ARMENIA AFTER THE ELECTION HEARING BEFORE THE COMMISSION ON SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE ONE HUNDRED TENTH CONGRESS SECOND SESSION APRIL 17, 2008 Printed for the use of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe [CSCE 110–2–8] ( Available via http://www.csce.gov U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 63–747 PDF WASHINGTON : 2012 For sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office Internet: bookstore.gpo.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512–1800; DC area (202) 512–1800 Fax: (202) 512–2250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402–0001 VerDate 0ct 09 2002 15:05 Aug 03, 2012 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 5011 Sfmt 5011 E:\WORK\041708 ANDY PsN: HAROLD COMMISSION ON SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH COMMISSIONERS HOUSE SENATE ALCEE L. HASTINGS, Florida, BENJAMIN L. CARDIN, Maryland, Chairman Co-Chairman LOUISE McINTOSH SLAUGHTER, RUSSELL D. FEINGOLD, Wisconsin New York CHRISTOPHER J. DODD, Connecticut MIKE McINTYRE, North Carolina HILLARY RODHAM CLINTON, New York HILDA L. SOLIS, California JOHN F. KERRY, Massachusetts G.K. BUTTERFIELD, North Carolina SAM BROWNBACK, Kansas CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey GORDON SMITH, Oregon ROBERT B. ADERHOLT, Alabama SAXBY CHAMBLISS, Georgia JOSEPH R. PITTS, Pennsylvania RICHARD BURR, North Carolina MIKE PENCE, Indiana EXECUTIVE BRANCH COMMISSIONERS David J. Kramer, Department of State VACANT, Department of Defense David Bohigian, Department of Commerce (II) VerDate 0ct 09 2002 15:05 Aug 03, 2012 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 0486 Sfmt 0486 E:\WORK\041708 ANDY PsN: HAROLD ARMENIA AFTER THE ELECTION APRIL 17, 2008 COMMISSIONERS Page Hon. Alcee L. Hastings, Chairman, Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe ..................................................... 1 Hon. Benjamin L. Cardin, Co-Chairman, Commission on Se- curity and Cooperation in Europe .......................................... 14 Hon. Christopher H. Smith, Ranking Member, Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe ................................. 2 Hon. David J. Kramer, Executive Branch Commissioner, De- partment of State .................................................................... 4 WITNESSES Hon. Matthew Bryza, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs ........................................ 5 Vigen Sargsyan, Assistant to the President of the Republic of Armenia ................................................................................ 22 Arman Grigorian, spokesman for former President Levon Ter-Petrossian .......................................................................... 26 APPENDICES Prepared statement of Hon. Alcee L. Hastings ........................ 33 Prepared statement of Hon. Benjamin L. Cardin .................... 35 Prepared statement of Hon. Matthew Bryza ............................ 36 Prepared statement of Arman Grigorian .................................. 40 Written material submitted for the record by the Govern- ment of the Republic of Armenia ........................................... 47 (III) VerDate 0ct 09 2002 15:05 Aug 03, 2012 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 0484 E:\WORK\041708 ANDY PsN: HAROLD VerDate 0ct 09 2002 15:05 Aug 03, 2012 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 5904 Sfmt 0484 E:\WORK\041708 ANDY PsN: HAROLD ARMENIA AFTER THE ELECTION April 17, 2008 COMMISSION ON SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE WASHINGTON, DC The hearing was held at 2 p.m. in room B–318 of the Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC, Hon. Alcee L. Hastings, Chairman, Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, presiding. Commissioners present: Hon. Alcee L. Hastings, Chairman, Com- mission on Security and Cooperation in Europe; Hon. Benjamin L. Cardin, Co-Chairman, Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe; Hon. Christopher H. Smith, Ranking Member, Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe; and Hon. David J. Kramer, Executive Branch Commissioner, Department of State. Witnesses present: Matthew Bryza, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs; Vigen Sargsyan, Assist- ant to the President of the Republic of Armenia; and Arman Grigorian, spokesman for former President Levon Ter-Petrossian. HON. ALCEE L. HASTINGS, CHAIRMAN, COMMISSION ON SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE [Joined in progress.] Mr. HASTINGS [continuing]. A contest, which will be coming up soon. Sorry, young lady. As everyone here knows, the emergence last year into the polit- ical arena of former President Levon Petrossian energized what seemed like a quiet campaign with a predictable outcome. The un- usual circumstances of his departure from office in 1998 undoubt- edly help produce the heated rhetoric that followed his entry into the race. Ultimately, according to official tallies, Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan won the February 19th election with almost 53 percent of the vote. Levon Ter-Petrossian got about 21 percent, the two other leading politicians, who campaigned as opposition candidates, winning over 16 and 6 percent, respectively. