What The Ref is Going On?
Not sure what all this referendum talk is about? Click here for OpenDemocracy’s interpretation.
But ultimately, the greatest losers of all may be Armenia’s citizens: indifferent to electoral processes that do not reflect their will, deprived of their belief in their ability to effect change, their trust in the power of western-sponsored democracy itself may be eroding.
Link no workie.
Comment by nazarian — 12/1/2005 @ 10:17 pm
Link not need to work to completely agree with that short statement.
Comment by Գագիկ — 12/1/2005 @ 11:09 pm
Works now.
Comment by nazarian — 12/1/2005 @ 11:20 pm
Putin and the neo-comintern
http://www.network54.com/Forum/445792/thread/1133416695/last-1133416695/Putin+and+the+Neo-Comintern
Comment by Hovik Dinkjian — 12/2/2005 @ 12:30 am
network54 sucks because of the popups.
Comment by Katy — 12/2/2005 @ 4:01 am
Well then get a pop up blocker, I never get any pop ups…
Comment by Hovik Dinkjian — 12/2/2005 @ 4:07 am
I have a pop up blocker - but whoever owns the site shouldn’t use them…
Comment by Katy — 12/2/2005 @ 1:39 pm
pls put aside the tech talk about pop ups.
the article is true and honest.raises serious concers.
i agree that Nov. is bad month for s.caucasus-starting from communists to current neo-communists.
lets think what to do not to turn bad month into bad years and decades. for those who want to live in Armenia
Comment by journalist — 12/2/2005 @ 2:37 pm
I cannot agree with “journalist”.
Please keep in mind the background of consultant - Levon Zurabyan.
The first, I want to mention is that LZ is connected with HHSh, ex-ruling party, that authored and promoted the first constitution. All the HHSh guys were agitating for a boycotte, so it is not true that the analysts (at least LZ) were unbiased.
Comment by Ruben Muradyan — 12/2/2005 @ 4:37 pm
EU Statement on the Referendum:
http://www.fco.gov.uk/Files/kfile/Press%20Release_EU%20Statement%20on%20Referendum_2%20Dec%2005_English.doc
Comment by Hovakim — 12/3/2005 @ 12:52 am
Dear Ruben, do you agree that referendum was fair and free?
Comment by journalist — 12/5/2005 @ 8:23 am
2Journalist
Hmmm….
I share the point of European observers group: referendum in general represents the opinion of the armenian people, but there big concerns in turnout.
Comment by Ruben Muradyan — 12/5/2005 @ 12:10 pm
Muradian, you are blatantly misinforming people. The Council of Europe observers said “the Referendum generally reflected the free will of those who voted.” And judging by the shocking emptiness of the polling stations in Armenia on November 27, “those who voted” made a fraction of this country’s population. The European observers openly stated that “The extremely low voting activity did not correspond to the high figures provided by the electoral commissions.” That’s a very diplomatic way of saying that the vote was rigged. Even Arturik Baghdasarian has admitted that…
Comment by H. Hovsepian — 12/5/2005 @ 12:53 pm
And thank you implying that anyone who has campaigned for a boycott deserves to be harrassed by Armenia’s corrupt and brutal police. You pretty much summed up the nature of Kocharian’s regime.
Comment by H. Hovsepian — 12/5/2005 @ 12:59 pm
Dear H.Hovsepyan,
Firstly I cannot misinform people just because here in blogrel was posted the european monitors opinion.
Anyway - your point is correct.
So, please count the opinion above as my personla.
Second - do you think that a way of personal insults is a good strategy for any kind of political discussion?
If so - continuation with you is not interesting for me.
Comment by Ruben Muradyan — 12/5/2005 @ 1:03 pm
>And thank you implying that anyone who has campaigned
>for a boycott deserves to be harrassed by Armenia’s
>corrupt and brutal police.
Did I really implied it?
Please show the correct place.
Comment by Ruben Muradyan — 12/5/2005 @ 1:05 pm
So, guys, I hardly believe that anyone can honestly state that Ref was fair. Poorly directed show. Purely cinical. Meanwhile corrpution is slowly eating Armenian statehood. Any objections? Any citation from “european observers”?
Comment by journalist — 12/5/2005 @ 2:58 pm
Actually, there’s no solution until we get firm, clever, clean from ex-ruler complex and bribery clean opposition.
From my point of view the absence of good politicians - is the most serious trouble here.
Comment by Ruben Muradyan — 12/5/2005 @ 4:14 pm
Dear Ruben, where and when do you think we’ll get “firm, clean and clever politicians” in Armenia? Currently I do not feel a public demand for such values as honesty, professionalism, fairness, respect, compassion, etc. In Armenia almost 99% of successful individuals and organisations in politics and business do not have/adopt the values I’ve mentioned. So it’s not surprisin that aspiration of the new generation- including in politics- are devil driven. That means the “serious trouble” of Armenia you’ve mentioned -absence of good politicians- will stay here with us long-long. Unfortunately.
Comment by journalist — 12/6/2005 @ 2:51 pm