Electric Yerevan protesters remain defiant after government concessions

/By AzerNews/

By Sara Rajabova

The massive protests that erupted against an electricity price hike in the Armenian capital of Yerevan have not lost momentum despite the government’s promises to conduct an audit of the Electric Networks of Armenia (ENA) Company.

The activists protesting in Yerevan’s central Baghramyan Avenue announced that their demands and peaceful tactics haven’t changed.

The protesters demand that the government cancel the decision of the Public Services Regulatory Commission to increase electricity prices and punish the officers who used violence against the citizens on June 23 and reconsider the tariff, which was set last year.

Starting from June 22, activists closed Baghramyan Avenue and demanded that the decision to increase electricity prices be canceled.

The demonstrators have eventually divided into the separate groups after more than a week of protests.

A number of protesters left Baghramyan Avenue for Liberty Square on June 28, while the rest remained to conduct a sit-in on the avenue.

“No to Plunder” group that initiated the protests, decided to stop the sit-in protest on Liberty Square and announced that it would continue the struggle in a broader format. The initiative's coordinator, Artur Kocharyan, said the activists will form groups of lawyers, economists, and will hold public discussions.

“We are not satisfied with Serzh Sargsyan's statement and will be consistent so that our demands could be met. We will demand that police officers who used violence against protesters on June 23 should be held accountable,” Kocharyan said.

Following the demonstrations in Yerevan, President Serzh Sargsyan held a meeting with the officials responsible for the economic policy of the country. During the meeting, he said the government would cover this price hike until an audit is conducted at the ENA, which supplies electricity to the country’s residents.

However, the protesters in Baghramyan Avenue were not satisfied with Sargsyan’s statement and declared that the struggle would continue at the same speed until the government cancels the decision to increase electricity prices. The activists said they will remain on the avenue until their demands are fully met. In the meantime, they noted that they do not intend to put forward political demands.

Earlier, the “No to Plunder” initiative accused the remaining activists on Baghramyan Avenue of politicizing the movement.

Experts consider the recent protests to be not only related to the increase in electricity prices, but also a reflection of unresolved problems over the years and the people’s discontent for the incompetent and corrupt government.

Sergey Minasyan, political scientist and deputy director of Caucasus Institute told Armenian media that this process is an attempt by the people to convey their economic and political discontent to the authorities.

He said the opposition Prosperous Armenia Party has practically ceased to exist and no mechanisms for streamlining political and socio-economic discontent has been left in Armenia.

“Thus, it is clear that such events should occur. The government, walking on the path of the easiest for itself kind of political existence, we can say finished badly. Now there is a situation that the authorities do not have anyone to talk with and negotiate. This is a problem for the protesters either, because at some point someone’s nerves cannot stand. We have seen many times that this happened on both sides,” Minasyan said.

Observers say that if the protests do not end in soon, the government will probably forcefully disperse the demonstrators.

Minasyan, however, believes that the problem is quite complicated and the new crackdown will be counterproductive.

He also added that the protests will inevitably be politicized, and it will be done so with more specific geopolitical attitudes.

Early morning on June 23, police brutally dispersed the crowd with the help of water cannons, and detained a total of 237 activists and protesters from the sit-in. While breaking up the protest on Baghramyan Avenue, the police officers also used force against many journalists.

The Commission on Regulation of Public Services in Armenia in its June 17 meeting approved a decision to increase electricity tariffs by 6.93 Armenian drams (about $0.015). As a result, starting on August 1 consumers would have been required to pay 48.78 drams instead of the current 41.85 per 1 kWh per day.

The approval of price hike has spurred strong discontent among the population, as many in Armenia believe that the rise in electricity tariffs will consequently trigger a price increase for crucial basic goods and services in a country already plagued by miserable economic conditions.