'Hayakve' initiates struggle against authorities' attempts to amend Armenian Constitution
YEREVAN, February 6.ARKA/. Avetik Chalabyan, coordinator of a public initiative called ‘Hayakve’ accused today the government of PM Pashinyan of seeking to carry out 'a constitutional coup.'
"Under the false guise of constitutional reforms, an attempt is being made to liquidate the independent Armenian state, turning it into a semi-state organization obviously dependent on Azerbaijan and Turkey,' Chalabyan claimed.
According to him, the country's leadership is actually proposing to relinquish Armenia's Declaration of Independence, which specifies the major national goals, such as building a strong state, international recognition and condemnation of the Armenian Genocide and the reunification of Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia.
"The country’s leadership has admitted that they are doing all this at the request of Baku and Ankara. Moreover, they threaten the people of Armenia with a new war in case they vote against their plan. In fact, after surrendering Nagorno-Karabakh to the enemy, they want to establish such an anti-constitutional system, blackmailing the people, which will put an end to the Armenian state," Chalabyan claimed.
He called on all 'national forces' and citizens concerned about the fate of the state to join the struggle and form a united front to fight for independence and prevent the dissolution of the independent country by the enemy.
Chalabyan said that the struggle will be aimed at preventing the authorities from succeeding in any of the stages of the procedure of adopting changes, starting from discussions in the parliament to holding a referendum.
On January 19, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said that Armenia needs a new Constitution that will make the country more competitive and viable in the new geopolitical conditions.
On January 24, Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan confirmed that Azerbaijan sees problems in Armenia's Declaration of Independence.
On February 1, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said that peace between the two countries can be achieved if Armenia puts an end to its territorial claims against Azerbaijan and amends the Constitution and other legal documents.
According to him, Armenia's Declaration of Independence contains direct calls for the unification of Karabakh with Armenia and violation of Azerbaijan's territorial integrity, and references to this document are also reflected in the Armenian Constitution. -0-
