Luzavor Hayastan Issues Statement

On May 8 of this year, the violence that occurred in the National Assembly, which was recorded on video and does not require any new evidence, was not only unequivocally condemned by the government but was also justified, legitimized, and encouraged at the level of the Republic of Armenia's top political responsibilities. This was stated in a press release by the 'Luzavor Hayastan' party.

The statement also mentions: 'The violence was justified by attempting to link it to some treacherous 'provocation'. Unfortunately, the Prime Minister characterized the critical opposition discourse as a 'despicable provocation,' thereby encouraging dissenters to be labeled as provocateurs. A situation was deliberately created in which the victim of violence is blamed, rather than the perpetrator. Furthermore, instead of acknowledging and regretting his mistakes, there was a call to fight against the organizers of the fabricated 'provocation'. We are confident that all sensible people are capable of watching the incident's recordings and drawing appropriate conclusions. They can see who the real authors of the provocation were, who labeled dissenters as 'brigands' and 'dullards,' and who threatened with 'breaking heads' and 'cutting necks.'

What happened is evidence that it took merely two years for the revolutionary Prime Minister to completely level and dismantle the very ideas, values, and principles that the revolution proclaimed. The speech of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan was entirely manipulative and false, based on no factual foundation. He characterized the criticism directed at himself and his political team as psychological violence against the government, moreover labeling dissenters as representatives of the 'previous leaders' in parliament. Through this aforementioned deception, Pashinyan attempted to justify the violence, as in the degraded reality envisioned by his team, violence against 'the former' is perceived as legitimate by his supporters and allies.

Thus, the Prime Minister deliberately labels 'Luzavor Hayastan' as representatives of 'the former' to justify the hooligan behavior of his deputies in the eyes of their supporters. Moreover, the My Step alliance presents all its critics and opponents as enemies of the people and the state, anti-state elements against whom retribution is already 'legitimized.' This incident and the subsequent comments are a vivid testimony of the ruling team's intolerance and political immaturity. They have placed their principles of infallibility and impunity at the forefront.

This is a manifestation of totalitarian thinking, the ultimate destination of which is harsh authoritarianism. In just two years, Pashinyan has transformed from the leader of the revolution into a prime minister for only his party members and a few Facebook groups that support him. Instead of unifying public potential and serving the interests of the country, he is dividing and fragmenting resources, 'modeling' society into different layers, labeling citizens as revolutionaries and counter-revolutionaries, blacks and whites, heroes and traitors. This approach poses an extremely dangerous mine at the foundations of the Republic of Armenia's statehood.

The 'Luzavor Hayastan' party, remaining committed to its principles of democracy, human rights, rule of law, and building a new quality of politics, condemns what has occurred. It will be impossible to silence us and stop us on the road to nation-building, even through the use of force. We are ready to confront all challenges for the sake of a democratic, powerful, progressive, competitive, and enlightened Republic of Armenia, where the human being is not a means but an end.