The Government of the Republic of Armenia

Every effort is being made to help Armenian from Kessab
Assistance will be provided to mitigate frost damage
A working group is being set up to improve mandatory funded pension system legislation

Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan - Before proceeding to the agenda, we have to address three issues: firstly, it is the problem of Kessab-based Armenians that we keep in focus. Mrs. Hakobyan, what are the latest developments?

Minister of Diaspora Affairs Hranush Hakobyan - Mr. Prime Minister, as you know, 670 families were displaced in the aftermath of the well-known events, of which about 400 are located in Latakia, Damascus, Beirut. A dozen families moved to Anjar, over 200 people took refuge in a church area, there were 38 people were kept hostage, 24 of them have been returned, 3 people were forcibly transferred to Vakif Turkish village; the rest of local Armenians are in Kessab. They keep in touch with the village mayor over the phone who in turn keeps in touch with us.

Children already go to school in Anjar. An ambulance service is operational in the church area. All the Armenian structures in Syria have set up emergency care facilities during the last three years, which are included in our churches, political parties and AGBU.

All the basic supplies are available, including food. Steps are taken by the Republic of Armenia following the President’s statement made in the Hague. We have forwarded the President’s statement to all the community leaders, asking them to organize demonstrations, protests and rallies, as well as render material aid. Here it should be noted that all the Armenian communities held protests, demonstrations, ranging from strikes to exerting pressure on the State Department. Especially active were Haydat, the Armenian Assembly of America, the political parties, both of the Armenian Church leaders responded very quickly to our appeal.

What are we supposed to do for our Kessab-based compatriots? The first request is to step up the pressure on international organizations. Yesterday, our Foreign Minister appealed to the United Nations, Ban Ki -Moon in person, our Education Minister appealed to the European People’s Party, with the main request to launch a probe into the recent events and, secondly, to ensure that the displaced families return to their homes.

We also have a request, as a nation and Diaspora, to help them reinstate what they used to have before. Unfortunately, the churches have been desecrated and even there are instances of resettlement. The invaders came from North-West, entered into and are now living in our homes. Family wealth is being robbed. If they happen to go back home again, we will have to develop another scheme for assistance.

At the same time, there is a financial aid issue, fundraising has begun in various institutions and organizations, but we find that we have had a relevant for 20 years now - the All-Armenian Fund – while the classic political parties and the Church may use their traditional channels.

At the same time, Mr. Prime Minister, we had a meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister involving the Marz governors, who were told to stand ready for any possible scenario. To date, nobody has arrived in Armenia from Kessab, though there are rumors that those staying in the church may be transferred to Beirut and then to Armenia. Indeed, this may take some time before the conflict is over.
I must say that the most active guys have joined the army, though they do not agree to active operations as in that case we might face greater destruction. This is why the situation changes very slowly, but at this point the Syrian army has captured some strategic heights.

I should also note that our MPs’ visit was of great importance in both moral and psychological terms. The Armenian Embassy and Consulate are very responsive and are making every effort to address the situation. We keep in touch with them, trying to find solutions.

Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan – The MPs’ reported back to is that the Kessab-based Armenians’ main desire is to return to their homes.

Minister of Diaspora Hranush Hakobyan - Yes, Mr. Prime Minister, we had an inter-ministerial commission meeting yesterday involving representatives from the relevant departments and ministries who learned all about the current situation from the MPs. All our institutions and organizations are prepared to host Kessab residents, should they make up their mind to come to homeland.

Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan – Well, just our citizens should be confident that we keep the issue under control and the Government will do everything to stand by and support our compatriots.

The second issue is related to the recent drastic weather changes that caused serious damage to agriculture. You may be aware that several consultations have been held with Mr. Gevorgyan, which will be summarized over the next couple of days. The affected zone covers an area of over 11500 hectares. The governors and the Minister are studying in detail the scope of the damage per each farm in order to assess the extent of damage and the need in material assistance and support.

We still have time to remedy the situation during the agricultural year, and we will help our farmers so that they can get different kinds of seeds and fertilizers. To this end, we have asked the Central Bank to discuss funding possibilities. Mr. Javadyan, have you got an idea of what could be done to address the problem?

CBA President Arthur Javadyan - We have already studied the situation on the spot. Besides, we are currently working with the banks and lending institutions, and I will be able to report back to you the situation in a few days. At this point, I can tell you that some 6 billion dram is needed in credit investment.

Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan - Well, we will resort to loan restructuring as we did in Armavir Marz last year. State budget resources will be committed to help farmers overcome financial problems so that they can cope with both spring and winter sowing campaigns. Mr. Gevorgyan will summarize the results in a couple of days, and we will have a clearer idea of the scope of assistance.

Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan – The third issue relates to the Constitutional Court’s ruling, which was made public yesterday. The Court decided that some provisions of the funded pension law are unconstitutional and that the Government and the National Assembly should bring them into conformity with the Constitution before the deadline of September 30, 2014.

A task force will be set up today, which means that we shall work with all concerned agencies to submit a new legislative package to the National Assembly. Thereby, the civil society will be given a unique opportunity to participate in the drafting of legislative changes aimed at improving the current system.
Taking this opportunity, I once again appeal to the civil society, those activists who kept in focus the mandatory funded pension law, inviting them to dialogue.

I think it is a unique opportunity for them to work for a better legislation, which would take into account the decision of the Constitutional Court. Thus, we are looking forward to dialogue for the sake of a better legislation. In conclusion, I would like to note that the aforementioned task force will feature our main departments - Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank.

Of course, it is extremely important for us to formulate expert findings as to the implications of the Constitutional Court’s ruling for our businesses and citizens.

It is my understanding that the law will continue in force as it is until the deadline of September 30, and we will have to correct the affected norms by that time.

Minister of Justice Hrair Tovmasyan – That is it, Mr. Prime Minister. Paragraph 15, Article 68 of the law on the Constitutional Court states that any law is deemed to be constitutional before its invalidation. This is called tolerance of non-conformity in theory, i.e. those provisions will be deemed as constitutional until the deadline of September 30.

Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan – Well, this means that the applicable law, which was adopted on January 1, 2014, is still effective for our citizens and economic entities, and this means that everyone should be guided by the law. In turn, the Government and the National Assembly will have the possibility to amend the law by the deadline of September 30.

Here everything is clear. Mr Tovmasyan, I am asking you to introduce your comments to media after the Cabinet meeting in order to rule out any possible misinterpretation, since we all need to proceed from the same position.