February 23, 2006

Raffi Hovannisian Holds News Conference

Raffi Hovannisian is For Creating a Big Opposition Union and is Going to Nominate His Candidature by Majoritarian System

Yerevan , Noyan Tapan. Zharangutiun (Heritage) Party leader Raffi Hovannisian is going to nominate his candidature at the forthcoming May 12 elections by majoritarian system. He declared this at the February 23 press conference. As regards the format of Zharangutiun Party’s running for the elections, this issue is being discussed at present and will be cleared up in the coming days.

R. Hovannisian said that he is for creating a big opposition union and expressed the hope that this union will be established. In his words, under the conditions of running for the elections independently and undermining the opposition field it will be more difficult for citizens to overcome indifference and distrust, to give importance to their own votes and and to the dictate of struggling for it. "I will respect the decision of my partners to run for the elections independently, but this is a great strategic, ideological and civil mistake," R. Hovannisian said.

As the Zharangutiun leader affirmed, if equal conditions are provided for everybody in the elections, the opposition will unanimously win. In his words, the rumors coming from power camp that there is no alternative to the current administration, are not only false, but scornful for Armenia .