The police dispersed the demonstrators from water cannon in the center of Yerevan, protesting against the increase in electricity tariffs. Were arrested several hundred people, injured 11 police and seven demonstrators. According to observers, the protests grew long ago, but they have a primarily social in nature.
A large crowd of townspeople with national flags in the last few days was in the center of Yerevan. On Tuesday night the police demanded that the protesters to disperse, and after the participants in the meeting refused and blocked the traffic in the city center, used water cannons against them. 18 people, including 11 policemen, were injured of varying severity, 237 protesters, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Armenia, detained against them has initiated a criminal case on hooliganism.
The rallies in Yerevan has been underway for four days, from 19 June.
Estimates of the number of participants vary widely: from a few hundred to a few thousand.
And this despite the fact that the population of Yerevan is just over 1 million people.
The reason for the mass protests was the increase in energy tariffs. The Armenian authorities have decided to raise the price of energy services by nearly 7 Armenian drams per 1 kW / h on 1 August this year. $ 1 is worth 475 drams, and raising looks like a relatively small, but for many citizens, and it turned out to be unsustainable. The company “Electric Networks of Armenia” (owned by Russia – “Inter RAO”) has increased the price of electricity, say protesters, but then again decided to raise.
The Ukrainian media what is happening in Yerevan has been dubbed “the Armenian Maidan”, however, the area of Armenian-called “haparak” and logical to name what is happening “tariff haparakom.” Armenian President Sargsyan even predict the fate of Viktor Yanukovych.
Armenia has almost no natural resources, its economy is underdeveloped and, according to World Bank estimates, 32% of the population live in poverty. The experts of the IMF and the World Bank noted that Armenia is still reeling from the effects of the 2009 crisis.
Protesters asked for a meeting with the President Serzh Sargsyan, however, this requirement was not satisfied. However, the protesters tried to calm the deputy chief of Yerevan Police Valery Osipyan, who asked them to make a group of several people for a meeting with the head of state. He also demanded to stop the action.
According to the police, with representatives of the protesters agreed to meet the President of Armenia. In response, protesters attempted to break through to the President’s residence, the police had to block Baghramyan Avenue where it is located, and water cannons to disperse the demonstrators.
As a sign of protest against the dispersal of the rally left the parliament opposition. In particular, the fraction of “Armenian National Congress” in a statement called the measures taken by the police against peaceful demonstrators, “disproportionate.”
Experts believe that the situation with protests can really hit hard by President Sargsyan, who has enough low ratings. Protesters also can take advantage of the opposition, which has promised to start mass protests against the incumbent president.
In January last year, representatives of the opposition tried to use the protests to the tragic situation in Gyumri, where Russian soldiers of Valeriy Permyakov shot Avetisyan Armenian family. Armenian authorities managed to get out of this difficult situation.
In October last year, the leaders of three opposition parties – “Prosperous Armenia”, “Heritage” and “Armenian National Congress” – announced the launch of a campaign to change the country’s leadership.
Regardless of how events will develop in Armenia, for they will be closely monitored in Russia, given the fact that in this country is the only Russian military base in the South Caucasus. “The last time – after the murder Permyakov – The situation in Gyumri was serious enough, and had to work hard – and ours, and the Armenian side to extinguish the conflict, – says the source” Gazety.Ru “in the Defense Ministry. –
Honestly, I would not want to spread unrest in Yerevan and Gyumri again ».
A specialist on the Caucasus Sergey Markedonov commenting on the situation on his page on Facebook,
urged not to speculate and do not consider what is happening in Armenia in the context of the “Maidan” or “color revolutions».
According to Markedonov, “dissatisfaction with the authorities” in Armenia “accumulated for a long time.” The expert drew attention to the results of the 2013 elections, in which the head of the opposition party “Heritage” Raffi Hovannisian, “took its 36% do not like some kind of leader, but simply collected the protest. In the absence of the heavyweights in the campaign! “.
According to the expert, at the moment are the dominant social demands, not political. “And someone like tariff increases? Protest waiting. At the end of May, when I was in Yerevan, we talked about the chaos engineers. And the average citizen, and experts. The question of who will now try to take “under him” this protest. ”
«Among the many who are not very fond of the politicization and sees among opposition leaders militant people “- Markedonov continues in a conversation with” Gazetoy.Ru. ” – But it is clear that the struggle for the street will be conducted.
There will be elections, although it is not the prospect of today. The cycle begins in 2017 parliamentary elections, then there are presidential. And this story will have a very interesting turn with the constitutional reforms in Armenia.
Serzh Sargsyan offers the model, which is somewhat similar to the constitutional reform in neighboring Georgia.
This is a model of transplant of the president in the chair the prime minister. But it did not work Saakashvili, Sargsyan can also try to implement this model, and it obviously will also trigger resentment. ”
Markedonov believes that making acceleration, “the power of emotional foiled.”
«And it is – a good sign. After all, after 2008 Serzh (Sargsyan) did much to mitigate the consequences of the tragedy of March 1 (power disperse peaceful demonstrators dancing in Liberty Square then led to a popular revolt. – “Times”). Restraint was not enough, and it is the Caucasus, such things are stored, “- wrote Markedonov. However, according to the expert, in addition to tough action Sargsyan always “knew how to negotiate and incorporate the opposition into power.”
Political analyst from Karabakh Hrachya Arzumanyan also draws attention to the social nature of the protests.
«An important indicator in the recent developments in Armenia – is the lack of politicians and the political process was going on”, – the expert wrote in his Facebook. According to him, “there is a confrontation with the authorities of the youth society, and this confrontation takes place not in the political arena and in the community.”
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