In one of my earlier commentaries which appeared in the 4/27/02 issue 
of the Armenian Reporter, I stated, Raffi Hovannissian, the former 
U.S. born Prime Minister of Armenia, seems to be headed back into 
Armenia’s political arena.   And if this is true, it could be the 
best thing that happened to Armenia since their independence in 1991.

In the January 18, 2003 issue of the Armenian Reporter, I also read 
where Armenia’s Central Election Committee (C.E.C.) has rejected 
Raffi’s bid to run for Armenia’s presidency in the upcoming election
 because, arguably, he hasn’t been a resident of Armenia for the 
required amount of time as a candidate.

Though Raffi Hovannissian argues that he meets all of Armenia’s 
legal requirements to run for office, it seems that it will end up 
in a Mexican stand-off, and even if it doesn’t, it doesn’t seem 
likely that it would give him enough time to mount an effective 
campaign.

In my personal opinion, this is truly a sad state of affairs, and 
even more so for Armenia’s fragile democratic structure.   
In short, I believe that Armenia may have lost a major opportunity 
toward becoming an even stronger democracy regardless of the 
outcome of the presidential election.   Certainly, the dedication 
and unblemished character of a person such as Raffi Hovannissian 
would have added more credibility to the election process, but on 
the other hand, if Raffi’s participation would have been for 
window-dressing only, then it’s just as well that he was prevented 
from running.   No doubt, Armenia’s citizenry may want a true 
democracy but if they are prevented from choosing freely, then 
all of the window-dressing in the world isn’t going to help.

Since Armenia’s heroic struggle to gain independence in 1991, 
wholesale corruption is  making her a spoon-fed nation.   
And as with many of the other nations that reclaimed their 
independence after the Soviet collapse, wholesale corruption 
is making many of them spoon-fed and impotent also.   And it is 
because of this that many of the people who struggled and fought 
for independence, are now wondering why they overthrew the 
spoon-fed rule of a corrupt, communist state only to find 
themselves facing, though free and independent, a nation that 
is fast becoming impotent and spoon-fed because of the rampant 
existence of wholesale unchecked corruption.   

Millions, including Armenians, have since been migrating from 
their newly-formed independent states to greener pastures, and 
who can blame them.   And the irony of it all has been that seventy 
or more years under the despotic communist rule, saturated with 
corruption which had done nothing for them in the past, were now 
living in a new independent nation saturated with levels of 
wholesale corruption that was rapidly eroding away all hope 
for a free and prosperous future.   

Tough situation, to be sure, and as I stated before, who could 
blame them.   Sure, being Armenian was important, but being 
Armenian and remaining impoverished with no future in sight, made 
migration to many in Armenia, their only choice as well.  
 Would we have done less?  

Though I’ve never met Raffi Hovannissian personally, 
I love him and respect him for his courage and the sacrifices 
he’s made to help his beloved Armenia to survive.  But until 
such time as it takes for the people of Armenia to get
 involved with their threadbare democracy, Raffi may have to
remain nurturing himself with the hope that Armenia will 
eventually find her way.  And this would be the time when 
Armenia will need people of Raffi’s caliber the most.  Heaven 
knows, he and his family, including his illustrious father and 
mother, have done more than most of us to heighten Armenia’s 
chances for a good future.   And for young activists like Raffi to 
keep pouring their intellectual and physical strength into a country 
that hasn’t as yet discovered the true meaning of freedom and 
independence would be a terrible waste.

I know what I’m saying will not sound heroic to some of our 
sideline diplomats, but it makes for good logic.  Besides, I 
have never been one for wasting words.

As to Armenia’s future, the power to reform can only come 
from within, and I am certain that Armenia will eventually 
mature and come to grips with her own destiny.  How long will
 it take or how will it come about, I do not know, but it will 
happen.  Of this I am sure.   It may even now be in the process
 of happening and I pray that it is.  In any case, until such 
time as it takes for that to happen, an old winemaker’s adage 
for patience says it best:  

One should not drink wine before its time.

Joseph Vosbikian