Karen Karapetyan
Encyclopedia
Karen Karapetyan (born August 14, 1963) is the current mayor of Yerevan
, Armenia
. He became the mayor on December 17, 2010, after receiving the overwhelming support from the municipal assembly. Prior to becoming the mayor, Karapetyan was chief executive of the Armenian-Russia
n joint venture, ArmRosGazprom
, since 2001. He succeeded Gagik Beglaryan, a controversial mayor who resigned in early December 2010 after being embroiled in a high-profile scandal with the presidential administration of Serzh Sargsyan.
when he ordered the municipality to enforce a strict ban on street trading. Angry street vendors took to the streets to call for Karapetyan's resignation and the repeal of the ban. As protests have grown larger, with many rallies being held illegally in Yerevan's central Freedom Square, Karapetyan has held his ground, insisting that the ban on gathering in Freedom Square will remain in place and refusing to consider relaxing the municipality's restrictions on street trading.
Karapetyan has undertaken other controversial reforms since becoming mayor, including the arrangement of Russian language
classes for his staff.
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
, Armenia
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
. He became the mayor on December 17, 2010, after receiving the overwhelming support from the municipal assembly. Prior to becoming the mayor, Karapetyan was chief executive of the Armenian-Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n joint venture, ArmRosGazprom
Armrosgazprom
ArmRosGazprom was founded in 1997 as a joint Russian-Armenian natural gas pipeline project. The company organizes the gas supply for Armenia's domestic gas market. Director General is currently Karen Karapetian. The company is registered in Armenia as a ЗAО ArmRosGazprom (ARG) was founded in 1997...
, since 2001. He succeeded Gagik Beglaryan, a controversial mayor who resigned in early December 2010 after being embroiled in a high-profile scandal with the presidential administration of Serzh Sargsyan.
Mayor of Yerevan
Just one month into his term as mayor, Karapetyan arguably sparked the 2011 Armenian protests2011 Armenian protests
The 2011 Armenian protests are an ongoing series of civil demonstrations aimed at provoking political reforms and concessions from both the government of Armenia and the civic government of Yerevan, its capital and largest city...
when he ordered the municipality to enforce a strict ban on street trading. Angry street vendors took to the streets to call for Karapetyan's resignation and the repeal of the ban. As protests have grown larger, with many rallies being held illegally in Yerevan's central Freedom Square, Karapetyan has held his ground, insisting that the ban on gathering in Freedom Square will remain in place and refusing to consider relaxing the municipality's restrictions on street trading.
Karapetyan has undertaken other controversial reforms since becoming mayor, including the arrangement of Russian language
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
classes for his staff.