Weekly update
6 June
Gagik Tsarukian, the leader of the opposition Prosperous Armenia Party (BHK), has demanded that the Armenian government step down, accusing it of mishandling the coronavirus crisis and its socioeconomic consequences. Pashinian swiftly hit back hard at Tsarukian after he criticized the government in unusually strong terms at a meeting with senior BHK members held on Friday. “I said last year that with this composition and structure [of the government] it’s impossible to live up to the [people’s] expectations and that if they want to live up to them they must replace 97 percent of [government members,]” said Tsarukian. “Seeing all these failings now, I can say for certain that not 97 percent but 100 percent of them must be replaced because all spheres have been mismanaged.” For more information read RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am).
5 June
The World Health Organization (WHO) updated its guidance on Friday to recommend that governments ask everyone to wear fabric face masks in public areas where there is a risk of transmission of COVID-19 to help reduce the spread of the pandemic disease, informed REUTERS. In its new guidance, prompted by evidence from studies conducted in recent weeks, the WHO stressed that face masks were only one of a range of tools that can reduce the risk of viral transmission, and should not give a false sense of protection.
4 June
A group of public and political figures have created a new civic initiative called “Ararum” (Creation) in Armenia, said NEWS.am. The board members of the initiative are First Human Rights Defender of Armenia Larisa Alaverdyan; Doctor of Economics Tatul Manasaryan; Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Armenia Arman Navasardyan; former member of Sasna Tsrer Pan-Armenian Party Pavel Manuyan; Karin Tonoyan; former Minister of Nature Protection Karen Danielyan and composer, poet Sasun Paskevichyan. “The members of the initiative are concerned about the fact that Armenia’s domestic and foreign policies, economy, social conditions of the population, the foundations for a legal state, national culture, the moral principles of Armenian families, education, science and even the country’s international reputation are seriously at risk,” the statement issued by the initiative reads.
President Donald Trump is facing an unprecedented revolt from the elite corps of ex-military leaders and presidents over his brazen response to mass protests and inflaming of racial divides, reported CNN. In a true Washington bombshell on Wednesday evening, former Defense Secretary James Mattis, a warrior revered by his troops, told Americans they must come together without the President. "Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people -- does not even pretend to try," said Mattis, who has kept silent since resigning in 2018.
3 June
Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan urges citizens to join the process of public oversight and post photos on their Facebook pages about the violations of anti-pandemic rules, PM Pashinyan said in a briefing following the session of the Commandant’s Office. ‘’Starting from yesterday we were able to understand the scale of the problem and I want to thank all the citizens who participated in the flashmob of public oversight. I think that we were able to carry out a very small revolution and witnessed at least some improvement of people’s behavior. I plan to continue this process and there will be a broad coverage of this issue on my Facebook page every day. I urge the citizens to allocate some time every day for public oversight. I can say that with this we launch the establishment of the public oversight team,’’ ARMENPRESS reports the PM as saying.
1 June
Public Radio of Armenia informed, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his family have tested positive for Covid-19. The PM says he has probably contracted the virus during a working consultation. PM Pashinyan says none of family members has any symptoms. “I didn’t have any symptoms, I decided to take a test as I was planning to visit the frontline,” said Pashinyan. The Prime Minister will now self-isolate in his residence and will continue to work distantly.
President Armen Sarkissian spoke today on the phone with Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and congratulated him on his 45th birth anniversary, informed the President Office. President Sarkissian wished Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian and his family a speedy recovery and all the best.
Sources: https://www.president.am/en/press-release/, https://en.armradio.am/, https://armenpress.am, https://news.am/eng/, https://www.azatutyun.am/en, https://edition.cnn.com/, https://www.reuters.com/.