On 17 June, the Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan proposed at the parliament to ban the Prosperous Armenia (BHK) opposition party over an alleged electoral fraud. „In 2017, I drafted a bill according to which political parties having falsified elections and given electoral bribes in a coordinated manner shall be banned. Unfortunately, my fellow deputies of the Yelq (Way Out) alliance of political parties didn’t agree to place the bill into circulation, and we all know how the events developed after that. Perhaps we should think about this. I’m expressing an idea,” he said.

The events following the stripping of parliamentary immunity of BHK leader Gagik Tsarukyan did not go unnoticed by the international community. The Russian Ambassador to Armenia Sergey Kopirkin met with Deputy Speaker of the Armenian National Assembly Vahe Enfiajyan and Chairman of the parliament’s Standing Committee on Regional and Eurasian Integration Mikayel Melkumyan, who represented the BHK. „During the talks, the parties discussed the development of Russian-Armenian inter-parliamentary relations, Russia's support in the fight against the coronavirus infection, which was provided to Armenia both in bilateral format and within the framework of general integration associations,” the Russian Embassy in Armenia said in a statement. „The parliamentarians also shared their views on some aspects of Armenia’s domestic political agenda,“ the statement also said. 

The following day, the Russian ambassador expressed a wish to meet with Armenia’s Vice Speaker of Parliament Alen Simonyan. “I am the chair of the Armenia-Russia inter-parliamentary and friendship group. Yesterday I talked to the vice-chairman of Russia’s Federal Assembly and we have not discussed any such issue. The Russian Ambassador to Armenia expressed a wish to meet with me, the meeting didn’t take place yet. As of this moment I do not have any reaction from our remaining partners”, said Simonyan when asked if the invitation had to do with Tsarukyan’s case.

Besides the Russian embassy, the President of the European People’s Party and former President of the EU Council Donald Tusk also commented on the issue. „EPP is concerned by numerous instances of backsliding of democracy in Armenia. We call on Armenian authorities to refrain from pressuring the opposition,“ he tweeted. He also mentioned that EPP will promote EU-Armenia relations in the framework of CEPA, exercising political will for full ratification and implementation of the agreement.

Siomonyan also responded to Tusk’s statements. “I think Mr Tusk sees Armenia through the eyes of [former President] Serzh Sargsyan, which are eyes cut off from reality, are waiting for justice and cannot have any relation to the citizens of Armenia and Armenia’s reality for already long time, even before the revolution,” he said, pointing out at the fact the Sargsyan’s Republican party (HHK) is a member of the EPP bloc.

Pashinyan also commented on the issue. „For 30 years Armenia was told to fight against corruption, electoral bribes and frauds, but now, when a real fight against this has started, they say why are you pressuring the opposition? The corrupt people of these 30 years are now an opposition. This is a very good way: I am an opposition, don’t do anything against me”, he said.

Parliamentary opposition wants the establishment of an Covid-19 ad-hoc committee

Following the continuous rise of Covid-19 cases in Armenia, the BHK parliamentarians called for a parliamentary inquiry into the authorities’ response to the continuing coronavirus epidemic in the country, reported the Armenian Radio Free Europe. 

The Bright Armenia (LHK)  leader Edmon Marukyan also said his party was ready to join the BHK initiative. “We will back the idea of an investigating commission on the condition that the commission is headed by a representative of the LHK,” said Marukian. He argued that his party was the first to float the idea.

Tsarukian’s party also urged the LHK to join it in asking the Constitutional Court to rule whether a government ban on rallies is legal. The ban stems from a coronavirus-related state of emergency in Armenia. Marukyan also questioned the ban, saying that Armenians can safely hold street gatherings if they wear face masks and observe physical distancing. Still, he said opposition lawmakers should have the issue discussed in the parliament before appealing to the Constitutional Court.

The Deputy speaker of Armenia’s Parliament Alen Simonyan argued that he has no problem with the BHK initiatives. “I personally find these two initiatives excellent. If that commission is formed we will also be able to investigate rumors spread by groups close to the party mentioned by you (BHK), rumors that the coronavirus does not exist.”

The country’s Ministry of Health eased the fears of the pandemic in the country, by saying that there were enough beds to treat the infected. “We have no problems with regard to hospitalization at the moment. The available hospital beds are still sufficient,“ said the ministry’s spokesperson Alina Nikoghosyan.She added that  at the same time 176 infected people in need of urgent treatment waited to be hospitalized as of 17 June, but she stressed that 140 of them were in kept in medical “triage centers” in preparation for their hospitalization.

The current tally of infected persons in Armenia stands at 18 698, with 309 reported deaths.