RA MFA ASTONISHED WITH MATTHEW BRYZA’S STATEMENT

DeFacto Agency
March 12 2008
Armenia

YEREVAN, 12.03.08. DE FACTO. "We’re astonished that even after
his visit to Yerevan, after meeting with and hearing from various
official and unofficial sources, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of
State Matthew Bryza could make such arbitrary statements", the RA MFA
spokesman Tigran Balayan stated while commenting on Matthew Bryza’s
expressions concerning the recent events in the Republic.

To note, after visiting Armenia Matthew Bryza stated, "the reaction
of the RA authorities to the events that had taken place in Yerevan
was harsh and brutal". He stated the U. S. "are disappointed with the
arrests of the opposition forces’ representatives and restrictions
of mass media’s work".

The RA MFA official representative’s comment runs, in part, "Assigning
such one-sided blame is unfounded and not helpful. The number of
wounded law enforcement officers (108) — 43 of them wounded by
firearms and hand-grenades – clearly demonstrates that rioters were
in possession of firearms and explosives. That coincides with the
operative information of law enforcement agencies. In that case,
labeling the reaction of the government as "a crackdown on opposition
protests", or qualifying it as "harsh and brutal" is incorrect. This
was not at all an attack by policemen on civilians.

The violence of March 1 is indeed of great concern to all of us in
Armenia, including and foremost, the government, which believes it
is responsible for the maintenance of public order and safety".

According to the RA MFA representative, the government attempted
to do so, exercising restraint, but as law enforcement bodies
had earlier cautioned, turned into a clash between officers and
demonstrators. "With eight people dead (including one policeman) and
dozens injured (many from law enforcement), there is no doubt that
this was serious violence, and indeed deplorable, as Mr. Bryza says".

According to Tigran Balayan, the international community’s focus
should be to encourage all involved to take responsibility for the
damage to the fabric of our society and to look for inclusive ways
to move forward.

"Ill-informed statements can and do contribute to an escalation of
political tension", he underscored.