The National Citizens’ Initiative
75 Yerznkian Street
Yerevan 0033, Armenia
Tel.: (+374 – 10) 27.16.00, 27.00.03
Fax: (+374 – 10) 52.48.46
Email: info@nci.am
Website:

October 16, 2009

The Police Obstruct Civil Awareness Campaign

Yerevan–Yesterday the activists from the National Citizens’
Initiative (NCI) and the Nationalist Students’ Council (NSC) NGOs held
a demonstration, at the Yerevan State University (YSU), to voice their
protest against the recent signing and ensuing possible approval of
the Armenian-Turkish protocols. During the event, the students
distributed pamphlets which included excerpts from NCI founder Raffi
K. Hovannisian’s `Open Letter to the Armenian Nation’ and information
on the more dangerous points in these protocols.

At approximately 3pm, however, the YSU’s security personnel attempted
to prohibit the students’ protest rally, and subsequently the police
force, which had arrived upon the call by the university’s security
staff, unlawfully detained the NCI and NSC activists.

The students informed of this incident to the NCI coordinator Hovsep
Khurshudian and the Heritage Party’s MPs. Next, the chairman of
Heritage’s parliamentary faction Stepan Safarian and parliament member
Zaruhi Postanjian, together with Khurshudian, went to the Kendron
Police Precinct, its Marash Sub-Precinct, and then met with the
Kendron police chief in order to ascertain the grounds for the
students’ arrest and demanded that the young activists be released
immediately. The students were ultimately set free at
6:50pm. According to NCI assistant coordinator Daniel Ioannisian,
while in detention, they were questioned and ordered to write an
explanation. They were asked questions such as: `With which political
forces do you collaborate?’; `Who prompted you to hand out the
pamphlets?’; and even `Where have you photocopied the pamphlets?’

The National Citizens’ Initiative and the Nationalist Students’
Council NGOs hereby express their resentment over the illegal actions
taken by the police, as a result of which, the rights of their
activists have been violated, and therefore demand that, hereafter,
the law enforcement forces refrain from carrying out such unlawful
acts.

In any case, our campaigners were able to distribute in excess of one
thousand pamphlets yesterday, and we will hand out just as many today.

National Citizens’ Initiative
Nationalist Students’ Council

For further information, please call (37410) 27-16-00 or 27-00-03; fax
(37410) 52-48-46; email info@nci.am; or visit