For those citizens and visitors to this country, who have little time or care for the rumour mill of politics, things trundle on. Yerevan bustles, the bars and cafes are full. As I sit and write on Northern Avenue, the scam-artists and street performers wrangle change from the passers-bye. It is ordinarily busy, peaceful and mundane.
For members of the opposition, the situation is very different. The government has stepped up its anti-corruption procedures and continues to claim it has found veritable evidence of a coup-attempt to justify the raiding of homes, the seizure of businesses and the arrest of individuals.
The big names are billionaire businessman Samvel Karapetyan and Archbishops Bagrat Galstanyan and Bagrat Galstanyan. All three men are in prison, facing pre-trial detention.
On July 2nd the National Assembly voted 65 to 27 in favour of nationalizing the Electrics Network of Armenia – a company under Karapetyan’s ‘Tashir’ Group. That same day their Yerevan office was raided, following which two employees were arrested, and two more motions for pre-trial detention were submitted.
On July 4th, Yerevan saw thousands of protesters take to the streets as Karapetyan’s detention was upheld by the appeals court. While these protests were underway, the Russian Ambassador to Yerevan Sergey Kopyrkin was handed a note of protest in response to Russian support for Karapetyan and other opposition leaders.
It is not only Karapetyan who is under fire. On July 8th 10 of his affiliates were brought before the Investigative Department and yet another search was conducted at the Electric Networks of Armenia headquarters, possibly in response to a lawsuit Karapetyan filed against Pashinyan’s press secretary Nazeli Baghdasaryan. Most recently, the Armenian government initiated proceedings to confiscate the Yerevan Circus, another part of the Tashir group portfolio.
It remains unclear what the government is hoping to achieve. But with trust in the government eroding, employees of Karapetyan affiliated businesses this governmental oversight is a cause for concern.
Karapetyan is not the only object of the government’s interest. On July 4th Vahagn Chakhalyan, leader of the Kamq initiative, was arrested. That same day parliament deliberated stripping parliamentary immunity from three members of the opposition Armenia faction, Arsvik Minasyan, Seyran Ohanyan and Artur Sargsyan.
Ohanyan and Minasyan were stripped of immunity on July 7th, and Sagsyan’s immunity was stripped the following day, following which he resigned from Parliament, preempting his own arrest, which Prosecutor General Anna Vardapetyan duly submitted a request for. On June 8th Ohanyan was brought before the Armenia’ Investigative Committee.
Davit Shahnazaryan, head of the United Vardenis faction, and Sevak Khachatryan, Administrative head of Sotk were brought before the Investigative Committee on July 7th.
On July 10th law searches were conducted at the homes of Armenian Revolutionary Federation (ARF) members Gegham Manukyan, a national assembly member, and Vahagn Matinuan, Chief of Staff of the ARF Supreme Body. Meanwhile the National Security Services (NSS) detained 7 ARF affiliates, including Arsen Martoyan of the ARF Yerevan Committee, Taron Manukyan, an active ARF Youth member and Manukyan’s son.
The church is also still underfire, and reports from 168.am suggest that an investigation into Holy Etchmiadzin was launched on July 8th.
This flurry of activity coincided with the advancement of Pashinyan’s international policies. Following Pashinyan and Erdogan’s meeting on June 20th, Erdogan announced on July 5th that Armenia was taking a ‘more flexible approach’ to the Zanzegur corridor.
On July 10th, whilst ARF members were arrested and had their houses searched Pashinyan made the unprecedented step of conducting face to face talks with Azerbaijani Dictator Ilham Aliyev.
Talks lasted for 4 hours. Following which Deputy Foreign Minister Mnatsakan Safaryan announced that Armenia does not ‘oppose’ the construction of the Zanzegur corridor connecting Azerbaijan to its enclave territory in Nakichavan through Armenia. This is a dramatic climbdown for any Armenian Government and the Zanzegur corridor has historically been seen as an unacceptable infringement of Armenian territorial integrity.
The connection between the government’s internal and international policy is a matter of speculation, it is however a powerful coincidence.
Is the Civil Contract Party slowly discovering a mass, multi party conspiracy, or it is seeding the ground, ensuring there can be no real opposition in the coming years – not merely because of the arrests, but because of the fear criticism of the regime may induce.
Will the silencing of opposition bring Armenia into a lasting peace, overseen by a benevolent America? Or are we once again serving interests that are not our own?
Evening approaches. The bustle on northern Avenue changes its character, the heat of the day tempering to a warm summer’s night. It is an alluring picture. Is it also a beautiful mask?
