June 11, 2009 - 17:17 AMT
Heghine Bisharyan: People are to blame for electoral wrongdoings
All in all, Yerevan Council elections can be estimated as "satisfactory", Heghine Bisharyan, Head of "Orinats Yerkir" parliamentary faction, told today a news conference. The "old style", i.e. wrongdoings, bribery and falsifications, was visible during the voting, nevertheless, the quality of conducting elections in Armenia rises by every year, the speaker noted.

"Even though 'Orinats Yerkir' overcame only the 5% barrier, its votes were not purchased," Ms. Bisharyan said, stressing that their party would improve its strategy by next elections. "Yerevan is not Armenia, and these were just municipal elections. So, we'll revise all our omissions which prevented us from overcoming the 7% barrier," Bisharyan said, adding that before elections she had met with different international representatives who had told her how their countries organized election and what wrongdoing were observed.

"Coalition parties signed a document on not distributing bribes, but the agreement was breached," Bisharyan said. Refusing to give the name of any party, she also noted that pro-opposition factions had also engaged themselves in such ill practices.

"No need to feel compassion for the people who elected their authorities on their own. People go to polling stations themselves, and there, they take bribes," Chair of "Orinats Yerkir" party said.