 percent.

The statement released by the Assembly reads: “The Republican party won 49.12% of the votes; “Tsarukyan” bloc came second with 27.32%; “Yelq” (Exit) bloc came third with 7.77%; and ARF-Dashnaktsutyun scored 6.57%. Other parties and blocs running for the elections failed to meet the threshold with Armenian Renaissance Party scoring 3.71%; “ORO” bloc with 2.07%; “Armenian National Congress – HZhK” bloc with 1.65%; Party of Free Democrats with 0.94%; and the Communist Party getting 0.75%.

Armenia’s election process stands in sharp contrast to its neighbors. For example, in Azerbaijan its authoritarian president recently appointed his spouse as vice president and suppresses all opposition parties. In Turkey, Erdogan’s authoritarian regime continues its crackdown against opposition leaders and wide-scale imprisonment of journalists. Armenia also compares favorably to the other countries which emerged from the Soviet Union,” stated Assembly Co-Chairs Anthony Barsamian and Van Krikorian. “As Armenia makes further advances in its democratic institutions, we strongly urge the government to address the irregularities cited, including that of vote buying and pressure on voters.”

“Yesterday’s elections marked a first step towards establishing a new political system in Armenia, but change cannot happen overnight,” said Ignacio Sanchez Amor, Special Coordinator and leader of the short-term OSCE observer mission and Parliament Member from Spain. “Reform is a never-ending process, and I encourage the parliamentary majority and the new government to continue their efforts to transform the country’s political culture, in partnership with the opposition, civil society and the international community.”

In November 2016, the United States, European Union, United Kingdom, and Germany pledged to fund concrete measures designed to improve confidence in the election process and help prevent fraud in Armenia’s parliamentary elections. U.S. funding supported agreements signed by the Armenian government and three leading opposition parties on voting conduct for the April 2017 elections. Funds went toward equipment required for live online broadcasts of voting and ballot counting, as well as electronic verification of voters’ identity, and other amendments to Armenia’s Electoral Code.

The Assembly strongly encouraged the U.S. government to support this initiative considering its importance to strengthening the democratic process in Armenia. At the time, the Assembly Co-Chairs stated: “The Armenian Assembly commends the U.S. and the EU for providing financial assistance to support this initiative to further the rule of law in Armenia. We are nonpartisan in both the American and Armenian contexts but this type of support to improve confidence in the democratic process serves us all.”

Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a non-partisan, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

U.S. hails “calm and orderly” elections in Armenia

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Election day was generally “calm and orderly” across Armenia and citizens were able to freely exercise their right to vote, the U.S. embassy said in a statement on Tuesday, April 4.

“The U.S. Embassy concurs with preliminary conclusions of the OSCE Office of Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) mission, which assessed elections to have been well administered with fundamental freedoms generally respected, while noting the elections ‘were tainted by credible information about vote-buying’ and pressure on voters.,” the embassy said.

“We urge the Armenian government, political parties, and civil society to work together to address these concerns through existing or new legal and enforcement mechanisms.”

The embassy said the United States will continue to monitor and analyze reports from international and domestic election observers, as well as the adjudication of election violations during the post-election period.

Based on results calculated in all the 2009 polling stations, the Republican party leads with 49.12% of votes (771 247 ballots), followed by the Tsarukyan bloc with 27.32% (428 965), YELQ with 7.77% (122 049) and the ARF Dashnaktsutyun with 6.57% (103 173). Voter turnout stood at 60.86% on Sunday.