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Press Review


“Aravot” reports details of Wednesday’s violent incident that nearly disrupted a small opposition gathering in Yerevan’s Northern Avenue. “According to those who gathered on the avenue, the attackers were specially sent provocateurs, well-built young men,” says the paper. “The gathering participants recognized some of them as bodyguards of Erebuni Mayor Mher Sedrakian.” Sedrakian is quoted as strongly denying that and at the same time claiming that “both parties to that fight” were residents of his district. “This district must be gotten into shape,” he says. “There must be no Levonites and Serzhites here.”

“During the past few months Armenia’s Office of the Prosecutor-General has failed to determine the causes of the [on March 1] deaths of the eight civilians or shed light on those responsible for those killings,” writes “Hraparak.” “Furthermore, it has failed to prove at least one fact of demonstrators’ use of firearms against police officers. The Office of the Prosecutor-General has not charged any of the arrested oppositionists with using firearms, burning cars or looting shops. Not to mention the fact that former President Robert Kocharian’s decision to declare a state of emergency was based, as he himself put it, on a report about the wounding of eight police officers … So it now means that the Office of the Prosecutor-General is either hiding facts substantiating Kocharian’s statement or simply has no such facts at all.”

“One should not doubt the veracity of the Republicans’ assurances that they have not discussed the issue of replacing [parliament speaker] Tigran Torosian by [presidential administration chief] Hovik Abrahamian,” writes “Chorrord Ishkhanutyun.” “That is most probably the case because that issue does not need further discussion. Those who decided to replace Torosian don’t care at all about the Republican Party’s opinion. The Republican Party can have no influence whatsoever on that decision because it knows where the decision was taken.”

“168 Zham” says that the authorities have not clearly explained why they have banned another opposition rally due in central Yerevan and offered the opposition to rally supporters elsewhere, outside the city’s two main football stadiums. “The impression is such that the opposition’s summer rallies are sponsored by the Football Federation of Armenia,” the paper comments tartly. Its says such bans can not intimidate opposition supporters. “So what is the point of discrediting the police that say every time that they will not allow the holding of unsanctioned rallies before everyone sees that the rallies take place anyway?”

(Armen Dulian)
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