OCTOBER 27 TRIAL TO LAST LONG

[MosJan]

OCTOBER 27 TRIAL TO LAST LONG

 

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Today, October 27, 2001 marks the second anniversary of the tragic events that shook not only Armenia, but also the world, when a group of terrorist rushed into parliament chamber and killed eight top officials, including prime minister Vazgen Sargisian and parliament speaker Karen Demirchian. It was a blow that Armenia is still trying to overcome to settle into shape. The masterminds of the plot are not yet tracked down, instead the case has become a topic of political speculations, a means to satisfy some people’s arrogance, leaving the public to guess where this all will lead to. Though Nairi Hunanian, the group’s leader and other four defendants are standing the trial, there are many questions remaining unanswered. Here are what some parliament members and leaders of political parties say regarding the October 27 tragedy and the trial.

 

 

Sergo Yeritsian (Country of Law party): “ One thing is clear, it is that the October 27 trial is important for Armenia’s further development, but I would refrain to comment on the trial, but I believe it will give answers to many vague questions. Now, as regards the separated case which is supposed to track down those who allegedly were behind the plot, I think when it goes to court, we shall get the answer.”

 

 

Artashes Geghamian (Law and Accord party): “I think that president Kocharian should have resigned when the passions have died away to secure fair pre-time presidential election. He did not do it, which was followed by strange and obscure processes. I mean the man who was aware of the plot’s masterminding but was released under an amnesty. Second, I think that president Kocharian’s announcement that death penalty would not be applied in Armenia was premature.”

 

 

Norik Petrosian (Communist party): “ On that day, two years ago I was in the parliament chamber, it may sound strange, but it was the most interesting section in my life, as I was witnessing how my fellows were metamorphosed. One of the terrorists, Edik Grigorian, was asking questions, which our economists could not answer. I am sure that the authorities are not making special efforts to have the crimes revealed. This makes me believe that there were people behind this group and I am not sure either that they will be revealed under these political conditions.”

 

 

Aghvan Vardanian (Armenian Revolutionary Federation/ Dashnaktsutyun): “We gave our assessment of the crime back in 1999. It was a crime, directed against the foundations of our statehood. We think that the law-agencies, if necessary, have to continue looking for who masterminded it even decades. But it is beyond doubt that there were people behind Hunanian and his henchmen and they must be tracked down and punished.

 

 

Myasnik Malkhasian (Hayastan group): “It is painful to see that two years have passed by but the crime is not totally discovered and neither the politicians nor the public have any idea about how the trial will proceed. As the assassins are known they should have been long ago executed, the debate whether death penalty should be applied or not seem to be quite unnecessary. Concerning the trial process I should say we are disappointed with it. The authorities should have undertaken quick action to reveal the organizers. The ongoing trial is keeping the public strained giving rise to suspicions and controversial comments.

 

 

Galust Sahakian (Republican party): “ The trial seems to be proceeding within the legal field and it is very positive, but there is a dangerous development, I mean the prolonged trial which simplifies the crime. In any case I think it will drag on for a long time. I also think that there were concrete people behind the crime and I believe that they too will be discovered and punished.”

 

 

Rouben Mirzakhanian (Armenian Democratic Liberal party, chairman): “The next day after the October 27 killings the Armenian Democratic-Liberal Party (ADL) came out with a statement, which described the attack on the parliament as the biggest political crime. The statement also said that Armenia’s political prospects were contingent on its discovery. Some developments that followed right after the crime, I mean an attempt to carry out coup d’etat, gave rise to serious concerns. Members of the former ruling regime appeared in the defense ministry. They were neither on the side of the victims nor were in the parliament that day, but were in the defense ministry building. Their far-reaching goal was to oust the legitimate authorities and create a chaos in the country hoping to take back the lost power. We believe that these activities should not remain without serious response. Some political circles are trying to exploit the October 27 killings with the aim of putting the blame on the president and secure their return to power. This camp involves on the one hand representatives of the former ruling regime and on the other hand the families of the victims. This of course, causes some concerns, but is not dangerous, as it is not realistic. Now as regards the ongoing trial, it is being dragged on and creates an impression of farce. In short, what we have today is not encouraging.

 

 

By Gor Abrahamian

 

© Copyright AZG

[MosJan]

Armenia Marks Shoot-Out Anniversary Amid Fresh Tensions

 

 

 

 

By Karine Kalantarian

 

Armenia marked on Saturday the second anniversary of the bloody raid on its parliament amid renewed political tensions between the authorities and many close associates of eight senior officials assassinated on October 27, 1999.

 

In a vivid indication of their deepening mutual antagonism, the two sides made sure they avoid any encounters while paying their respects to the most prominent of the victims, former prime minister Vazgen Sarkisian and parliament speaker Karen Demirchian. Visits to their graves by President Robert Kocharian and his opponents were timed not to coincide.

 

The somber ceremonies came amid a dominant feeling that law-enforcement agencies have failed to solve the crime which had a profound impact on political developments of the past two years. The five gunmen, who burst into the parliament two years ago killing Demirchian, Sarkisian and six other officials, went on trial in February on charges of terrorism and an attempt to stage a coup d’etat. They insist that the decision to storm the National Assembly was entirely theirs.

 

But friends and relatives of the murdered officials believe that the gang led by former journalist Nairi Hunanian had powerful patrons outside the parliament building. Some of them suspect that the massacre was masterminded by Kocharian who had effectively lost some of his powers since Sarkisian became prime minister in June 1999. The ex-premier’s brother, Aram, and Demirchian’s son, Stepan, are key figures in an alliance of three opposition parties campaigning for Kocharian’s ouster.

 

The opposition parties marked the second anniversary of the shootings on Friday with a mass rally in Yerevan. They repeated their allegations that the authorities are obstructing the parliament attack investigation but again stopped short of directly implicating Kocharian in the killings.

 

The Armenian leader has harshly criticized his opponents, rejecting their demands for his resignation. Many of them held senior government posts until their defeat in May 2000 in a bitter power struggle with Kocharian. The president and his supporters claim they are exploiting the October 27 tragedy in a bid to return to power.

 

A senior pro-government member of the parliament, Victor Dallakian, on Saturday urged Kocharian soften is tough stance on the opposition as he visited the Yerablur military cemetery in Yerevan where Vazgen Sarkisian was laid to rest. “The opposition represents a segment of the population which must not be ignored or scorned,” Dallakian told RFE/RL.

 

But military police chief Vladimir Gasparian, one of the late Sarkisian’s comrades-in-arms who backed Kocharian in the post-assassination government infighting, admitted there is now a deep divide between the two rival camps. “Of course, it’s really bad that we are not standing together today,” he said at Yerablur.