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EIGHT DEAD IN ARMENIA POLITICAL VIOLENCE
Bill Weinberg
World War 4 Report
March 3 2008
NY
Eight people are reported killed in overnight clashes between police
and opposition protesters in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, March 2.
The protesters, who have rallied in the capital for 12 days, accuse
the government of rigging last month's presidential election. Troops
and armored vehicles are now patrolling the main streets of Yerevan,
and President Robert Kocharian has declared a 20-day state of
emergency. Police and Interior Ministry troops used truncheons, tear
gas, and electric stun guns to disperse opposition supporters from
a central Yerevan square March 1, but thousands who regrouped later.
Riot police fired tracer bullets into the air and again used tear gas
to disperse the crowd of 15,000. Some protesters hurled rocks and
Molotov cocktails at police. Several vehicles were set fire. Human
Rights Watch charges Armenian authorities with using "excessive force
and violence" against the protesters.
Under the state of emergency, mass gatherings are banned, and media
required to only use only official information in reportage. The
movement of citizens is restricted and the authorities will be allowed
to search vehicles. The Armenia parliament voted March 2 to confirm
the state of emergency.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is
sending a special envoy to Yerevan to help mediate the crisis.
Ambassador Heikki Talvitie is to meet with both President-elect Serzh
Sarkisian and opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosian, the second-place
finisher in the Feb. 19 election who has claimed victory.
Ter-Petrossian, a former president, has reportedly been placed under
house arrest, with police guarding the entrance to his home. A number
of his followers have also been detained. Police were reportedly
guarding the entrance to his home.
Police said in a statement after the protesters' encampment was
raided March 1 that they took action after learning the protesters
were waiting to receive "large amounts of firearms, grenades, metal
rods, and truncheons," which they believed would be used "to stage
provocations and stir up mass disturbances." Thes tatement said police
were injured in the raid, and weapons were confiscated. Police chased
media away from the square as army trucks arrived to take away the
makeshift tent camp.
Opposition supporters had been protesting daily in Liberty Square
since Prime Minister Sarkisian was elected to replace his ally, Robert
Kocharian, as president. Official results gave Sarkisian nearly 53%
of the vote, to Ter-Petrossian's 21.5%. The elections were approved
by the European Union, and the US State Department congratulated the
Armenian people on an "active" and "competitive" election. (RFE/RL,
March 2 via EurasiaNet)
This is a more violent replay of the protests that shook Armenia
in 2005, demanding President Robert Kocharian's resignation. We
conjectured at the time that the US was tilting to the protesters,
as Kocharian tilts to Moscow in the Great Game. Have the sides changed?
Or are the State Department platitudes on the health of
Armenian democracy just pro forma regurgitation, while the State
Department/CIA/Soros machine is quietly backing the protesters?
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Bill Weinberg
World War 4 Report
March 3 2008
NY
Eight people are reported killed in overnight clashes between police
and opposition protesters in the Armenian capital, Yerevan, March 2.
The protesters, who have rallied in the capital for 12 days, accuse
the government of rigging last month's presidential election. Troops
and armored vehicles are now patrolling the main streets of Yerevan,
and President Robert Kocharian has declared a 20-day state of
emergency. Police and Interior Ministry troops used truncheons, tear
gas, and electric stun guns to disperse opposition supporters from
a central Yerevan square March 1, but thousands who regrouped later.
Riot police fired tracer bullets into the air and again used tear gas
to disperse the crowd of 15,000. Some protesters hurled rocks and
Molotov cocktails at police. Several vehicles were set fire. Human
Rights Watch charges Armenian authorities with using "excessive force
and violence" against the protesters.
Under the state of emergency, mass gatherings are banned, and media
required to only use only official information in reportage. The
movement of citizens is restricted and the authorities will be allowed
to search vehicles. The Armenia parliament voted March 2 to confirm
the state of emergency.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is
sending a special envoy to Yerevan to help mediate the crisis.
Ambassador Heikki Talvitie is to meet with both President-elect Serzh
Sarkisian and opposition leader Levon Ter-Petrosian, the second-place
finisher in the Feb. 19 election who has claimed victory.
Ter-Petrossian, a former president, has reportedly been placed under
house arrest, with police guarding the entrance to his home. A number
of his followers have also been detained. Police were reportedly
guarding the entrance to his home.
Police said in a statement after the protesters' encampment was
raided March 1 that they took action after learning the protesters
were waiting to receive "large amounts of firearms, grenades, metal
rods, and truncheons," which they believed would be used "to stage
provocations and stir up mass disturbances." Thes tatement said police
were injured in the raid, and weapons were confiscated. Police chased
media away from the square as army trucks arrived to take away the
makeshift tent camp.
Opposition supporters had been protesting daily in Liberty Square
since Prime Minister Sarkisian was elected to replace his ally, Robert
Kocharian, as president. Official results gave Sarkisian nearly 53%
of the vote, to Ter-Petrossian's 21.5%. The elections were approved
by the European Union, and the US State Department congratulated the
Armenian people on an "active" and "competitive" election. (RFE/RL,
March 2 via EurasiaNet)
This is a more violent replay of the protests that shook Armenia
in 2005, demanding President Robert Kocharian's resignation. We
conjectured at the time that the US was tilting to the protesters,
as Kocharian tilts to Moscow in the Great Game. Have the sides changed?
Or are the State Department platitudes on the health of
Armenian democracy just pro forma regurgitation, while the State
Department/CIA/Soros machine is quietly backing the protesters?
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress