Vahan Hovannisian: An Alternative?

EurasiaNet covers the campaign by Armenian Revolutionary Federation — Dashnaktsutyun (ARF-D) candidate, Vahan Hovannisian examining whether he offers an alternative to the prime minister, Serge Sargsyan, and former president, Levon Ter-Petrossian.

Interestingly, while the article mentions the family link between Hovannisian and Sargsyan, it fails to mention one very important reason for their opposition to Ter-Petrossian — the banning of Dashnaktsutyun and the imprisonment of dozens of its members, including Hovannisian, by the former president.

“We are the alternative,” declared Armenian Revolutionary Federation-Dashnaktsutiun (ARF) presidential candidate Vahan Hovhannisian at a February 11 rally in the Ararat region, local media reported. “You want to change something in your life, to change the structure, we can do that. Neither the ex-government [candidate Levon Ter-Petrosian], nor today’s [candidate Serzh Sarkisian, the current prime minister] can succeed, as they will change only the names.”

“One of them tries to win [voters] over by hatred and regime change. The other one tries to keep the status quo by using the state’s leverage and pressure,” elaborated Hrant Margaryan, an ARF leader. “We try to win over both [camps.]”

Given the party’s 117-year history, much of the population sees the Dashnak – the popular name for the Armenian Revolutionary Federation – as a strong political force, but analysts say it is difficult to tell whether or not that translates into making Hovhannisian a viable “alternative” candidate. The campaign of Hovhannisian, a deputy speaker of parliament, is the first presidential campaign undertaken by a Dashnak leader since 1991.

“People see the ARF as a part of the government, since for already 10 years they have been in the government and parliament,” said political analyst Nune Mkrtchian. “However, since there have been many positive changes in the spheres which they control, specifically in the Ministry of Education, people tend to trust the ARF.”

Some critics, though, would argue that the party’s working partnership with the RPA is not limited to politics alone. Hovhannisian’s daughter is married to the nephew of Prime Minister Sarkisian. Supporters of rival candidate Ter-Petrosian have alleged that Hovhannisian is trying to attract opposition voters in order to “share” them with Sarkisian in a run-off vote.

In a January 30 campaign appearance, Hovhannisian termed such a suggestion as “a mean and insidious lie.” He insisted that he is his own candidate. “We will go all the way to the end, and I won’t give the votes I win to anyone.”

Photo: © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2008