Armenian opposition protest enters fourth day
2 hours ago
YEREVAN (AFP) ‘ Tens of thousands of opposition supporters demonstrated
for a fourth day in Armenia’s capital Yerevan on Saturday demanding the
result of a presidential election be overturned.
Some 35,000 supporters of opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosian
gathered under a sunny sky in the central Freedom Square, waving
Armenian flags and chanting "Levon!" "Fight to the End!" and "Unite!"
It was the fourth day of what have been mostly good-tempered protests
against the official result of a presidential poll in the ex-Soviet
republic last Tuesday, officially won by Prime Minister Serzh Sarkisian.
Later demonstrators planned to march to the headquarters of national
public television to protest what they allege has been a lack of
coverage of their campaign.
"We’re here to fight for our freedom. We will stay and fight until the
end. We are already not far from victory. Look how many people are
here," one of the protesters, 45-year-old Artur Khachatrian, told AFP.
Activists have set up about two dozen tents and several hundred camped
out overnight, huddling around campfires to keep warm in sub-zero
temperatures.
Like the rallies, the camps have not been sanctioned by the authorities.
Many of the most committed activists are unemployed men hoping that a
change in government would mean new jobs.
Official results from the election gave 52.9 percent of the vote to
Sarkisian, the choice of outgoing President Robert Kocharian, who is
obliged to step down after his second term.
Ter-Petrosian, who trailed with 21.5 percent, has demanded a rerun of
the "shameful" election, alleging that dozens of his activists were
beaten and that ballot stuffing, multiple voting and voter intimidation
were widespread.
Observers from the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe
described the election as "mostly" in line with international standards.
A number of high-ranking officials have joined the opposition,
including deputy prosecutor general Gagik Dzhangirian, who was fired on
Friday after declaring his support for Ter-Petrosian.
Ter-Petrosian was Armenia’s president between 1991 and 1998 and
returned to politics last year vowing to fight corruption, after a long
period of silence.
The current prime minister and president have been credited with
ensuring relative stability and strong growth. But critics accuse the
government of tolerating widespread corruption and cracking down on
opponents.
Analysts predict Sarkisian will follow Kocharian’s policies of close
ties with Moscow and a hawkish stance towards neighbouring Azerbaijan
and Turkey.
The latter two have cut diplomatic ties and sealed their borders with
Armenia over its support for Armenian separatists in the rebel
Azerbaijani region of Nagorny Karabakh.
Ankara has also been angered by Yerevan’s campaign to have the World
War I-era mass killings of Armenians by the Ottoman Empire recognised
as genocide.
Ter-Petrosian has called for a more conciliatory approach with
Azerbaijan and Turkey.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
