US embassy cable - 04YEREVAN2786

UNCLAS YEREVAN 002786 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/CACEN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, AM 
SUBJECT:  BOYCOTT OVER?  OPPOSITION PARTICIPATES IN 
DEBATE ON IRAQ CONTINGENT 
 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1. (SBU) Armenian parliamentary opposition members 
participated in the December 24 National Assembly 
debates over the dispatch of non-combat troops to Iraq, 
ending their months-long boycott of the sessions of the 
parliament.  Opposition parties, however, were divided 
on the decision:  while the Justice Bloc strongly 
opposed sending GOAM troops to Iraq, members of the 
National Accord faction voted in favor.  It is still 
too early to say whether the opposition's boycott is 
really completely over.  One of the most vocal 
opposition members, MP Viktor Dallakian, announced that 
the opposition only participated in the session due to 
the implications of the decision to dispatch troops to 
Iraq for the country and the Armenian Diaspora and said 
that the opposition would continue to boycott the 
parliament.  End Summary. 
 
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OPPOSITION ENGAGES IN NA SESSION 
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2. (SBU) The December 24 extraordinary session of the 
National Assembly (NA) was unusually long and well 
attended since the opposition had chosen to suspend 
their months-long boycott of the parliamentary sessions 
and engage in the debates over dispatching non-combat 
Armenian troops to Iraq.  Closed-door parliamentary 
debates continued for more than seven hours, and the 
vote was technically secret.  Opposition parties, 
however, split on the decision:  members of the 
National Accord (NA) parliamentary faction voted for 
the dispatch, while MPs from the Justice bloc opposed 
the decision. 
 
3. (SBU) MPs from the Justice bloc promptly left the 
session hall immediately after the vote.  Opposition MP 
Artashes Geghamian, along with six other deputies from 
the National Accord faction, however, stayed for the 
budget debates and even delivered an emotional speech 
on possible return of Soviet-era savings' deposits to 
the population.  Opposition members stated several 
times that their "second coming" to the National 
Assembly was explained only by the utmost importance 
for the country and the Armenian Diaspora of the 
decision to dispatch a non-combat contingent to Iraq; 
they said that they would continue to boycott the 
parliament.  Nevertheless, the word in Yerevan is that 
this move may well indicate the final chapter of a 
boycott that the opposition has been looking for a face- 
saving way to end.  We predict that the opposition will 
engage -- at least part-time -- in the upcoming spring 
legislative session as it considers electoral and 
constitutional reform. 
EVANS