An interview with RA NA Speaker Artur Baghdasaryan

- Can the “failure” of the beginning of the spring session be considered as a deliberate action? If not, then can we say that this parliament is not able to fulfill its reserved authority by Constitution – the legislative activities?

- The beginning of the spring session was not extraordinary as such cases were not rare during two years of the last convocation and this convocation of the National Assembly, when difficulty of quorum arose and it’s necessary to give deep political assessments, but not situational or by the request of some people, sound assessments from the viewpoint of causing clashes exclusively between political forces. And the reality is the following:

First, an extraordinary reality is for any parliament, when 20-25% of the total number of MPs boycotts the work, in general, 20-25%, besides being an MP are entrepreneurs and are engaged in their entrepreneurship. Under such conditions there can always be difficulties in the issue of quorum. The shaping of the political parliament in the country will be the way out and the thing that everybody should be involved in its work; the entrepreneur in his entrepreneurship, the politician – in his political acrivities, the law enforcement bodies – in revealing the crimes, etc. But for that the entrepreneurs also should be defended by law, so not to have the parliamentary mandate as a defending function for them.

- Your coalition partners accuse you for the created paralyzed situation in the National Assembly, noting that you are the guarantor of the regular activities of the parliament and you don’t fulfill your powers reserved by Constitution.

- I haven’t heard such direct accusations from them, and you know that the NA Speaker has no powers to compel the political entities to take part at the NA sittings, fulfill their duty of deputy. As regards the parliament, it works regularly, the committees work effectively, the staff as well, the grouping and factions, too. What power, reserved by Constitution I don’t fulfill?

- Your coalition partners are also of the opinion that there is necessity to discuss inside the coalition the non-working situation created in NA and make appropriate conclusions.

- At the upcoming sitting of the coalition we’ll certainly discuss the issues, which are connected with providing quorum, and I’m sure, we’ll find solutions. We have to raise the responsibility, at the same time we should be aware that time and again such situations can be.

- According to some news, the relevant conclusion can be that you should put the vote of confidence towards you in the National Assembly. If the parliament is not able to provide the regular activities in the upcoming four-day sittings or some forces do not want to provide the regular activities and put you before a situation of expressing vote of non-confidence to you, what will be your stand?

- First, those are mere talks, and some circles spread news, serving certain interests. Second, I present a political force, which has the second attendance in NA and the post of NA Speaker (to which, by the way, I’m not closely connected), is the result of political accord. And what will happen in case, when “OYe” goes out of NA chamber, I think there is no need for additional comments.

- What levers do you have, as NA Speaker, to compel RPA, ARF, ULP and PP to take part at the NA activities, if they somehow, decide to fail the sittings?

- NA Speaker, in fact, has no levers and you know quite well about it. It’s just the duty of the deputy to take part at NA sittings, and it will be fine, that this problem will be at the center of our attention. It’s not right to be led with the principle: as bad as good. Finally, we should be consistent that everybody doesn’t consider the duty as a right.

- During the beginning of the parliament session of this convocation you set a task before you to do everything to raise the role and significance of NA. Yesterday, your coalition colleagues said that the role of NA decreased. Why couldn’t you raise the role and significance of the parliament?

- Nobody said such thing that the role and significance decreased. Then, do you think I’m going to take the authority of the parliament to my place? The authority of the parliament is, first of all, the authority of our country, its civil institutes, after all, our peoples. In my opinion, the role of the parliament is at the sufficient level and much more higher than the role of the state structures. As NA Speaker I’ve done the utmost within my powers. Thousands of letters that I received and the meetings with the people, numerous invitations from the parliament speakers of other countries, heads of international structures prove that the National Assembly operates effectively and has sufficient resource of confidence.

- Is it possible that you’ll be obliged to refer to the help of the opposition to provide the regular activities of the parliament? By the way, one of the accusations submitted to you by RPA is that you break NA Rules of Procedure for not spoiling the relations with opposition and beginning from last session you don’t put for discussion the issue of their absentees.

