Nikol Pashinyan
Who was Nikol Pashinyan?
Prime Minister of Armenia since 2018 who came to power through the Velvet Revolution, a peaceful protest movement he led as a journalist and opposition activist.
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on Nikol Pashinyan (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Nikol Vovayi Pashinyan was born on June 1, 1975, in Ijevan, Armenia, when it was still part of the Soviet Union. He studied at Yerevan State University, where his interests in journalism and politics began to take shape. After finishing his studies, he started his own newspaper in 1998, but it shut down within a year due to libel issues. This setback resulted in his first major legal trouble when he received a one-year sentence for defamation against Serzh Sargsyan, who was then the Minister of National Security.
From 1999 to 2012, Pashinyan was the editor of the newspaper Haykakan Zhamanak (Armenian Times), becoming a well-known figure in Armenian journalism. During this time, he supported Armenia's first president, Levon Ter-Petrosyan, while frequently criticizing later leaders, especially the second president Robert Kocharyan and Defense Minister Serzh Sargsyan. His views reached beyond local politics to foreign policy; he argued for less dependence on Russia and closer connections with Turkey, which made his stance different from the main political scene.
Pashinyan's move from journalism to active politics became clear during the 2007 parliamentary elections, where he led a small opposition party that got 1.3% of the vote. His political involvement grew during the 2008 presidential election when he backed Ter-Petrosyan's attempt to return to power. After what the opposition saw as a rigged election win by Serzh Sargsyan, Pashinyan became one of the main leaders of the protests that followed in February and March 2008. These protests turned violent on March 1, when security forces broke them up, leading to ten deaths. Convicted of organizing mass disorders, Pashinyan got a seven-year sentence and went into hiding until mid-2009 but was released in May 2011 under a general amnesty.
Once out of prison, Pashinyan was elected to parliament in 2012 as part of Ter-Petrosyan's Armenian National Congress coalition. However, disagreements led him to move away from his former mentor, and he established his own party, Civil Contract. Teaming up with two other opposition parties, he created the Way Out Alliance, which won nearly 8% of the vote in the 2017 parliamentary elections. This growing political support paved the way for his biggest success: leading the 2018 Armenian Revolution, also known as the Velvet Revolution. This peaceful protest movement led to the resignation of Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, and Pashinyan became Prime Minister on May 8, 2018, making him Armenia's 16th prime minister. He is married to Anna Hakobyan and has received international honors like the Order of Pius IX and the Order of the Golden Eagle.
Before Fame
Growing up in Ijevan during the last years of the Soviet Union and Armenia's shift to independence, Pashinyan experienced the political and social changes that influenced his perspective. During his youth, Armenia's fight for independence and the early difficulties of building a nation in the 1990s took place. His education at Yerevan State University gave him the knowledge needed for his future career, and the political instability and media censorship after the Soviet era likely pushed him into journalism as a way to express his political views.
His rise to prominence began with his early move into independent journalism, despite facing immediate legal issues. His readiness to challenge powerful political figures through his writing, even at personal risk, built his reputation as a strong opposition voice. The closure of his first newspaper and the legal troubles that followed surprisingly boosted his credibility among those looking for alternatives to the established political system, paving the way for his transition from journalist to political activist and eventually a revolutionary leader.
Key Achievements
- Led the successful 2018 Velvet Revolution that peacefully removed the ruling government
- Became Armenia's 16th Prime Minister in May 2018
- Served as editor of influential opposition newspaper Haykakan Zhamanak for 13 years
- Founded and led the Civil Contract party and Way Out Alliance coalition
- Organized major opposition protests following the disputed 2008 presidential election
Did You Know?
- 01.His first newspaper was shut down after only one year of operation due to libel charges in 1999
- 02.He spent two years in hiding from 2009 to 2011 after being convicted for his role in the 2008 post-election protests
- 03.The newspaper he edited, Haykakan Zhamanak, translates to 'Armenian Times' in English
- 04.He advocated for closer relations with Turkey despite the countries' historically tense relationship over the Armenian Genocide
- 05.His Civil Contract party was formed after he distanced himself from his former political mentor Levon Ter-Petrosyan
Family & Personal Life
Awards & Honors
| Award | Year | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Order of Pius IX | — | — |
| Order of the Golden Eagle | — | — |