{"id":8610,"date":"2017-09-21T02:31:11","date_gmt":"2017-09-21T02:31:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/media.am\/media-battle-v-corruption-first-monopolies-telecommunication\/"},"modified":"2017-09-21T02:31:11","modified_gmt":"2017-09-21T02:31:11","slug":"media-battle-v-corruption-first-monopolies-telecommunication","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/critique\/2017\/09\/21\/8610\/","title":{"rendered":"Media Battle v. Corruption: First Monopolies &#8211; telecommunication"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>Mediamart<\/em> (Media Battle) is a digital game developed by the Media Initiatives Center [also responsible for this site] for journalism enthusiasts. Independent Armenia\u2019s media already has more than a quarter of a century of history, but media coverage of corruption (the fight against corruption) is more like a game in terms of effectiveness.<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Media Battle v. Corruption: First Monopolies &#8211; telecommunications<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Telephony is one of the most profitable sectors of the economy \u2014 in the entire world.<\/p>\n<p>But in the USSR, in Soviet Armenia, it took years for phone lines to be installed in registered people\u2019s homes, especially if no bribe was given.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, in the mid- to late 80s, the majority of the population had access to this service, but the Soviet Union collapsed, among other reasons, also as a result of economic unresponsiveness and poor management.<\/p>\n<p>In newly independent Armenia, the privatization of telephony was one of the first in the mass privatization process, which also became one of the major corruption scandals of the 90s.<\/p>\n<p>Upon the request of the Media Initiatives Center\u2019s Lratun media museum project, Movses Aristakesyan introduced the topic. A political opposition figure until the change of government in 1998, Aristakesyan was also a member of the temporary committee examining ArmenTel\u2019s founding, privatization and legality of its activity (the chair of the committee was National Democratic Union representative Davit Vardanyan).&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtecenter\" dir=\"ltr\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/5bzTWTDH21E\" width=\"560\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The media in the early 90s reported on the poor quality of telephone communication, but analytical pieces were rare and came much later, when the National Assembly established the aforementioned committee.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtecenter\" dir=\"ltr\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/q3dytr9wVRA\" width=\"560\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>In the late 90s, A1+ and AR TV kept hot topics in the spotlight, involved experts, and presented opposing views.<\/p>\n<p>In the party or pro-party press, stories were mainly of two types: the media of political forces considered opposition until the 1998 shift in power blamed the first president\u2019s team for the ArmenTel deal, while the then-current opposition figures blamed the current government, which was by then headed by Robert Kocharian.<\/p>\n<p>The former opposition\u2019s main accusation, voiced in parliament and in the media, was relinquishing the state\u2019s monopoly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe biggest and gross mistake that the Republic of Armenia government allowed at the time\u2026&nbsp; was giving the monopoly to one company\u201d (\u201cArmenTel is facing serious problems,\u201d <em>Yerkir<\/em>, January 13, 1999). This is the opinion of Chair of the Economic Committee of Armenian Revolutionary Federation\u2019s Supreme Body Tatul Manaseryan.<\/p>\n<p>In the same interview he states that \u201cin international practice, you\u2019ll never notice that a neighbor has to pay a fee to call a neighbor.\u201d (Unfortunately, Manaseryan did not elaborate on what the concept of \u201cneighbor\u201d is in economics, and in what country that \u201cin international practice\u201d people use the phone for free. Such \u201cpractice\u201d hardly exists, a fact that certainly did not contribute to his criticism of the original privatization deal being taken seriously.)<\/p>\n<p><em>Aravot <\/em>daily, which in this period was more amicable toward the previous administration, doubted the committee\u2019s professionalism, the summary documents of which did not shock the public with any revelations (\u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.aravot.am\/1999\/08\/12\/787173\/\">One\u2019s response is another\u2019s responsibility<\/a>,\u201d December 12, 1999).<\/p>\n<p>The same newspaper published an interview with Grigor Poghpatyan, where the former communications minister recalls the economic disaster: \u201cIn 1992\u20131994, telephony activities were endangered in the country. The system (poles, cables) was looted.\u2026 If we didn\u2019t act promptly those years, then the question of rates wouldn\u2019t come up today \u2014 there wouldn\u2019t be telephony for its rates to be raised\u201d (\u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/www.aravot.am\/1999\/02\/11\/784842\/\">From where the thunderstorm begins<\/a>\u201d).<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Interviewer Ara Galoyan sufficiently studied the documents to have noticed some unusual details.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtecenter\" dir=\"ltr\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/ngguPX9SwB8\" width=\"560\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>From the press at the time it becomes clear that Kocharian\u2019s appointed prime minister Armen Darbinyan warned the National Assembly that it should refrain from drastic action against the ArmenTel deal.