Those who are unable to punish Aram Sargsyan cannot negotiate with Aliyev

What is the current situation regarding the mass beating of civil society activist Artur Chakhoyan, which occurred live in the presence of numerous journalists and municipal employees?

1. Chakhoyan suffered multiple injuries but was recently discharged from the hospital at his own risk. He is currently facing trial as a defendant in a criminal case, accused of hooliganism.

2. Chakhoyan was beaten, but no one returned the 300 million drams that were openly stolen from the budget, allocated for the renovation of the kindergarten of the Nor Nork administration or the Mayor’s office. It should be recalled that the conflict between the parties began after an investigation conducted by Chakhoyan and Mesrop Manukyan about low-quality repair work.

3. The head of the municipality, Tigran Ter-Margaryan, remains a key figure in this “spectacle” in a public institution. He is still in office and has not been punished by the Hanrapetutyun party members, Yerevan Mayor Tigran Avinyan, or Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

4. Nikol Pashinyan cannot punish Ter-Margaryan, which can be explained by several reasons: either he supports assault in a public institution committed by a civil servant, or he fears punishing a member of Aram Sargsyan’s party, which might result in the collapse of the ruling coalition in Yerevan. This could trigger early elections for the City Council, where Pashinyan risks losing, as happened recently in Gyumri.

5. If even Aram Sargsyan is pressuring Nikol Pashinyan due to fears of losing power in Yerevan, then how does Ilham Aliyev behave towards Pashinyan? A person who is unable to restrain Aram Sargsyan cannot and should not negotiate with Azerbaijan. This is a political axiom. Obviously, after the incident, it became clear that members of Sargsyan’s party were manipulating Pashinyan.

6. First of all, Ter-Margaryan himself stated that it was up to the Hanrapetutyun party (and not the mayor of the capital) to decide whether he would resign or not. Secondly, the head of the Malatia-Sebastia municipality also noted that if Ter-Margaryan were forced to resign, he, along with other members of the Hanrapetutyun party, would also step down. This would lead to the collapse of the governing coalition.

7. The US and EU embassies are still silent about the incident in the Nor Nork administrative district. This not only confirms the clearly documented domestic political preferences of our foreign partners but also shows that they are quite satisfied with the prevailing impunity in Armenia under Pashinyan’s rule. This, in turn, means that in the new political situation in Armenia, they may find themselves unable to comment on events because, at critical moments, they supported those who undermined democracy and human rights.

Think about it…