This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 003070 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/CACEN, EUR/ACE, DRL 
EUR/CACEN FOR EUGENIA SIDEREAS AND MARGARET PAWLICK 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PHUM PREL AM
SUBJECT: NEW REGISTRATION PROCEDURE TRIMS NUMBER OF 
POLITICAL PARTIES 
 
¶1. (U) Sensitive But Unclassified.  Please treat 
accordingly - not for internet distribution. 
 
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SUMMARY 
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¶2. (SBU) Half the previous number of political 
parties will operate in Armenia following the 
implementation of new legislation requiring a one- 
time re-registration with the Ministry of Justice. 
Fifty-three parties registered with the government 
ahead of the November 18 re-registration deadline, 
compared to 116 parties previously registered.  The 
Government denied re-registration to eight parties. 
Two opposition bloc parties (including Armenia's 
oldest political party, the Social Hunchakian Party) 
were denied registration on technical grounds, with 
little legal recourse for appeal.  End summary. 
 
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FEWER PARTIES APPLY FOR RE-REGISTRATION 
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¶3. (U) Fifty-three parties submitted applications as 
part of new GOAM legislation requiring a one-time re- 
registration of political parties by late November 
¶2003.  The new legislation required the Ministry of 
Justice to examine all party charters and by-laws to 
ensure they comply with domestic legislation 
governing political organizations.  Significantly 
fewer parties applied to re-register than the 116 
parties who were previously part of the government's 
official roster.  The law, adopted in November 2002, 
was promoted as a means of "sifting out" defunct 
parties. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Experts attribute the notably lower number 
of applications to the recent consolidation of a 
number of minor parties.  In addition, several 
unsuccessful presidential and parliamentary 
candidates did not re-register their "one-man" 
parties following their electoral defeats in 2003. 
They instead joined the ranks of other parties or 
used the re-registration process as an occasion to 
publicly exit politics.  International organizations 
like the OSCE did not openly criticize the first 
stage of the re-registration process.  Parties could 
easily access guidelines for the procedure in 
nationwide newspapers and observers did not cite 
overt obstacles designed to block specific parties. 
 
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MOJ DENIES HUNCHAKS, SOCIAL DEMOCRATS 
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¶5. (SBU) The Ministry of Justice recently announced 
that it would deny registration to eight parties who 
had applied for re-registration.  Six of the parties 
(including the "Armenian Royalists") were in clear 
violation of Armenian laws forbidding parties that 
advocate non-democratic forms of government or that 
fall short of the required number of supporters. 
 
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ALLEGED FOREIGN TIES 
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¶6. (SBU) Local media and opposition leaders noted 
the Ministry of Justice's decision to deny re- 
registration to the Hunchakian and Social Democratic 
Parties.  Both parties, who joined the opposition 
Justice Bloc in mid-2003, denounced the decision as 
a move to fragment the opposition and drive their 
supporters toward the governing coalition.  The GOAM 
responded saying the parties were not registered due 
to non-compliance with a number of regulations 
including laws forbidding parties with "foreign" 
sponsorship. 
 
¶7. (SBU) Note:  The Social Hunchakian Party was 
founded in 1887 and was especially active among 
Diaspora Armenians in the Middle East and the United 
States during the Soviet era.  The party still 
enjoys relatively high prestige within the U.S. 
Diaspora community, especially among retired 
Armenian-Americans.  Individuals close to the party 
suspect that the majority of financial support for 
the party comes from abroad.  The party split in the 
mid-90s; the GOAM did not deny the spin-off Social- 
Democratic-Hunchakian-Party its registration 
application.  End note. 
 
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NO APPEAL POSSIBLE? 
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¶8. (U) The new registration process does not specify 
procedures for appeal once a party's application is 
denied.  Social Hunchakian and Social Democratic 
Party leaders told us December 22 that they would 
take their case to court unless the National 
Assembly adopted an addendum to the registration 
procedure by the end of the year.  A special 
National Assembly session on December 25 includes 
this issue on the agenda but it is unclear to what 
extent parliamentarians support the move. 
 
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COMMENT 
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¶9. (SBU) While it remains unclear whether the 
National Assembly will address the concerns of the 
Hunchakian and Social Democratic parties, the 
registration process does not appear to have been 
overly biased against the opposition bloc. 
Representatives of the GOAM executive branch have 
been especially responsive to opposition concerns, 
spearheading the effort to amend the law.  Whether 
the National Assembly decides to create an appeals 
process for political parties will be an important 
litmus test for the legislature's commitment to 
democratic ideals.  End comment. 
WALKER