100 Days of Pashinyan: How Armenia Has Changed Since the Revolution

The revolution in Armenia was successful. On May 8, opposition leader Nikol Pashinyan became the country’s new Prime Minister. He has achieved quite a lot in the last three months. However, there are some in Armenia who are critical of him.

Protest next to the government building, Yerevan, Armenia, July 19, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

Armenia currently has a temporary government, which now has to prepare the country for extraordinary parliamentary elections. This is expected to take place at the end of the year.

Hromadske journalist Ostap Yarysh was in the Armenian capital Yerevan for the protests. He visited the country again three months later to see for himself what has changed. Read our special report on Armenia’s transformation.

Three Months

Despite the unbearable summer heat, almost one hundred people have gathered outside the government building. The temperature has not dropped below 40º C all week. The stifling heat makes it hard to walk, talk, or even think. This does not seem to affect the protesters, however. They come to the government building every Thursday, when the Cabinet of Ministers meets. They all want to see Pashinyan, and they all have their own personal problems.

“My daughter needs medical treatment in France, but the embassy will not give her a visa!”

Protest next to the government building, Yerevan, Armenia, July 19, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

“A big supermarket has been built near my shop and now people have stopped coming to mine!”

“Our house is in a critical state, it’s going to be destroyed by the wind!”

It’s noisy outside the government building. The demonstrators gather in small clusters and complain about their problems together. No one criticizes Pashinyan. They are all waiting for him – their long-awaited savior – to help them sort out their problems.

This woman’s son died while serving in the army. The official cause of death was suicide, but she does not accept this and has demanded that her son’s death be reinvestigated. She has a lot of hope in Pashinyan.Yerevan, Armenia, July 19, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

Among the people holding banners I recognize a pensioner I talked to on this square three months ago. He was an active participant of the Velvet Revolution and came to the square in Yerevan every evening. The government has now changed, but he has taken to the streets again. He carries with him a faded photograph of himself in military uniform.

Protest next to the government building, Yerevan, Armenia, July 19, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

“Nothing has changed for me in the last three months! Same as before, I demand justice,” the pensioner complains. “My apartment was robbed a few years ago and the police haven’t made any progress with the case. Nikol Pashinyan is an honest person, I have every hope for him! Why has he not replaced the old investigators yet? If this is how he treats a veteran of the Karabakh war, then what can I say about the rest?”

A thin, tired-looking woman with sunken eyes approaches. Trembling, she shows us a picture of herself with her arms around a slim young man in camouflage. “My son was killed while he was serving in the army. They told me it was suicide. But he was not capable of that. I want a fair investigation!”

Man attends the protest next to the government building, Yerevan, Armenia, July 19, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

– But why have you brought this to the government building?

She clasps her hands together and looks to the sky.

– “Pashinyan! He can help us all!”

– But you understand that’s not part of his remit?

Her admiration for Pashinyan seems to disappear from her face.

“How is that? Why are we standing here then?” she asks confusedly.

Saint Nikol

Armenia has not yet gotten over the euphoria of the revolution. There is still nationwide admiration for Nikol Pashinyan. It seems as though the ordinary people have adopted him as their messiah, who was sent to Armenia to save them from all their troubles.

The Yerevan markets are full of souvenirs depicting the new Prime Minister: t-shirts, caps, badges, and passport covers. A few stall-holders have even placed his portrait next to crucifixes and icons of Jesus.

People treat Pashinyan like a messiah, sent to save them from their troubles. His face appears all over the souvenirs in the market stalls. Yerevan, Armenia, July 19, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

However, there are those who criticize him.

“St. Nikol the Redeemer!” activist and blogger Sergey Chamanyan exclaims sarcastically. “When I say that we have a cult of personality forming here, people look at me as though I am a traitor. But they hold up their babies so that he can put his hands on them. Armenian jewelers have made cold coins with portraits of Caesar-Pashinyan costing 2000 euros. What else would you call this?”

In April, Chamanyan actively participated in the protests, along with the majority of Armenians. He went to the streets every day, he live-streamed the demonstrations and he drank champagne and celebrated into the night when ex-Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan resigned.

Armenian blogger Serget Chamanyan. Yerevan, Armenia, July 17, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

He is now skeptical of what is happening in the country at the moment. “They all admire Pashinyan. But nobody remembers that unconditional admiration very quickly turns to unconditional hatred,” he tells me.

Nikol Pashinyan himself is trying tackle this admiration for him. The walls of the government buildings, where pictures of the Prime Minister used to hang, are now empty. They have promised to line the corridors with images of ordinary Armenians who took part in the Velvet Revolution instead.

Pashinyan continues to try and get closer to the people. He broadcasts almost every day on Facebook, answering questions from citizens. These videos get hundreds of thousands of viewers.

“Pashinyan’s Facebook broadcast is now the highest ranking show in the country. His videos are more popular than porn,” Chamanyan jokes. “But people turn anyone who says anything against Pashinyan into an enemy. Just try and write something in the comments section, you’ll immediately be attacked by mudslingers.”

There is still nationwide admiration for Nikol Pashinyan. Pashinyan’s photo on the glass roof of an underground passage. Yerevan, Armenia, July 17, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

Pashinyan occasionally takes to Facebook for other reasons. In a recent post he advised public television journalists not to broadcast material that is critical of the government: “A few television channels, by using the unlimited possibilities of freedom of speech, have decided to engage in anti-state propaganda. Don’t do it. Just don’t do it.”

Two TV channel executives and several journalists resigned the next day. This sent alarm bells off within the Armenian media community. Many thought that Pashinyan, as a former journalist himself, went into politics to support the views of the opposition.

