The Shameful Reality of the Armenian Parliament

The Shameful Reality of the Armenian Parliament

BY RAFFY ARDHALDJIAN As a dual citizen, I have been turned off for a while now by the demeaning level of parliamentary debates. But after every low, there seems to be a newer low, and it’s unbearable to watch and say nothing. When majority Members of Parliament charge at an opposition member, forcing women colleagues to form a human shield for his protection, our democracy is in crisis. How can lawmakers who write our laws threaten violence in p…

Levon Kocharyan, the son of former Armenian President Robert Kocharyan, made harsh criticisms of the opposition. In response to Kocharyan’s criticism, Prime Minister Pashinyan’s Civil Contract Party Deputy Chairman Hakop Arshakyan said, “Your father (Robert Kocharyan) is also Turkish.” After these words, a fistfight broke out in the Armenian Parliament.