ARMENIAN-STYLE "MOP-UP"

In Armenia, the process of reformatting the political field is continuing. It was announced by the country's President Serzh Sargsyan, who proclaimed a policy of mopping up "false political phenomena" and "feudal logic".

Initially, many thought that the issue was about Gagik Tsarukyan, head of the Prosperous Armenia party and local vodka tycoon. In fact, the new round of the internal political shakeup started with the fact that the authorities very effectively knocked precisely Gagik Tsarukyan out of the opposition troika of leaders. First, the PAP leader made a whole series of statements where he invited people to barricades both literally and figuratively. In response, the authorities set their levers in motion - from the tax service to very transparent hints that Mr Tsarukyan will have to say goodbye to his deputy seat and parliamentary immunity. The authorities' response seriously scared the oligarch. And after a meeting with the president, Gagik Tsarukyan "changed his position" diametrically and, appealing to "common sense", said that bloodshed must be prevented. That is, in fact, he signed domestic political capitulation.

In Armenia, they have already started to discuss ironically whether Tsarukyan will get back his armed guard, of which he was deprived several days ago.

But judging by the many signs, the "inner circle" of Serzh Sargsyan considers the present political capitulation of Gagik Tsarukyan insufficient. The pro-government media in Armenia expressed their own accusations against him. In their opinion, Tsarukyan committed an unpardonable sin: first, he blackmailed the authorities in "slow war" conditions with threats to bring the people onto the streets, i.e. "to open a second front". And secondly, he created a risk of destabilization ahead of the centenary of "Armenian genocide". Such sins, the pro-government media in Armenia believes, are not forgiven in principle, from which they are now drawing their own conclusions in Yerevan: pro-government circles believe that Tsarukyan, who is called not the leader, but "the owner of the PAP", must leave the political arena as a warning to others, while his interrupted political career must clearly demonstrate how "the entry of big money into politics" ends and become a lesson for those who are trying to "organize the Maidan in Armenia". And in general, Tsarukyan should now also resign from his post as chairman of the PAP. Perhaps, the tycoon will retain his business, but any attempt to engage in politics, it seems, will cost him very dearly.

This metamorphosis of Tsarukyan was apparently a complete surprise to his colleagues in the opposition. Armenia's first president Levon Ter-Petrosyan burst out with a lengthy article, where he argued for long that Gagik Tsarukyan, who was considered close to the government until recently, had deliberately exchanged "pro-government well-being" for a long path as an opposition member, etc. In general, according to Ter-Petrosyan, Mr Tsarukyan has not yet had his say in politics. Tsarukyan himself prefers to take "a pause" and is in no hurry to have his "last say" - perhaps he is aware that in the context of Armenian specifics, this say can really be his last.

Interestingly, in Yerevan they immediately cancelled the opposition rally scheduled for 20 February (and it was due to take place the day when Victoria Nuland was visiting Armenia). It is unlikely, of course, that the key factor for the success of the protest was the participation of Mr Tsarukyan and his supporters in it. What is important is that in Yerevan they are gradually coming to the conclusion that not only the government but also the so-called systemic opposition represented not only by the PAP but also by the "Armenian National Congress" of Levon Ter-Petrosyan - in short, the parties that supported Armenia's entry into EAEU - are catastrophically losing their popularity.

Against this background, the cancellation of the rally is a remarkable fact. And this is not surprising: a series of rallies, sensational calls and accusations against the government by the opposition leaders ended, in fact, in nothing. The attempt of Levon Zurabyan, the formal head of the ANC, to speak in the parliament with a statement on the governance crisis in Armenia did not lead to the expected result either. Independent MP Edmon Marukyan, who took the floor, stated that the proposed text of the statement is about nothing and its authors are not offering anything, and their goal is to get to the rostrum, and nothing more. "You are not able to hear any criticism, even from your colleagues in the opposition. Everyone is responsible for migration and all the sins you mentioned, including the opposition, which has convinced the people that everything is bad in the country and power change is in the offing. And every time you named the date and time for power change and disappointed people, you increased the wave of migration. The crisis of the political system is also among you. And together with the authorities, you should also leave as the culprit of what happened," Marukyan said.

But it is unlikely that this fact seriously calms Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan, who understands that the popularity of the authorities is hardly higher than that of the opposition, not to mention the fact that the protest electorate is simply looking for a new leader. There are enough candidates for this role, and not only among professional politicians. Oligarchs, including those of criminal origin are no less actively involved in the game. And Serzh Sargsyan has declared war precisely on them.

In particular, recently a former member of parliament, Hakob Hakobyan, who is better known by the nickname "Cheyt" or "Choyt", was arrested in Armenia. The formal reason for his arrest was tax arrears - in the amount of one million dollars.

However, in Yerevan they claim that the real reason is not tax fraud, but ... a feature film dedicated to the "Armenian genocide" shot by Hakob Hakobyan. Cheyt himself acted as the scriptwriter, while the director was Kajayr Hakobyan and composer - Ara Gevorgyan, the one who is "famous" for stealing the melodies of Tofig Quliyev. After the closed showing of the movie, according to the Yerevan media, it was explained to Mr Hakobyan that his film will turn the centenary of the "genocide" into a farce, make Armenia a laughing stock in the eyes of the world and be a godsend for Azerbaijani propaganda. It is rumored that "Cheyt" demanded compensation in the amount of 10m dollars, but ended up in Nubarashen prison as a result.

In short, some style can already be seen in the authorities' actions in Armenia. And the "mop-up" of the political field has affected mainly oligarchs, not politicians. They are accused of purely "commercial" sins, and then the media quickly runs a theory about "real" sins that damage the "Armenian cause", be it a bad film about the "Armenian genocide" or a call for rallies, which is untimely from the authorities' point of view.

As we can see, a large-scale "mop-up" of the political field, where everything - from political compromising dossiers to criminal charges against political opponents - is used, is beginning in Armenia.