- There is no problem of applying or not applying to anybody’s help because the coalition and the opposition should attend the activities of the parliament: the people gave all of them a mandate of a deputy, but not of boycott. I don’t think that depriving the opposition from the mandate will be the best and right solution. A year ago, when some people were speaking about arresting the deputies, I was strictly against it, as we should have political influence on the deputies, and not legal or administrative.

- There is an opinion that serious developments are expected in the inner political life in the country and the extraordinary parliamentary and presidential elections. In the context of those expected amendments this global “attack” on NA to weaken your influence and take you away as a candidate for President.

- I’ve already repeatedly stated that there are neither political nor legal bases on holding presidential and parliamentary extraordinary elections. As regards the attacks on me, it’s already 8 years me being chairman of the party and 2 years as NA Speaker I’m used to it and I obtained immunity. Unfortunately, many are not satisfied with their success, they are pleased only in case when the others are unsuccessful. This year is the 15 years of the activities of the parliament and I wish that the political jealousy and hatred will be replaced by political peace and tolerance, because he that mischief hatches, mischief catches.

- Though you always say that you don’t make statements before time but at the moment have you got in your political plans to propose you as a President?

- I repeat once again that it’s not right to make statements before time.

- Why is there a delay on handling you the order of Legion of Honour? According to news, it’s connected with the evident weakening of the former sympathy towards you in the West and especially, in France and political programmes connected with you.

- According to what news, spread by whom? It’s not known. I’ll say that officially I’ve already received Jacques Chirac’s decree connected with my awarding. As regards my ties with the West, they are brilliant. I’ll mention one of the vivid examples, my next official visit to Europe, Austria, in February. In Vienna there will be meetings with the heads of the Parliament, as well as OSCE heads.

- When the crisis reaches its peak in the power pyramid, different kinds of armed “sorting out” come to the surface and the real ones who are guilty don’t bear any responsibility, as a rule. You being the second person of the country, what do you do to prevent the “unlimited illegality” and oligarchic “sorting out” started in the country.

- You know better than me that NA Speaker has no executive levers, moreover, towards law-defending system. Besides that, I’m convinced that you’re also aware of the very limited constitutional and administrative liabilities of NA and its Speaker. So, in this context pointing out me as a second person is not to the point, if we don’t take into account the protocol characteristics and it’s good that we call things by their names. What refers to the criminal recent cases, I’m concerned with all that and I expect that the law-defending bodies will make appropriate conclusions and the guilty will be subjected to strict responsibility. Besides that, the Standing Committee on National Security and Internal Affairs, taking into consideration the existing concerns, will organize parliamentary hearings at the end of February, inviting the representatives of law enforcement and force structures. I think everyone can be able to express his/her viewpoints on the created situation. In Armenia sometimes the illegality is administered in the name of law, because many officials or “full purses” consider themselves beyond law. The activities of the people of power should be limited by law, but not the power – by the law.

- MP Hmayak Hovhannisyan again initiates collection of signatures for discussing the draft law on deposits and in particular, the OYe submitted draft law. There is an opinion that it is a special programme “to spoil” OYe, as if you joing that initiative, in that case you go against the President’s decree of setting up a working group on that issue, if you don’t join, it appears to be you’re against discussing the very draft law that you’ve submitted

- OYe is an organized political force having biography and it’s not easy to discredit it. The demand of the return of the deposits remains one of the questions of the principle,  and we’ll be consistent in this matter. In the result of political accord, the President set up a working group and we prefer to adhere to the spirit of that accord, wait for 2-3 more months: moreover, if the signature collection takes place, it’s all the same, again some people will fail the quorum, if the law is adopted, it will enter into force from 2006. So, if the goal is fair, then we’ll have to wait for 2 more months.

- If you’ll be proposed, in any way, to put the question of vote of confidence, is it possible, that OYe, joining the opposition, will be a part of democratic revolution with the name of a fruit or flower of any colour?

- You artificially strain the statements of the question: it’s not timely. Besides, I don’t do anything by force, but I do – by conviction. The development of democracy in Armenia has no alternative – it’s my conviction, and we’re going to fight for strengthening these values together with our co-thinkers both inside the country and beyond its borders. On this way, we’ll only greet all the forces, which are ready to join OYe in building democratic Armenia.

Naira Zohrabyan