“I was not active as Armenian citizen and representative of a national minority because I was not into politics. However, problems of Assyrian community made me accept the proposal of Armenia’s Democratic Party to run for the National Assembly by proportional system,” president of the Federation of Assyrian Organizations of Armenia said on April 26.

Speaking about the election campaign, Democratic party’s nominee Irina Gasparyan told the journalists that nobody hinders parties’ visit to provinces, but they sometimes experience problems in meeting with the voters.

“Provincial headquarters of ruling parties follow those participating in election meetings; school and rural administration staff are registered in the Republican Party of Armenia despite their will, and they are threatened with dismissal unless they secure a certain number of votes for the party,” she stated.

There are many similar instances, all initiated by governmental parties, Gasparyan said adding that the Democratic Party aims to achieve constitutional changes, because Armenia is a constitutional state and is responsible for each of its citizens.