Yerevan faces more controversy and protests

/By AzerNews/

By Laman Sadigova

Clashes between citizens and the police are ongoing in Armenia against the backdrop of planned constitutional amendments that the government intends to implement without providing any reasons.

Protesters are urging the government to listen to their demands. People claiming to be part of the "Anonymous" protest group have now completed their third rally at Freedom Square in Yerevan.

At the protest, activists demanded the government's resignation. The protesters also wanted to make a closer approach to the building occupied by the National Security Service, but police blocked the road and prevented access to the building.

Several protesters started a peaceful picket protest, and Shahen Harutyunyan, the son of the Tseghakron party’s leader Shant Harutyunyan, along with his mother and several other protesters, rallied in front of the building after long talks with law enforcement officials.

The protests by Anonymous were first staged on November 5, 2013. The leader of the party Tseghakron Shant Harutyunyan began the march to Liberty Square in Yerevan, accompanied by hundreds of supporters wearing Guy Fawkes masks.

The police stopped the protest immediately, arresting dozens of activists. Shant Harutyunyan, his son Shahen, and 12 other protestors were charged under Article 258 Part 4 of the Criminal Code of Armenia, related to hooliganism with the use of a weapon or the use of subjects as a weapon. They were sentenced to 1-7 years of imprisonment.

The government of this small post Soviet country suppresses all acts of free speech, leaving no room for protests. Now, it seems as if Anonymous is settling scores with the Armenian government through these protests.

The Armenian National Assembly approved the controversial constitutional reforms on October 5 without giving any reasons or meeting social requirements, even after several months of intense debate and political protests against the reforms.

The Armenian people have received barely any help from the outside world because international organizations refuse to face and fight against the injustice and human rights violations taking place here.