Levon Ter-Petrosyan: "Three steps for now"
LEVON TER-PETROSYAN'S SPEECH AT THE RALLY ON MARCH 17, 2011
Dear fellow Armenians,
As agreed, today we will discuss the fulfillment of the demands stated in the requisition we adopted on March 1 and will draw conclusions on the authorities' response, which is necessary in order to determine the actions that we must take. Before I start, as usual, I must touch upon certain misinterpretations in relation to that requisition, which were partially the result of lack of attention and partially intentional. There is a need for clarifications to specify the facts.
a. The deadline stated in the requisition, that is, March 15, didn't refer to the entire document, but the first point (the release of political prisoners).
b. The financial compensation and minimum salary, benefits and pensions for the families of the victims and the injured of March 1 were expressed in dollars not for other plans, but by simply taking into account the change of the exchange rate and the probability of its fall.
c. If Serzh Sargsyan's name is not mentioned in the point stating the dismissal of certain authority figures, that doesn't mean that Sargsyan's resignation is not taken out of the agenda. Isn't it clear that the demand for special presidential elections can't be fulfilled without his resignation?
d. The declaration is not a requisition as was misunderstood, but a plan for implementing democratic reforms without convulsions and a proposal to start a civilized dialogue between the government and the society.
The heated inter-political atmosphere and the accumulation of social-economic issues have led to an unprecedented, dangerous situation in Armenia that needs to be fixed soon. It is clear for everyone that it is impossible to rely on this government since it is not planning to reject its policy on robbing the country and is unable to develop the economy, reduce unemployment, raise salaries and pensions, restrict the growing inflation, maintaining the stability of the dram and eliminate emigration.
The extraordinary amount of people at the last rallies shows that the society is fully aware of the situation and is determined to stand up for its rights and fair demands. As well-known sociologist Lyudmila Harutyunyan noted, by being deprived of the opportunity to have a representation in a pro-government parliament, the people don't have any other way of dialogue with the government other than democracy.
Unlike the society, the ruling regime, judging from its response to the declaration made on March 1 or, better yet, the lack of a response, still hasn't fully perceived the gravity of the situation and the need to find a way out of this situation. The government still has to show that it is confident in its strengths, resist and try to win time with the hope that the wave of protests will fade away.
However, the authorities must finally realize that paying heed to the society's fair demands is not dishonorable, but virtuous. Dialogue and mutual concession or the weakening of inter-political tension should be of primary concern for the government because the responsibility for ensuring security and stability in the country is on its shoulders. Unfortunately, to this day, the authorities have misunderstood that.
I have no doubt that what happened in Tunisia, Egypt and other parts of the world will take place in Armenia as well, that is, the power will return to the people. But I am also certain that unlike those countries, in Armenia that will happen smoothly and without any convulsions. The wave of protest will not fade away. On the contrary, it will grow because the government's deficiency will be a lasting source of energy for the pan-national struggle.
The authorities must rush because the delay may be fatal for them and the country. The time has come for real actions because it is no longer possible to feed the people with the prime minister's declarations. Judging from some indicators, particularly Serzh Sargsyan's last three speeches, it seems as though the regime has realized that it is impossible to ignore the issues and not pay heed to the people's fair demands.
Most of the urgent actions are listed in our declaration made on March 1. As a first step, we expect the immediate release of the political prisoners, the opportunity to hold rallies at Freedom Square and an official assurance for the revelation of the murders of March 1. I think in this stage, there are enough grounds for initiating a dialogue with the authorities. We are not maximalists and don't have any intention to pressure the authorities. The above mentioned demands can be easily fulfilled.
Let's hope that we will not be forced to speak to the authorities through a requisition during the next rally on April 8, though that is not excluded in the case of a lack of response.
