Russia, Moscow, 27 February / Trend corr R. Agayev/ Legitimacy of the newly elected Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan is questionable. "Though such figures as 53%- which he received in the elections seem to be imposing, evidently, there was a plenty of violations as well. Anyway, when the Prosecutor of the country says that, and then, he is immediately murdered, that means a lot," the Russian expert Aleksey Malashenko said.
The main opposition candidate, ex-President Levon Ter Petrosyan accused the Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, who received 53% of the votes at the presidential elections on 19 February, of gerrymandering. Protest demonstration, hunger-strikes are held in Yerevan as a protest.
According to the Panorama Am, speaking on 22 February at the opposition demonstration, the Deputy Prosecutor General of Armenia Gagik Dzhangiryan called on the people to stand up for their votes and said that he had never seen such great elections falsification. Very Next day he was fired.
The Russian political scientist is confident that the matter is not clannish struggle or intrigues, but the public just realizes that the elections held are far from ideal, and therefore the opposition has a chance to exert great influence upon the current authorities, even if not turn the situation by 180 decrees. "It is difficult to say what will be the results, because Armenia, taking into consideration that it has a civil society and some elements of democracy, is a rather emotional country. It is well-known that a skirmish took place at the Armenian Parliament. So, we are to expect the most unexpected things. Moreover, we cannot see Sargsyan's helping hand extended to the opposition," Aleksey Malashenko, a member of the Moscow Carnegie Centre's Scientific Council, told Trend on 27 February.
The expert does not rule out that the situation in Armenia may face an 'orange revolution' like in Georgia or Armenia. He says the chances are 50 - 50, through he considers it tactless to use the word 'revolution'. "That will also depend on the behaviour of Sargsyan, who does not show an adequate reaction for the things happening around. The Armenian opposition has a good chance to get consolidated and lead a great number of well organized people outwards".
According to the Central Election Commission, Serzh Sargsyan, the head of the Republican Party, won the elections with 52.82% of votes. The ex-President Levon Ter-Petrosyan took the second place (21.5%).
Since 20 February, Yerevan has been facing demonstrations, rally-marches, as well as sitting student protests organized by the opposition. The organizers and participants protest against the results of the elections.