WE ARE NOT GOING TO SACRIFICE OUR FRIEND BECAUSE OF POLITICAL GAMES,
PARTICIPANTS OF SIT-DOWN STRIKE ORGANIZED IN DEFENCE OF VAHAGN CHAKHALIAN DECLARE

Noyan Tapan
Oct 23 2006

YEREVAN, OCTOBER 23, NOYAN TAPAN. On October 23, it is the 4th day
a group of youths are on strike with a demand to release Vahagn
Chakhalian, Presidency member of the United Javakhk democratic
bloc, but no state official has visited them and asked about the
issues put forward by them. Edgar Helelian, a participant of the
sit-down strike, Head of the Armenian Aryan Union youth wing,
said this at his October 23 meeting with journalists. Qualifying
the indifference of RA authorities as "a scornful attitude towards
the youth" he said that V.Chakhalian’s arrest with an accusation
of illegally crossing the Armenian-Georgian border was done by a
political order. In E.Helelian’s words, publication of materials
"slandering" V.Chakhalian in pro-governmental press on the day of
arrest is the evidence of this. The sit-down strike participants sent
an application to RA President, Prime Minister, Prosecutor General,
Secretary of National Security Council, Director of National Security
Service and RA Ombudsman. The application, in particular, read that
"if this indifferent attitude is continuous" the sit-down strike
participants will pass to "another ways of constitutional protest,
demonstrations and rallies." In response to the question, "why it is
especially the youth that struggles for Vahagn Chakhalian’s release"
the head of the Armenian Aryan Union youth wing said: "the Javakhk
sport and cultural youth union headed by Chakhalian and the United
Javakhk are the single political-public forces that are able to
prevent construction of the Kars-Akhalkalak railway through both
legal and illegal actions."