Sunday,
Talks To End Armenian Standoff Collapse
Armenia - Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian (L) and opposition leader Nikol
Pashinian meet in Yerevan, .
Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian rejected calls for his resignation on Sunday
morning during a short and very tense meeting with opposition leader Nikol
Pashinian which was aimed at ending ongoing anti-government protests in Armenia.
The two men spoke for only three minutes at a hotel in Yerevan in front of
reporters after nine days of massive demonstrations organized by Pashinian in
the capital and other parts of the country.
“I have come here to discuss the terms of your resignation and peaceful
transfer of power,” Pashinian said at the start of the meeting.
“This is not a negotiation, this is not a dialogue,” Sarkisian responded,
interrupting the 42-year-old politician. “This is an ultimatum, blackmail
against legal authorities of the state. You do not realize the extent of your
responsibility.”
“You have not learned lessons from March 1,” Sarkisian added, referring to the
deadly 2008 post-election unrest that preceded his rise to power.
He then warned Pashinian to “come to the legal field.” “Or else, you will bear
full responsibility [for further developments.] Make a choice,” he said.
Pashinian rejected “the tone of threats” and accused Sarkisian of failing to
realize the extent of popular anger with his decision to hold on to power.
“Power in Armenia has shifted to the people,” he said.
“A faction that got 7-8 percent of the vote [in the April 2017 parliamentary
elections] cannot speak on behalf of the people, and I don’t want to talk to
you anymore,” Sarkisian shot back before storming out of the room.
Speaking to the press, Pashinian said he will continue his daily rallies
because the premier, who served as Armenia’s president from 2008-2018, has
completely lost touch with reality. He urged Armenians to demonstrate against
the government with even “greater vigor.”
Pashinian also insisted that he is undaunted by government threats to use force
against him and his supporters. He again said that the protests do not violate
an Armenian law on public gatherings.
Pashinian has repeatedly warned the authorities against arresting him, saying
that would only accelerate their downfall. On Saturday, two prominent civic
activists involved in his movement, Armen Grigorian and Davit Sanasarian, were
arrested on suspicion of inciting “mass disturbances.”
Armenian Protest Leader Detained
• Karlen Aslanian
Armenia - Police arrest opposition leader Nikol Pashinian during a
demonstration in Yerevan, .
Just one hour after his failed meeting with Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian,
opposition leader Nikol Pashinian was detained by police on Sunday during yet
another anti-government demonstration organized by him in Yerevan.
Pashinian was confronted by masked police officers and other security personnel
as he led a crowd of several hundred supporters marching to the city’s southern
Erebuni district. The police fired stun grenades to stop the march.
Armenia - Police fire a stun grenade at protesters in Yerevan, .
Several other protesters, including Sasun Mikaelian and Ararat Mirzoyan, close
associates of Pashinian, were also detained on the spot. Most demonstrators
started moving back to the city center about 30 minutes later. Others stayed on
and chanted “Nikol!”
Mikaelian was dragged away by policemen moments after urging the protesters to
“free Nikol” and continue to fight for Sarkisian’s resignation. “They want to
strangle our freedom, come here, don’t be afraid of anyone,” he shouted.
In a statement, the Armenian police said Pashinian, Mikaelian and Mirzoyan were
“forcibly removed from the site of the gathering” because of being the
organizers of an “illegal” demonstration. The statement did not say whether
they will be prosecuted.
Armenia - Police detain opposition parliamentarian Sasun Mikaelian during an
anti-government rally in Yerevan, .
Pashinian and the two other politicians are members of the Armenian parliament
representing the opposition Yelk alliance. Law-enforcement authorities need the
National Assembly’s permission to charge and remand them in pre-trial custody.
They can hold the three men in custody without a charge for up to 72 hours.
Earlier in the morning, Pashinian met with Sarkisian and again demanded his
resignation. The premier rejected the demand and said Pashinian will bear “full
responsibility” for his push for regime change.
RFE/RL Reporter Attacked By Policeman In Yerevan
A journalist for RFE/RL’s Armenian service (Azatutyun.am), Naira Bulghadarian,
was attacked by a masked police officer while covering continuing opposition
protesters in Yerevan on Sunday.
The officer wearing a black balaclava grabbed and threw away Bulghadarian’s
camera which was steaming live video for Azatutyun TV from the city’s central
Republic Square.
Bulghadarian immediately complained to Colonel Valeri Osipian, a deputy chief
of Yerevan’s police department coordinating police actions at the scene, about
the attack. “He did a very bad thing,” said Osipian. “Show me him and we will
punish him.”
