“Armenia After the Velvet Revolution”: A Talk by Tatul Hakobyan at Glendale Central Library

GLENDALE (ANI Center) — Armenian reporter and analyst Tatul Hakobyan gave a talk on current Armenian events at the Glendale Central library on August 24 as part of tour to various venues in several Armenian-American and Armenian-Canadian communities, including San Francisco, Toronto, Chicago, Washington DC. and Fair Lawn (NJ).

The event at the Glendale Central library was organized by Nor Serount Cultural Association.

Hakobyan spoke clearly in Armenian in an informal and lively fashion. He prefaced his talk by proclaiming that he was an independent journalist without ties to any political parties or the Armenian government.

The talk, followed by a discussion and Q&A, analyzed the latest political developments in Armenia that resulted in the so-called “Velvet Revolution” led by Nikol Pashinyan. The revolution brought about the resignation of newly-elected Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, who had already served two terms as Armenia’s President, and his replacement by Pashinyan.

Hakobyan analyzed the following questions:
-What were the causes of this unexpected revolution?
-What has been achieved over the past hundred, or so, days?
-What are the prospects for Pashinian’s success in the coming legislative elections?
-Is a counter-revolution that would bring back the kleptocratic, authoritarian leadership of the previous regimes still possible.

The lecture and Q&A session followed by a presentation of Hakobian’s and his ANI Armenian Research Center’s new books.