“Have you seen the Soviet film ‘To Kill a Dragon’?” Chamanyan asks. “The main character – the knight and savior – kills a dragon and frees the city. But then he becomes the dragon himself. These boundaries are especially narrow at the moment. And it really scares me that everything we have is tied up with Nikol. This is exactly what we were fighting against.”

Challenges Facing the New Government

“I had a friend who led quite an adventurous life. He never played by the rules but always wore a big cross round his neck. I asked him once, ‘Why do you have this cross? Do you believe in God or something?’ He says, ‘I believe, just in case,’” laughs Karen, the owner of a small hostel in the center of Yerevan. “It’s the same here. I think some people criticize the new government just in case. So if anything goes wrong they can then say, ‘I warned you!’”

“We need constructive criticism so that the new government will not become weak.” Ruzanna in her courtyard. Yerevan, Armenia, April 18, 2018. Oleksandr Kokhan/Hromadske

He and his wife Ruzanna sit outside their building, sorting apricots. The smell of ripe fruit fills the courtyard. It seems that if you stand here even a short while, your hair and clothes also start to smell like apricots.

Without looking up from her work, Ruzanna comments, “But we need constructive criticism, so that the new government doesn’t become weak and big-headed.”

A lot of ordinary citizens entered government after the April protests. Not everyone who took part in the demonstrations now knows someone in government. But if they don’t, then one of their friends, relatives, or neighbors knows someone who is.

Forming the new team is one of the main challenges facing the Armenian government. There is a lack of qualified people for the role. The leadership is new, but the rest need to be replaced. Three of the current ministers held lower positions under Sargsyan. The judges and security officials also remain the same as before.

Apricots and cherries, July 17, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

Among the new ministers and heads of state structures, there are a lot of people who lack experience, not only in politics, but in the fields they have been assigned to. They are former civic activists, journalists, and some are simply people from Pashinyan’s inner circle.

An English teacher from one of Yerevan’s universities was appointed Minister of Culture. She had never even stepped foot inside the Ministry before she became its head. And the Secretary of the National Security Council previously worked for the anti-corruption NGO Transparency International.

The central square in Yerevan. Three months ago. Armenians protested on this square, demanding the resignation of former PM Serzh Sargsyan. Armenia, July 19, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

“Wages have not increased, the economy has not improved, but at least I know now that these people are not working to line their own pockets, but for the country. For me this is very important,” Ruzanna says.

The activist Chamayan, on the other hand, is extremely critical of the new government. “Everything rests on Pashinyan’s authority. If this suddenly stops, you can’t imagine what there would be in Armenia. Nikol has no one in his team who can think strategically,” he tells me. “They will work while Pashinyan is there. But no one knows how to make it so the country can function without him.”

– Well, at least these people are honest.

Chamanyan pulls a face. “Would you agree to be operated on by an inexperienced but honest surgeon? I wouldn’t.”

The Snow Has Melted on Ararat

After coming to power, Pashinyan declared war on the old system. The new PM immediately announced that there will not be any vendettas, but everyone is equal before the law.

The biggest catch for Pashinyan so far has been the second President of Armenia Robert Kocharian, who was arrested at the end of July. On March 1, 2008, he gave orders to the police to suppress a major protest and several demonstrators were killed.

March 1 is a painful day for Armenians, and the case surrounding it has political significance. Although everyone knows who was responsible for these deaths, no one has ever been brought to justice for it.

Police patrol the streets of Yerevan, Armenia, July 16, 2018. Photo: Ostap Yarysh/Hromadske

“The most important thing is that people are put in jail [for it] and that money is returned to the budget. Although Kocharian and Sargsyan still need to be put in jail. But the first job is to return the money, because Pashinyan can’t do anything without that,” Karen says.

“We never suspected that corruption in Armenia was so widespread,” Ruzanna says. “It’s just horrific! There’s so much work ahead of us. It will be a win for us when people in Armenia refuse bribes because it’s right, and not out of fear.”

There have been several high-profile arrests over the last three months, but no one has been convicted of corruption yet.

Sargsyan’s head of security was arrested in late June for profiteering and providing false information on his asset declaration. However, he was released on bail two months later.

The former president’s brother was also arrested but released after being questioned. Another brother is also wanted but continues to serve as a special ambassador.

“I don’t want them to just be arrested, shaken up and let go. Let them be judged by the law, let them go to prison by the law. And then confiscate their money. I haven’t seen any real fight against corruption yet. It’s still there at the lowest levels – in schools, hospitals. This is also about the top, but it’s more for show than to produce any real results,” Chamanyan says.

Karen thinks differently.

“How is this not a result? Our neighbor decided to get his driving license extended. Before it used to be like this: Do you know the rules? Do you know how to drive? But you had to pay for the exam. And this time he went to get it done, went through the whole procedure… My neighbor only paid the official fee and there was no drama,” he says. “And the police? They treat people completely differently. Although the same people remain in those positions. It seems as though they are now playing by different rules.”

Karen gets up and leaves me with Ruzanna and the apricots.

“You know, I really feel like this is a different Armenia,” Ruzanna says, taking a deep breath, “Although, if you ask me how, I couldn’t say. But I definitely feel like this is a new country. I can make plans. I now know that everything depends solely on me. It doesn’t matter if I have parents in the parliament or not. How feelings have changed over the last three months!”

Karen then returns with sliced watermelon. “Look how beautiful it is! When I was little, my grandmother used to say, if the snow has melted on Little Ararat, then the watermelons are ripe. Better not try them before, they’re not as sweet.”

He takes a few slices and invites us to try.

“As for change… Wait, let the snow melt, and not only on Ararat. It’s also begun melting here.”

/By Ostap Yarysh 

/Translated by Sofia Fedeczko