“The police are carrying out a special operation here,” he added. “Please stay
now at a section [of the square] where your cameras won’t be damaged.”
Several other police officers beat up a broadcast producer for RFE/RL’s
Armenian service, Anatoly Yeghiazarian, in another Yerevan square on Saturday
night. Yeghiazarian was attacked as he tried to film with his mobile phone
security forces dispersing protesters’ cars blocking the square.
Protests Continue In Yerevan Despite Arrests
• Naira Bulghadarian
• Sisak Gabrielian
• Ruzanna Stepanian
• Karlen Aslanian
Armenia - Opposition supporters march in Yerevan, .
Thousands of people again took to the streets of Yerevan on Sunday following
the arrest of Nikol Pashinian and other organizers of daily protests against
Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian.
The angry protests broke out spontaneously in several parts of the capital
despite heightened police presence at two key squares and several other
locations.
Hundreds of security forces were deployed at Republic Square, the main protest
venue, shortly after Pashinian and two other opposition lawmakers were detained
in the morning. They repeatedly tried to clear the square of protesters,
detaining at least two dozen of them in the process. Hundreds of people managed
to rally there early in the afternoon, however.
Armenia - Riot police confront protesters in Republic Square in Yerevan, 22
April 2018.
Thousands of others marched through major streets in and around the city center
in the meantime. Security forces did not attempt to disperse them.
Protesters also gathered outside a police station in the city’s southern
Shengavit district where two the detained opposition lawmakers, Sasun Mikaelian
and Ararat Mirzoyan, were reportedly held. They argued with police officers
guarding the entrance to the building.
The crowd grew bigger in the afternoon, blocking a street adjacent to the
police station at one point. Police reinforcements rushed to the site did not
immediately manage to unblock the street occupied by several hundred protesters
demanding the release of the oppositionists.
Armenia -- Priests lead marching opposition protesters in Yerevan, 22 April
2018.
Meanwhile, Armenia’s Office of the Prosecutor-General defended the arrest of
Pashinian’s Mirzoyan and Mikaelian, saying that they have organized
unsanctioned rallies and urged supporters to block streets and entrances to
state buildings. It claimed that participants of those gatherings also
assaulted police officers.
A statement by the prosecutors did not say whether they will press any criminal
charges against the three lawmakers. They need the Armenian parliament’s
permission for doing so. Without such permission, parliament deputies cannot be
held in custody for more than three days.
Despite his detention, Pashinian was able to take to Facebook and again urge
supporters to converge on Republic Square at 7 p.m. He said the arrests have
not paralyzed his movement.
According to the police, a total of 192 people were taken into custody by 3 p.m.
EU Urges Renewed Dialogue In Armenia
• Emil Danielyan
Armenia -- Near Yerevan's main train station, groups of protesters merge into
larger group heading for the city center,
The European Union on Sunday called on Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian and
opposition forces challenging him in the streets to urgently resume
negotiations on settling the deepening political crisis in Armenia.
A spokesperson for EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini also said that
the Armenian authorities must “fully respect” citizens’ constitutional right to
demonstrate peacefully and “apply the law in a fair and proportionate manner.”
“All those who have been detained while exercising their fundamental right of
assembly in accordance with the law must be released immediately,” Maja
Kocijancic said in a statement released several hours after the arrest of the
protest leader, Nikol Pashinian, and two other Armenian opposition lawmakers.
“It is of utmost importance that all parties involved show restraint and act
responsibly,” added the statement. “An inclusive dialogue, as President Arman
Sarkissian has called for, aimed at an immediate and peaceful resolution of the
current situation, is essential.”
The EU official described as “disappointing and worrying” the failure of brief
crisis talks held by Serzh Sarkisian and Pashinian in the morning.
“The European Union reiterates that it is crucial that all parties show
restraint and responsibility and urgently seek a negotiated solution,” read a
separate statement released by the EU Delegation in Armenia and the
Yerevan-based embassies of EU member states.
BELGIUM -- European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker (L) and EU Council
President Donald Tusk hold a joint news conference during a European Union
leaders summit meeting in Brussels, October 20, 2017
Amid the angry protests sparked by Serzh Sarkisian’s decision to extend his
rule, the EU’s two top officials have congratulated him on becoming Armenia’s
prime minister on April 17, eight days after serving out his final presidential
term.