<\/p>\n<p>In fact, he didn\u2019t so much justify the deal as actually threaten the opponents, that if they continue to complain, they will review other unsuccessful cases of privatization, in which they probably had some part of the blame. \u201cIf you\u2019re demonstrating political will, demonstrate it till the end\u201d (<em>Azg<\/em>, February 11, 1999).<\/p>\n<p>ArmenTel was privatized to foreign (Greek) company OTE.<\/p>\n<p>Later, <em>Chorrord Ishkhanutyun<\/em> newspaper asked: \u201cWasn\u2019t it a response, Kocharian touring the Aegean Sea in a sailboat leased by ArmenTel?\u201d (\u201cCorruption\u2019s \u2018Wizards\u2019: Money Stinks\u201d series of articles, January 19, 2007).<\/p>\n<p>Such an article is enough for any country with democratic traditions at least to launch parliamentary hearings on the matter of the current president\u2019s corruption interests, but it remained unanswered, like many other cutting news stories.<\/p>\n<p>ArmenTel\u2019s voice likewise wasn\u2019t ignored by the media.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome [of the card holders] have already been smashed and 60% of the glass booths are broken,\u201d representatives of the Greek company complained (ARMENTEL continues to assure: ArmenTel-government investment issues,\u201d <em>Hayots Ashkharh<\/em>, April 22, 2000).<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s unpleasant to read about these mass incidents of domestic vandalism, which have seemingly decreased with time, but was ArmenTel itself honest with citizens of Armenia?<\/p>\n<p>The same newspaper informs us that, by an international court\u2019s decision, \u201cLondon\u2019s arbitration tribunal recently decided to oblige ArmenTel\u2019s Armenian party to pay the profit tax that emerged during the sale of its shares\u201d (USD$2.7 million) (\u201cTransportation of passengers dropped by 5\u20136 times: Interview with transportation and communications minister Eduard Madatyan,\u201d <em>Hayots Ashkharh<\/em>, July 13, 2000).<\/p>\n<p>To get an idea of future media references to ArmenTel\u2019s activities, it\u2019s worth watching an excerpt from one of ALM TV\u2019s programs.<\/p>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">It shows both the public\u2019s attitude and the catastrophic decline in journalistic standards that occurred in the television industry after the shut down of A1+ and the dismissal of AR TV\u2019s initial staff.<\/p>\n<p class=\"rtecenter\" dir=\"ltr\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" frameborder=\"0\" height=\"315\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/diXsLIa-RM4\" width=\"560\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>As for the aforementioned temporary committee, not only did the 200-page report have no significant administrative or legal consequences, but also committee chair Davit Vardanyan, being appointed state property management minister, never, at least through the media, attempted to use his position as a member of government (2000\u20132003) to bring statements about vociferous findings to a logical end.<\/p>\n<p>And ArmenTel\u2019s corruption scandal didn\u2019t help the \u201cde-monopolizing\u201d of the economy.<\/p>\n<p>On the contrary, the vicious practice of patronage, spreading, one day like a boomerang attacked also that company.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAccording to widespread circulating rumours, a significant portion of Ucom LLC\u2019s shares are owned by RA State Revenue Committee (SRC) Chair Gagik Khachatryan\u2019s family members or [other] relatives.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is, Gagik Khachatryan during the years of his leadership gradually pushing out the RA SRC\u2019s fixed telephony operator and internet service provider ArmenTel and\u2026 improperly making himself and his relatives rich\u201d (\u201c<a href=\"http:\/\/armtimes.com\/hy\/article\/36401\">He\u2019s forgotten that he\u2019s a state official<\/a>,\u201d <em>Haykakan Zhamanak<\/em>, September 25, 2012).<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;(To be continued.)<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/media.am\/en\/lratun-corruption-1\">The start of the article series here.<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"rteright\" dir=\"ltr\"><strong><strong>Vahram Martirosyan<br \/>\nHead of the Media Initiatives Center\u2019s Lratun media museum project<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mediamart (Media Battle) is a digital game developed by the Media Initiatives Center [also responsible for this site] for journalism enthusiasts. Independent Armenia\u2019s media already has more than a quarter of a century of history, but media coverage of corruption (the fight against corruption) is more like a game in terms of effectiveness. Media Battle<a class=\"moretag\" href=\"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/critique\/2017\/09\/21\/8610\/\"> Read the full article&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":8608,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8610","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-critique","author_posts-vahram-martirosyan"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8610","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8610"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8610\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8608"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8610"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8610"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/media.am\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8610"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}