Guglielmo Ferrero, an early twentieth-century Italian historian, once wrote: "Authority comes from above . . . legitimacy comes from below. (This) explains why democracy cannot be legitimized without an internal spiritual unity if all the people are not in agreement both on the principle of legitimacy and on the moral and religious principle of life. If that unity does not exist, the right of opposition becomes the battleground for a struggle to the death."

According to Ferrero, the basic trait of illegitimate governments is fear. Furthermore, fear plays no favorites. It holds both rulers and subjects in its clutches.

In short, any government desiring to establish a true democracy must not fear to govern. Consent and confidence of its people in a true democracy can never be established through fear. As for stability, perhaps it can be established through fear in the short term, but certainly not for the long term.

The strength of a true democratic government lies in the trust and confidence it generates among its people. In Armenia's parliamentary government, however, the quality seems to be nonexistent.

Corruption in government goes unchecked, political assassins remain untried, proven criminals seem to find their way out of Armenia to safe havens, and mass migration fueled by desperation seems to be the only option left, and it is draining Armenia of its precious human resources. Meanwhile, those remaining or trapped in impoverished Armenia do not seem to share the hope for a happy future. Is this the freedom and independence that our people have been sacrificing their lives for during the last six to seven centuries?

As far as this writer is concerned, I can see no way out of this dilemma unless the present government of Armenia comes to their senses and starts working for the good of the people who elected them.

And if that doesn't happen soon, then the sooner new elections are held for a new president along with new parliament members, the better. Notwithstanding any intervention by illegal influences or voting irregularities, this may be the only way left for Armenia's government to establish the trust and confidence it sorely needs both in the homeland and the Diaspora to survive.

As Guglielmo Ferrero so prophetically ascribed, "Authority comes from above . . . legitimacy comes from below . . . ." And who better than our people in Armenia are witness to historian Ferrero's incontestable logic.

Huntingdon Valley, PA