CoG: “Velvet Revolution” Two Years On - Part 1 (#17 - Sep 25, 2020)

It’s been two and a half years since the dramatic popular protests of 2018 that resulted in the resignation of Serge Sargsyan and the subsequent election of Nikol Pashinyan as Prime Minister in Armenia. The change in power, which is commonly referred to as “The Velvet Revolution”, gave many the hope of a more democratic Armenia. Many promises were made in 2018, and mid-way through this administration many of us want to know how the Armenian government is delivering on those promises.In this Conversation On Groong, we talk to two long-time activists who ended up on opposite sides of the fence on this topic with one becoming a member of parliament while the other a fiery critic of the government. Marine Manucharyan is the president of the Civic Forum NGO. She holds a Masters degree in Educational Management from Yerevan State University. Since 2004, she has been a civic and political activist and has worked with a number of local and international organizations. Her main areas of focus include Nagorno Karabakh, the Armenian Armed Forces, National Security and Foreign Policy.Mikael Zolyan is a member of the National Assembly of Armenia. He has a Ph.D. in history from Yerevan State University, and has taught at the Yerevan State University of Linguistics and Social Sciences, his research focuses on issues of nationalism, conflict and democratization. Currently Zolyan is a member of the standing committee on Foreign Affairs of the National Assembly of Armenia.Topics:- Introduction to guests- Democratization- CorruptionGuests:  - Marine Manucharyan  - Mikael ZolyanHost: Asbed KotchikianHosts:  - Asbed Bedrossian  - Hovik ManucharyanEpisode recorded on September 23, 2020Subscribe and follow us everywhere you are: linktr.ee/groong