Sergei Matosyan is an Armenian-Abkhazian

Armenians in Abkhazia

The Armenians in Abkhazia form the second largest ethnic group in the region of Abkhazia after the Abkhaz. Armenians settled in Abkhazia in late 19th and the early 20th centuries and are now the largest ethnic group in Gagra, Sukhumi and Gulripsh districts forming 20% of the Abkhazian population...

 Colonel and opposition politician. He is the current Deputy Speaker of the People's Assembly of Abkhazia and a former Minister.

Career

Matosyan participated in the 1992-1993 war with Georgia, holding the rank of Colonel and heading three batalions. In 1994, Matosyan headed the Bagramyan Battalion

Bagramyan Battalion

The Bagramyan Battalion was a battalion formed in Abkhazia, Georgia and predominantly composed of ethnic Armenians living in Abkhazia that fought together with pro-independence Abkhaz forces during the War in Abkhazia...

 during the Lata operation in the Kodori Valley

Kodori Valley

The Kodori Valley is a river valley in Abkhazia, Georgia's breakaway autonomous republic. The valley's upper part, populated by Svans, was the only corner of the post-1993 Abkhazia, directly controlled by the central Georgian government, which officially styles the area as Upper Abkhazia...

. For his achievements, Matosyan was awarded the title Hero of Abkhazia. After the war, Matosyan became head of the republican border guard.

Matosyan was first elected to the People's Assembly of Abkhazia in 1996, which he left in 2000 to become Deputy Minister for the Interior responsible for staffing.

During the 4 October 2004 Presidential election

Abkhazian presidential election, 2004

On 3 October 2004 Abkhazia held its second Presidential elections since the post of President of the Republic of Abkhazia was created in 1994, and the first that were competitive. Election law prohibited incumbent President Vladislav Ardzinba from running for a third term and he instead backed...

, Matosyan supported Sergei Shamba's candidacy, and he was one of the leaders of his Social-Democratic Party

Social-Democratic Party of Abkhazia

The Social-Democratic Party of Abkhazia is an oppositional political party in Abkhazia. It was founded during the crisis that followed the October 2004 presidential election by people from the presidential campaign of Sergei Shamba, who had come third in the election...

.

On 14 December 2004, while Vladislav Ardzinba

Vladislav Ardzinba

Vladislav Grigori-ipa Ardzinba was the first President of Abkhazia. A historian by education, Ardzinba led Abkhazia to de facto independence in the 1992-1993 War with Georgia, but its de jure independence from Georgia remained internationally unrecognised during Ardzinba's two terms as President...

 was still President, he issued a decree creating a Ministerial portfolio for Emergency Situations, and appointing Matosyan to this new post. 12 days after Sergei Bagapsh

Sergei Bagapsh

Sergei Uasyl-ipa Bagapsh was the second President of the Republic of Abkhazia. He was Prime Minister from 1997 to 1999 and was later elected as President in 2005. He was re-elected in the 2009 presidential election...

 was sworn in as President on 12 February 2005, he repealed Ardzinba's decree and Matosyan did not return in the new cabinet.

Matosyan was again elected to the People's Assembly in the 4 March 2007 election

Abkhazian parliamentary election, 2007

Parliamentary elections were held in the unrecognized Republic of Abkhazia on 4 March 2007; a run-off round was held in seventeen constituencies on 18 March 2007. 189 polling stations were organized to elect 35 parliament members. 47.25% of about 130,000 registered voters participated in the first...

, winning a first round victory in the Pshap constiuency no. 22. Matosyan was subsequently nominated by Adgur Kharazia

Adgur Kharazia

Adgur Rafet-ipa Kharazia is a deputy of the People's Assembly of Georgia's breakaway republic of Abkhazia.-Mayor of Sukhumi:Adgur Kharazia was head of the Gulripsh district assembly before he was appointed acting mayor of Sukhumi by president Vladislav Ardzinba on 5 November 2004, in the heated...

 for the post of third Deputy Speaker, but lost out to Albert Ovsepyan

Albert Ovsepyan

Albert OvsepyanThe Abkhazian language employs a modified form of the Cyrillic alphabet rather than Latin letters, and Ovsepyan's surname, written in Armenian script as Հովսեփյան, may also be transliterated as Ovsepian, Hovsepian, or Hovsepyan...

. On 24 September 2010, Matosyan was nevertheless elected Deputy Speaker (with 22 votes out of 24 cast in favour), after Albert Ovsepyan had retired on 3 May on account of old age.

At the 11 May 2007 founding congress of the opposition veterans' organisation Aruaa

Aruaa

Aruaa is an organisation in Abkhazia uniting veterans of the 1992-1993 war with Georgia. It was founded 10 May 2007. 534 people were present at its founding congress. The first Minister of Defence of Abkhazia Vladimir Arshba was unanimously elected Chairman of the organisation, and Vadim Smyr and...

, Matosyan was elected into its supreme council.