Levon Ter Petrosian, HHSh Independence Day Reception, Marriott Armenia, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2007

With speculation that the former first president, Levon Ter Petrosian, might enter the fray for next year’s election, his bitter foes, the Armenian Revolutionary Federation — Dashnaktsutiun (ARF-D) have responded to Friday’s speech given on the occasion of the 16th anniversary of Armenia’s independence. As has been mentioned on this blog before, although Ter Petrosian’s criticism of the current system might strike a note with much of the population, critics argue that today’s problems first materialized during his tenure as president. RFE/RL has more.

Reacting to the speech, Vahan Hovannisian, a Dashnaktsutyun leader and deputy parliament speaker, said Ter-Petrosian has no moral right to make such accusations because his eight-year rule was also marked by fraudulent elections, human rights abuses and other serious shortcomings.

“He spoke as if the population has already forgotten Levon Ter-Petrosian’s days in power — political repressions, the severe economic crisis that must not be linked with the war [with Azerbaijan,] and the terrible atmosphere that led to a massive emigration,” Hovannisian told RFE/RL.

“There are definitely vicious phenomena existing in the country now, and Dashnaktsutyun has always been the first to talk about them without hysteria characteristic of some opposition circles,” he said. “We are conscious at the same time that the roots of those problems date back to Levon Ter-Petrosian’s rule.”

Dashnaktsutyun, which is a junior partner in the ruling coalition, was in strong opposition to Ter-Petrosian and his Armenian Pan-National Movement (HHSh) throughout his presidency, which began in 1991 and ended in 1998. The nationalist party was controversially banned in 1994 for allegedly violating Armenian law and operating a secret death squad. The ban also led to the forcible closure of newspapers controlled by Dashnaktsutyun.

The full post is available on the 2008 Presidential Election Monitor Blog.