President Sarkissian, who arranged the premier’s meeting with the outspoken
opposition leader, seemed to blame Pashinian for the collapse of Sunday’s
talks, while also calling for renewed dialogue. “It is essential to give up the
unconstructive stance and behavior, which could undermine the country’s
stability, and continue to look for possibilities of dialogue,” he said.
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun), Serzh Sarkisian’s
junior coalition partner, likewise said compromise solutions can be found even
after “the latest events.” There can be “no winners and losers” in the
standoff, it warned.
The embattled premier was in no rush to again reach out to his protesting
political opponents. One of his allies, parliament speaker Ara Babloyan, said
Pashinian is not interested in “mutual concessions” and will therefore be
responsible for “severe” consequences of the standoff.
Meanwhile, the opposition Yelk alliance, of which Pashinian is a leader,
strongly condemned the arrest of its three parliamentarians and demanded their
immediate release. It said Pashinian, Ararat Mirzoyan and Sasun Mikaelian must
be freed in order to “ensure a peaceful course of the events.”
Huge Crowds Keep Up Pressure On Armenian PM
• Karlen Aslanian
Armenia -- Tens of thousands of people gather in Yerevan's Republic square for
a protest against Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian, 22Apr2018
Massive rallies against Armenian Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian intensified on
Sunday evening, with tens of thousands of people filling Yerevan’s largest
square in the absence of Nikol Pashinian, the protest leader arrested earlier
in the day.
The arrests of Pashinian and several of his close associates led other, younger
members of his Civil Contract party to organize and address what was the
biggest rally held since the start of the daily protests on April 13.
Lena Nazarian, the sole parliament deputy from Civil Contract not detained yet,
read out an online statement by Pashinian calling on Armenians to continue to
demand Sarkisian’s resignation with peaceful acts of “civil disobedience.”
Pashinian also urged them to avoid any violent clashes with security forces.
The crowd repeatedly burst into “Nikol!” chants.
“Everything must remain peaceful,” said Ruben Rubinian, a Civil Contract
activist who moderated the rally.He said people must continue to block streets,
hold marches and sit-ins, boycott classes and rally at Republic Square on a
daily basis.
Citing safety concerns, Rubinian also made clear that all kinds of protest must
end at 10 p.m. “He who stays and acts on the street after 10 o’clock has
nothing to do with our movement,” he said.
Pashinian’s wife, Anna Hakobian, also spoke at the rally. “We must demonstrate
until Serzh Sarkisian signs his resignation letter,” she said. “Serzh
Sarkisian, please do that quickly.”
Sarkisian, who took over as prime minister on April 17 after serving as
president for ten years, rejected the demands for his resignation at a
televised meeting with her husband held in the morning. Pashinian was detained
more than an hour later.
As of Sunday night, the authorities refused to specify where Pashinian is being
held. Opposition lawmakers tried unsuccessfully to visit him in custody. They
were only allowed to see two other Civil Contract lawmakers detained in the
morning.
Armenia -- Police trying to stop protestors in cars and on foot from blocking a
road in Yerevan, .
Throughout the day the Armenian police again described the protests as
“illegal” and threatened to disperse them. Both the United States and the
European Union urged the authorities in Yerevan to avoid using force against
peaceful protesters.
“We urge the government to show restraint to allow for peaceful protest and we
urge those exercising their freedom of assembly to do so responsibly, to avoid
violence, and to prevent an escalation of tensions,” the U.S. Embassy in
Yerevan said in a statement. It expressed concern over “reports of violence
against journalists and demonstrators.”
Echoing the EU’s appeals, the U.S. mission also advocated a “peaceful
resolution” of the crisis through “meaningful political dialogue.”
First Deputy Prime Minister Karen Karapetian said it is still “not too late” to
start such a dialogue. “I think it wouldn’t hurt if political forces gathered
[for talks,]” he told reporters.
At the same time, Karapetian defended Pashinian’s arrest and accused the
opposition leader of intransigence. He also dismissed Pashinian’s calls for
fresh parliamentary elections, saying that the last legislative polls held in
April 2017 were legitimate.
Virtually all major opposition forces, including businessman Gagik Tsarukian’s
Prosperous Armenia Party, strongly condemned the arrest of Pashinian and other
protest organizers and demanded their immediate release.
The Armenian National Congress (HAK) led by former President Levon
Ter-Petrosian also voiced “unconditional support for the people fighting for
the establishment of democracy in a peaceful and constitutional manner.”
Reprinted on ANN/Armenian News with permission from RFE/RL
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