Armenia: Yerevan Prepares for Fresh Mayoral Elections

Amid conflicting reports that Gagik Beglarian, the former mayor of the Armenian capital Yerevan, may face criminal charges for allegedly assaulting a presidential administration employee, the city is preparing for a snap mayoral election.

A special December 13 session of the Yerevan City Council voted to hold elections for a new mayor on the morning of December 17. Beglarian resigned from office on December 8 following a scandal, in which the mayor was alleged to have accosted and severely beaten a presidential administration employee.

Beglarian -- the first Yerevan mayor not appointed by the president, as well as the first to resign from office -- held his post via a vote among members of the Yerevan City Council. The governing Republican Party of Armenia holds the majority of seats in the council – 35 seats out of a total of 65.

The current status of Beglarian, a member of the Republican Party, is unclear. At a December 13 news conference, Rafik Petrosian, who chairs the parliament’s standing Human Rights and Public Affairs Committee, declared that President Serzh Sargsyan “has instructed [officials] to launch criminal proceedings against Beglarian” for assault, causing bodily injuries and kidnapping.

“I think Gagik Beglarian should be expelled from the party, and he should face a trial,” added Petrosian, a fellow Republican Party member. “If the victim refuses to make a statement, a criminal case may not be filed, but the party must express its position on the incident.”

The presidential administration, however, has denied that Sargsyan ordered a criminal case opened against Beglarian. “Criminal proceedings have not been launched on the president’s instructions,” presidential spokesperson Armen Arzumanian told EurasiaNet.org.

One human rights activist said the Belgarian incident should be clarified before the December 17 election for a new Yerevan mayor. “According to the law, if the media publish materials containing grounds for launching a criminal case, а preliminary investigation must be filed. The reports published here were more than enough for investigating Gagik Belgarian,” commented Arthur Sakunts, chairperson of the Helsinki Citizens Assembly-Vanadzor.

But with three days to go before the election, official attention appeared to be focused elsewhere. Though no official nominees for mayor have yet been announced, many Yerevan residents believe that Deputy Mayor Taron Margarian, the 32-year-old son of late Prime Minister Taron Margarian, may emerge as the leading candidate. A member of the Republican Party, Margarian is widely respected for his community activism and attention to official duties.

A senior member of the Republican Party, MP Hovhannes Sahakian, said that party officials were “waiting for the decision of the Republican Party chairman [President Sargsyan] to nominate a candidate for mayor.” A special nominating session of the party may be convened, Sahakian added.

No opposition is expected. The Armenian National Congress, which fronted ex-president Levon Ter-Petrosian for last year’s vote, asserts that the 2009 local election results were falsified. The coalition thus has declined to occupy its 14 City Council seats.

Representatives of the Prosperous Armenia Party, a member of Armenia’s governing coalition that has 17 seats in the Yerevan City Council, have indicated that they will not nominate a candidate. “We’ve given up the idea of nominating a candidate … because the Republican Party holds a majority there, and they will nominate their candidate, and assume responsibility for electing the mayor,” said senior Prosperous Armenia Party member Naira Zohrabian.