In the parliamentary election 2007, unexpectedly, the Armenian society was amazed by the international observers, not the participants of the home political process. People were not amazed that the government used every method to hold on to power, justify its viability, it was not a surprise that the CIS observers gave a positive evaluation to this. The last “hope” was the Western observers who were supposed to be unbiased in their evaluations. Let us forget for a moment what the international observers said and why, and imagine what would happen if they said what the Armenian society, or at least its activists had longed to hear, who were disappointed with the evaluation of the observers.

Now let us imagine: Yerevan, May 13, Zvartnots Airport. The international observers hurry to the airport with their suitcases. A big crowd of reporters, representatives of NGOs, opposition activists, as well as a migrant worker whose suitcase the coordinator of the observation mission took by mistake are running after them. The crowd shouts: “Give your evaluation!” “Give me my suitcase!” shouts the migrant worker whose voice is not heard in the noise. The observers continue to run without looking behind. The crowd continues to chase them and shouts: “At least the first word, we will guess the rest.” “At least give me what is in my suitcase,” shouts the migrant worker. The observers hardly get on the plane and before locking the door they slip an A4 paper out to the crowd, on which it is written: “This is not a country, this is not a democracy, run away to save.” While the crowd is reading the paper, the plane is already flying above Georgia, and the reporters, representatives of NGOs and opposition activists do not manage to thank the observers for the unbiased evaluation. Everyone returns from the airport to Yerevan.

Now imagine what these people are doing in Yerevan. Is it difficult? Of course, it is. “What did you think? Did you think it would be easy?” said Khoren Abrahamyan the actor to the Armenians in the years of the energy crisis before leaving to work in the United States. At that time it was difficult to live, now it is difficult to imagine what the civil society of Armenia can do when the international observers have given an unbiased evaluation – i.e. the results of the election were falsified. To imagine this first we need to imagine what the opposition can do in this country. We all know what the government can do and we need not imagine. The government does things which become reality before one manages to imagine. Meanwhile, the opposition and the “authorized representatives” of the civil society expect the international observers to be unbiased. And only they know why they need an unbiased evaluation. Perhaps this evaluation is viewed as an approval of a revolution. In other words, the world gets angry with the government and tells the opposition: “Enough, go and get the power. It’s yours.” They go and see that the government gives nothing. “But they wouldn’t give,” the opposition will turn to the observers in distress. “Excuse us but we did what we were supposed, we gave the evaluation, the unbiased one, do you remember, at the airport?” the observers will say. Here’s a deadlock. What to do? It seems there is everything needed for a revolution but nothing happens. It is necessary to think, and in order to think a cafe, better a terrace, is needed for the public to see how the opposition is working, gathering information, classifying by importance and leaving the unnecessary information to the waiter for tip.

HAKOB BADALYAN