Supporters gather at Congress Hotel in Yerevan to hear the Armenia Alliance’s socio-economic plan on Apr. 8

The parliamentary Armenia bloc said that it will not be “intimidated” after members of its Spitak headquarters were arrested on Thursday after the Anti-Corruption Committee raided those offices.

In a statement in response to what the bloc called was pre-election provocation, the Armenian government was accused of trying to obstruct its election campaign.

The Armenia bloc members and supporters were arrested on charges of alleged vote-buying.

The ACC said the head of the office donated money to one local resident and “together with other individuals” threatened another voter with violence.

The law-enforcement agency released the audio of secretly recorded conversations among the suspects not identified by it. They can be heard discussing financial issues and the need to have a “tough talk” with another person in case of an opposition victory in the June 7 elections. But they say nothing about vote bribes, reported Azatuyun.am.

The actions taking place in our office in Spitak [city] and the targeting of our teammates are not a surprise. Such a style of work of the law enforcement system has long become the signature of the current administration.

These actions once again prove that the authorities do not have public support and confidence in their own forces, and resort to such measures to ensure their reproduction.

What is happening is not a legal process, but another cheap attempt to hinder the normal work of our structures.

With similar methods, the authorities are trying to spread a climate of fear—but this only strengthens our conviction that the chosen path is the right one.

No search or arrest can change our political agenda. Our team knows what it is fighting for.

We call on our citizens to respond on [the] June 7 [parliamentary] to all illegal measures taken by the authorities, rejecting the authoritarian regime established in Armenia.

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