OLIGARCHS' NEW PLACE

The government of Armenia has been stating directly or indirectly that oligarchs will not make part of the Armenian parliament in the result of the 2012 elections. Oligarchs themselves have numerously stated that they don't want to enter the parliament. Press reports of many of nicknamed oligarchs, who decided not to run in the parliamentary elections. In these cases, the decision is reported to be made by the government's appeal or urge. All this is good but judging by the governmental-political traditions of Armenia, the parliament may host people masked by intellectual faces, but who will just be servants of the government-oligarchy alliance, and who will serve the same alliance but never the interest of the society and the state. In this context, the statements on the lack of oligarchs in the future parliament arouse the simple question - so where will they be? Will the role and influence of the oligarchs in the social-political life of Armenia decrease after they are removed from the parliament? (Presuming it is hard to eliminate their role immediately). This issue is not technical. Many of the oligarchs dream of getting rid of the parliamentary mandate because it is a burden, unnecessary responsibility for them, most of them would like to enjoy their money and power far from all that responsibility. But there the question occurs: so why they appear in parliaments? Have there even been oligarchs who run in parliamentary election against their will?Sure, no one would threaten violence to make oligarchs enter the parliament, but the system and the relations within it could become natural threats. I mean, oligarchs chose to run for the parliament to have guarantees and to protect their property and positions. The parliament is a platform of a deal between the government and the oligarchy which did favors and received guarantees correspondingly. Why did the oligarchs not send someone else to the parliament instead of them? They didn't because they did not trust others, knowing very well the construction of the governmental system based on trade. Only Hrant Vardanyan could send someone else to the parliament instead of him, because those "others" were his sons. The rest of the oligarchs either had no sons, or they were too young. Consequently, the "loss" of the parliament for the oligarchs means loss of security guarantees. Here the issue on the compensation arises: they will demand compensation in terms of guarantees from the power in exchange of yielding positions in the parliament. Will the power give the compensation? What will be the role of the oligarchy out of the parliament? This is the most important issue, because if the guarantee "exchange" takes place, no light prospect is expected for the society. The issue in Armenia is not to remove the oligarchs from the parliament, but to make them enter the legislative and constitutional fields. If the oligarchs are no longer in the parliament but they continue reigning relaxed in the spheres related to the public and social activities, then, the liberation of the parliament from the oligarchs will mean nothing. Along with their removal from the parliament, the society should see the oligarchy entering the field of laws and Constitution, and the yielding of positions of the power-oligarchy alliance. Otherwise, this alliance will just come out to maneuver. While, the effect of this maneuver for both sides of the alliance will be temporary, because under the conditions of fast progress of public communications, such maneuvers are not "drowned" but are revealed in the "cradle". HAKOB BADALYAN

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Headlines for January 23, 2012

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