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s obser- vation mission noted the need for further improvements, but con- cluded that the election had by and large met international stand- ards. Nevertheless, Mr. Petrossian and his supporters charged fraud and organized an ongoing demonstration in Yerevan. The protests continued for days, attracting considerable crowds, until March 1st, (1) VerDate 0ct 09 2002 15:05 Aug 03, 2012 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 E:\WORK\041708 ANDY PsN: HAROLD 2 and at that point, according to the authorities, some of the dem- onstrators sought to stage a coup d’etat, and law enforcement agen- cies had to restore order by force. In the ensuing state of emergency, independent media were shut down, and rallies were banned. The demonstrators, for their part, reject official allegations of violent intentions or actions. They ac- cuse the authorities of brutally attacking a peaceful assembly pro- testing the theft of the people’s will. Wherever the truth lies, the confrontation resulted in at least eight fatalities and many injuries. That was most regrettable. I understand that in the last few days two more people have died. Allow me to express my condolences to all the victims’ fami- lies. The OSCE Chairman-in-Office condemned the violent crackdown. Other international organizations and foreign capitals followed suit, forcing Yerevan to defend itself to the skeptical international community. Subsequently, two prominent opposition candidates reached agreement with Mr. Sargsyan to join forces. The four parties in this coalition represent, according to the figures provided by the central election commission, about 75 percent of the electorate. Nevertheless, tensions remain high. The state of emergency was officially lifted on March 21st, but restrictions on freedom of assem- bly continue in effect, drawing criticism from the Council of Europe and the OSCE. And while Mr. Sargsyan has been sworn in, some opposition leaders refuse to recognize the election’s outcome. About 100 people imprisoned after March 1st are still in jail. Per- haps most important, Armenian society seems to be split into pro- government and fervently anti-government camps. This chain of events has caused serious damage to Armenia’s reputation. The purpose of our hearing is to examine the ramifica- tions of these developments for Armenia and the United States. What should we conclude about the credibility of the official elec- tion results? In that connection, what can we say about the state of democracy in Armenia? And how can we in Congress and the ex- ecutive branch help Armenia overcome the obvious problems it is encountering on its path to democracy? Of special interest are the implications for the ongoing OSCE ne- gotiations on Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia’s qualifications for U.S. assistance from the millennium challenge account. Our three witnesses today, representing the U.S. Government, the Armenian Government and the Armenian opposition, will give us critical perspectives on these issues. But now, I’d like to turn to my colleagues for any remarks they may have, and I’ll start with the Ranking Member, who just came in, my friend, Mr. Smith, from New Jersey. HON. CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, RANKING MEMBER, COMMISSION ON SECURITY AND COOPERATION IN EUROPE Mr. SMITH. Thanks very much, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for calling this very timely hearing, especially as things continue to unfold in Armenia. As someone who has long been involved in Armenian issues and with the friendship that has built up over the years, especially in VerDate 0ct 09 2002 15:05 Aug 03, 2012 Jkt 000000 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6633 Sfmt 6633 E:\WORK\041708 ANDY PsN: HAROLD 3 working with the Congress and recognizing the Armenian genocide, I read about the recent events in Armenia with great sadness. When OSCE monitors gave last year’s parliamentary election an improved grade, we all hoped for the best from this year’s Presi- dential election. Unfortunately, things took a turn for the worst after the election, and protest demonstrations have ended in vio- lence. Here, I want to extend my deep condolences along with you. I know Mr. Cardin and others on this Commission have said very similar things to the families of the eight people who died so trag- ically. Families have so much grief when one of their members dies under any circumstances, but I think the grief must be much sharper when the death comes through a conflict with the authori- ties of the country that