ARMENIA CONTINUES INVESTIGATION INTO UNREST: MINISTER

Agence France Presse — English
March 11, 2008 Tuesday 4:47 PM GMT

Armenia continued Tuesday to investigate violence that rocked
the capital this month but there will be no decision on whether to
charge ex-president Levon Ter-Petrosian until the probe is concluded,
Justice Minister Gevorg Danielian said.

"There may, in theory, be a basis for bringing criminal charges
against Levon Ter-Petrosian," Danielian told AFP.

"If they do decide to bring charges against him they will be determined
on the basis of the investigation after it has been concluded,"
he said.

Armenia’s special investigation service is currently conducting the
probe into the unrest.

The Armenian capital Yerevan is under a state of emergency until
March 20 following clashes between riot police and anti-government
protesters on March 1 that left seven civilians and one police officer
dead. Dozens more were injured, many from gunshot wounds.

The unrest was sparked by police efforts to disperse thousands
of protesters who had rallied for 11 days against the results of
a February 19 presidential election won by Prime Minister Serzh
Sarkisian, outgoing President Robert Kocharian’s handpicked successor.

The opposition claims the election was rigged to secure victory for
Sarkisian over Ter-Petrosian, who came a distant second. Foreign
observers, however, said the vote had by and large met international
standards.