CIVIL ACTIVISTS HOLD PROTEST ACTIONS IN FRONT OF EMBASSIES IN YEREVAN
ARMINFO
Tuesday, February 26, 20:02
Today several dozens of civil activists held protest actions in
front of the Embassies of France, Italy and Russia in Yerevan. They
expressed their discontent with the fact that the foreign states’
presidents congratulated Serzh Sargsyan on victory in the presidential
election in Armenia.
The number of law-enforcers guarding the building of the embassies
was higher than that of the protesters. The law-enforcers blocked
the pavements near the embassies. The protesters held posters saying:
“You congratulate the false president!”, “Don’t encourage a new March
1!”, “We want a Carrefour in Armenia”. One of the activists managed to
pass by the police and made his way to the building of French Embassy,
however, the police pushed him off, took his poster and tore it. The
poster said: “We present Serzh Sargsyan to you”. “They took away
my poster, swore at me and then mocked that I had no poster. I told
them to return my poster, and they replied that I had come without
any poster”, said activist Vahagn Minasyan.
As regards the Embassy of Italy, a representative of the Embassy took
a letter from the protesters’ hands. The protesters had managed to
approach the fence of the building before the police’s arrival. When
the activists approached the building of the Russian Embassy, the
number of law-enforcers increased, however, the protesters managed to
hand their letter. The letter expresses the activists’ disappointment
in the assessment of the presidential election. “In our opinion,
such assessment could be a result of two things: either the Head of
your state is unaware of the large-scale electoral fraud and bribery
of voters in the course of the presidential election in Armenia or
he supports the criminal oligarchs’ usurpation of power in Armenia”.
The letter also demonstrates the activists’ willingness to continue
the fight aimed at establishment of democracy. “We are determined to
do our actions and we have announced civil disobedience. We are not
going to obey the instructions of the non-elected president, including
the international agreements signed by him. We want you to remain
committed to democratic values”, says the letter. “You have no right
to devaluate the moral capital of Armenia formed among the European
peoples over years. Such policy will lead to the loss of our confidence
and creation of a barrier between Europe and Armenia”, the letter says.