The process of constitutional amendments initiated by the authorities of Armenia has entered the active phase. After multi-stage discussions of the draft of the new Constitution, which suggests a change of the state form of government from a presidential to a parliamentary-presidential republic, a vote was held in Parliament, and now the President must appoint the day of the nationwide referendum on the adoption of constitutional amendments. According to official information, the referendum is scheduled to take place in late autumn.
Considering the balance of power in parliament and the fact that the authorities control the vast majority of the deputies, the results of the voting on the draft amendments came as no surprise. The National Assembly approved the draft by majority of votes – out of 121 of the deputies present, 104 voted 'for', 10 'against', 3 'abstained'.
The following parties voted 'for' – the ruling Republican Party of Armenia, 'Dashnaktsutyun', 'Prosperous Armenia' except for MP Tigran Urikhanyan, and 'Heritage', where only the MP Zaruhi Postanjyan voted against the reforms.
MPs of 'Armenian National Congress' ('ANC') and 'Orinats Yerkir' ('Country of Law') rejected the project.
Results of voting in opposition factions, even in such radical ones as the 'ANC', where MP Lyudmila Sargsyan voted 'for', turned out to be a "mosaic", indicating the vague outlines of the political field of Armenia and the vulnerability of some MPs to the government. On the other hand, these results could indicate an absence of real consensus on the draft constitutional reforms in society.
A more significant indicator of the lack of social consensus on the issue is the work of the newly formed structures – the 'No!' Front and the Joint Political Council. On September 12, at a conference organized by the initiative 'You Won't Do It!', the union of political and social forces on the fight against the constitutional amendments has been created – the 'No!' Front. The Front announced its intention to initiate nation-wide opposition to the adoption of the new Constitution.
The union includes about 30 parties and social organizations, in particular the 'ANC', 'Heritage', the People's Party of Armenia, 'Ayazn', the association 'National Self-Determination', the organization 'Founding Parliament', the Union of Political Scientists of Armenia, the public organizations 'Armat', 'March 1', 'Freedom and Democracy', and initiative 'You Won't Do It!'.
The Joint Political Council consists of five small parties - 'Homeland and Honor', 'Democratic Homeland', 'Hayk,' 'Christian People Renaissance' and 'Tseghakron'. Three non-governmental organizations also became opponents of the new Constitution – the Council of the Intelligentsia, the Council of Veterans and the Youth Council, who closely cooperate with the Joint Political Council.
The opposition plans to hold a series of meetings in the regions of the country to attract a bigger number of citizens to the fight against the changes. Calls for the organization of mass actions of civil disobedience are also heard. A rally of the 'No!' Front in Yerevan is scheduled for October 30.
The activity of all these organizations is in its infancy, but even now the authorities are nervous. For example, on October 5th, during a protest action near the National Assembly building, organized by the 'No!' Front, there was a clash between protesters and police, who tried to tear a banner reading 'No!', attached to the fence of the National Assembly. After a brawl, aggressive-minded policemen tore the banner, and took 17 activists to the police station, including members of 'ANC' party leadership.
State-controlled media and experts never tire of talking about the weakness and insolvency of the camp of opponents of the constitutional reforms. It is obvious that the authorities, despite the self-confident statements about the desirability of a more progressive and democratic constitution, feel insecure in the conditions of the very negative attitude to it from the vast majority of citizens.
Armenia is starting a new wave of confrontation between the government and a significant part of society. Certainly, opposition resources are not comparable to the huge financial, information, human and administrative resources of the authorities. On the other hand, is it possible to guarantee the implementation of the draft constitutional amendments against the background of the fact that the majority of society does not like the idea of a reproduction of those in power?
