What Idea is Hayk Demosyan's Party Being Formed Around

Former director of the Armenian Genocide Memorial and Institute, Hayk Demosyan, confirmed in an interview with ArmLur.am that he has created a political party and plans to engage in active politics in the near future. Our interlocutor has presented the idea around which supporters have gathered, as well as the projects and actions they plan to implement soon.

We sought to clarify with Demosyan whether his party would participate if there are upcoming snap parliamentary elections.

– Mr. Demosyan, there is information that you plan to engage in politics soon and intend to establish a party. Is this information correct, and will you start engaging in active politics?

– I do not deny this information. A considerable number of friends, supporters, and acquaintances are aware of my intentions. In my case, this is a forced decision. I have to temporarily leave the research field of the academy. I say this with regret because it has been my primary identity as an individual, but the war and the situation that has arisen as a result compel me to make such a decision. This is a difficult decision.

This is due to several factors: the paralysis of the political field and an urgent need for absolutely new forces to emerge. Society needs this today. The ongoing decline and the lack of a perspective, which affects me, my family, and those around me as a citizen, underscore this need. I simply find that I will be able to gather supporters around me, but I do not assume that I can be the only one and irreplaceable. This is very important because no one should reserve the role of a savior for themselves.

This will be a completely new political force in both content and identity. This is a declaration to create a new political culture, but the first mission that such a force must realize is to become a third force with its new program, a new roadmap for restoring the country, and most importantly, a new political culture.

– Mr. Demosyan, has a specific name for the party been decided? Have you officially registered it, and what direction will the party have?

– At this moment, in order to ensure democratic principles, I did not want to even impose my preferred name. As a political credo, I believe it should have a national orientation. We will not be led, so to speak, by trends that have a destructive impact on society and create waves of revolt. We will try to preserve national values, meaning the party will become a tool through which Armenia will adapt with its culture, presence, and past to the rapidly evolving world. Yes, we will face complex challenges because we have a post-war situation, and the party must try to preserve as much as possible the important core that has come from the depths of centuries, but this conservatism or the phrase 'national values,' which is now alien to the current authorities, presents a challenge: to preserve what is enduring, what is undeniable, while also orienting ourselves and participating in global processes.

– Mr. Demosyan, since the authorities are now talking about snap parliamentary elections, are you preparing to participate in the elections with your newly formed party?

– We have not set sport-like objectives for ourselves because the most important task is to build that party. If we try to set deadlines for ourselves that the party must necessarily participate in parliamentary elections, then we severely limit our principles of creating a fundamental structure.

Written by the newspaper ‘Zhoghovurd’.