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LITHUANIA ALARMED OVER VIOLENT DISPERSAL OF OPPOSITIONIST RALLY IN ARMENIA
Baltic News Service
March 3, 2008 Monday 3:06 PM EET
Lithuania's Foreign Ministry expressed concern over use of force
against peaceful demonstrators after Armenia's police used truncheons
to disperse oppositionists who were protesting in the nation's
capital Saturday. Director of Foreign Ministry's information and
public relations department Violeta Gaizauskaite told BNS that
Lithuania invites both sides to open dialogue, especially since
the international community positively rated Armenia's presidential
elections. The police used force against supporters of the opposition,
who consider the presidential elections in Feb. to have been rigged,
after the nation's authorities remarked that their patience has run
out over the unremitting protests for the tenth day.
Serzh Sargsyan, who had hitherto served as Armenia's Prime Minister,
was elected president Feb. 19 after gathering 53 percent of the
votes. After defeating Levon Ter-Petrossian, who got the support of
21.5 percent of the voters, Sargsyan replaced Robert Kocharyan in
office as Armenia's Head-of-State. Kocharyan, who is yielding his post
as president, said opposition's protests are destabilizing Armenia,
the emerging key transit route for oil and gas. Vilnius newsroom,
+370 5 2058512, [email protected]
Baltic News Service
March 3, 2008 Monday 3:06 PM EET
Lithuania's Foreign Ministry expressed concern over use of force
against peaceful demonstrators after Armenia's police used truncheons
to disperse oppositionists who were protesting in the nation's
capital Saturday. Director of Foreign Ministry's information and
public relations department Violeta Gaizauskaite told BNS that
Lithuania invites both sides to open dialogue, especially since
the international community positively rated Armenia's presidential
elections. The police used force against supporters of the opposition,
who consider the presidential elections in Feb. to have been rigged,
after the nation's authorities remarked that their patience has run
out over the unremitting protests for the tenth day.
Serzh Sargsyan, who had hitherto served as Armenia's Prime Minister,
was elected president Feb. 19 after gathering 53 percent of the
votes. After defeating Levon Ter-Petrossian, who got the support of
21.5 percent of the voters, Sargsyan replaced Robert Kocharyan in
office as Armenia's Head-of-State. Kocharyan, who is yielding his post
as president, said opposition's protests are destabilizing Armenia,
the emerging key transit route for oil and gas. Vilnius newsroom,
+370 5 2058512, [email protected]