Armenia: Serzh Sargsyan and Raffi Hovhannisian Become Political Pen Pals

Armenia’s post-election standoff has moved into the direction of an epistolary novel as President Serzh Sargsyan and his challenger, Raffi Hovhannisian, work their way to a truce through correspondence that is cc'd to the rest of the nation.

In his latest letter, President Sargsyan kindly asked his hunger-striking rival to have a bite of something, cut the dramatics and sit down to talk. “Please stop the hunger strike, take a day or two to recover and then we will do some serious work, without the theatrics,” the president wrote to Hovhannisian, who claims that Sargsyan stole the presidency from him in Armenia's February 18 election.

Both sides, though, combine the careful courtesy with pointed barbs. Sargsyan, for instance, agreed to entertain Hovhannisian’s ideas for crisis resolution -- “half-baked” and “anti-constitutional” though they may be.

The ideas, laid out in an earlier missive from Hovhannisian, center on a request to hold a repeat presidential election or a parliamentary election preceded by an overhaul of the electoral system. And the prerogative to appoint some key officials such as the general prosecutor and the foreign minister, among others.

Hovhannisian, in turn, has agreed to consider Sargsyan's proposal to meet, thanked his political pen pal for his concern about his health, but assured him that there is no reason to be worried.

If Yerevan’s Liberty Square, Hovhannisian’s new open-air residence, is not the most convenient of places for a rendez-vous, another spot could be chosen, wrote the Heritage Party leader, with all the fluidity of a social secretary.

Even now, Sargsyan might be penning a response, and Armenians are likely to be spammed with more negotiation letters between the feuding leaders. The spirit of the correspondence may suggest some hope for an eventual resolution of the stalemate, but, given Armenia's recent political past, will the pen, in fact, prove mightier than the sword?