Raffi Hovannisian’s supporters to set up fund to raise money for him to continue fight for democracy

YEREVAN, March 15. / ARKA /. Supporters of Heritage Party leader Raffi Hovhannisyan intend to set up a fund to finance his struggle for democratic Armenia.

On March 14, Armenia’s Constitutional Court rejected the claims of Raffi Hovannisian and another former presidential candidate Andrias Ghukasyan that the February 18 presidential election was rigged in favor of incumbent president Serzh Sargsyan.  

Hovannisian and Ghukasyan had asked the  Court to reject the election results, but the Court  denied their claims, upholding the Central Election Commission’s (CEC) final assessment that there had not been major violations affecting the final outcome of the poll. 

According to the CEC, Sargsyan secured 58.64 percent of the 1,521,261 votes cast, while , Raffi Hovannisian garnered 36.75 percent of the votes.

"I think it is going to be a powerful wave, a move that will help collect funds to continue the fight,"  a member of Heritage Party,  Anahit Bakhshyan, told a rally in Liberty Square today.  She said  soon a  bank account will be announced for all those who support Hovannisian’s struggle to  transfer funds.

On March 10, Hovannisian began a hunger strike, telling his supporters ‘If on April 9 Mr. Sargsyan  takes the false oath of office on the Holy Bible and the constitution and if His Holiness Catholicos Karekin  II thus desecrates the Bible  by blessing a candidate who derides the people, they will do that on my corpse.”  -0-