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POLICE ENSURE RENEWED SHOP CONSTRUCTION IN YEREVAN PARK
http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/24491712.html
21.02.2012
Armenia - Clothing shops built in a public park in downtown Yerevan,
21 Feb2012. Karlen Aslanian
The highly controversial construction of shops in a public park in
central Yerevan resumed overnight and continued on Tuesday after riot
police returned there to ward off more protests by environmental and
civic activists.
The construction site was again cordoned off by the police late on
Monday after more than 100 activists ended a protest against what they
consider further damage to Yerevanâ~@~Ys shrinking green areas. The
mostly young activists broke through the police cordon to halt the
construction work earlier in the day.
Many of them again gathered in the small park on Tuesday but were
kept at bay by scores of police officers guarding the site. They
were furious with the authoritiesâ~@~Y decision to capitalize on
the nightfall.
â~@~\We are not going to retreat,â~@~] one young woman told
RFE/RLâ~@~Ys Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). â~@~\This is ridiculous,
these steps are the beginning of their defeat.â~@~]
â~@~\I have every right to stand here,â~@~] said another female
protester.
"This is my park. No police officer has the right to push me out
of here."
Throughout the day prominent public figures and ordinary citizens
visited the protesters to express sympathy for their campaign which
has gained a public resonance despite receiving little coverage
from government-controlled TV stations. Meruzhan Ter-Gulanian, a
pro-establishment writer, was among them. Speaking to RFE/RL's Armenian
service, he urged the still unknown shop owners "to abandon all this
for the sake of Yerevan." Ter-Gulanian also said the city's under-fire
Mayor Taron Markarian lacks the power to stop the construction.
Markarian defended the authorities' refusal to bow to the pressure in
a statement issued later on Tuesday. He said that the new kiosks will
stand in the park "temporarily" and will cause no harm to its trees.
"Important and complex issues related to property ownership cannot
be solved on the basis of certain citizens' subjective understanding
of justice," Markarian said. "Nevertheless, despite the negative and
critical evaluations, I am happy that my fellow city residents are
so concerned about the problems and the future of our beloved Yerevan."
The Armenia police defended their actions in a separate statement
saying that they are obliged to enforce municipality decisions
and that only courts can determine their legality challenged by the
protesters. The statement warned that activists defying police orders
will face "administrative punishment."
The police also offered to hold a roundtable discussion with relevant
civic groups on "the legal grounds for the police actions" in the park.
http://www.azatutyun.am/content/article/24491712.html
21.02.2012
Armenia - Clothing shops built in a public park in downtown Yerevan,
21 Feb2012. Karlen Aslanian
The highly controversial construction of shops in a public park in
central Yerevan resumed overnight and continued on Tuesday after riot
police returned there to ward off more protests by environmental and
civic activists.
The construction site was again cordoned off by the police late on
Monday after more than 100 activists ended a protest against what they
consider further damage to Yerevanâ~@~Ys shrinking green areas. The
mostly young activists broke through the police cordon to halt the
construction work earlier in the day.
Many of them again gathered in the small park on Tuesday but were
kept at bay by scores of police officers guarding the site. They
were furious with the authoritiesâ~@~Y decision to capitalize on
the nightfall.
â~@~\We are not going to retreat,â~@~] one young woman told
RFE/RLâ~@~Ys Armenian service (Azatutyun.am). â~@~\This is ridiculous,
these steps are the beginning of their defeat.â~@~]
â~@~\I have every right to stand here,â~@~] said another female
protester.
"This is my park. No police officer has the right to push me out
of here."
Throughout the day prominent public figures and ordinary citizens
visited the protesters to express sympathy for their campaign which
has gained a public resonance despite receiving little coverage
from government-controlled TV stations. Meruzhan Ter-Gulanian, a
pro-establishment writer, was among them. Speaking to RFE/RL's Armenian
service, he urged the still unknown shop owners "to abandon all this
for the sake of Yerevan." Ter-Gulanian also said the city's under-fire
Mayor Taron Markarian lacks the power to stop the construction.
Markarian defended the authorities' refusal to bow to the pressure in
a statement issued later on Tuesday. He said that the new kiosks will
stand in the park "temporarily" and will cause no harm to its trees.
"Important and complex issues related to property ownership cannot
be solved on the basis of certain citizens' subjective understanding
of justice," Markarian said. "Nevertheless, despite the negative and
critical evaluations, I am happy that my fellow city residents are
so concerned about the problems and the future of our beloved Yerevan."
The Armenia police defended their actions in a separate statement
saying that they are obliged to enforce municipality decisions
and that only courts can determine their legality challenged by the
protesters. The statement warned that activists defying police orders
will face "administrative punishment."
The police also offered to hold a roundtable discussion with relevant
civic groups on "the legal grounds for the police actions" in the park.