Mass rally in Yerevan demands Pashinyan's resignation
The Armenian opposition continues to confidently and systematically besiege the ruling government in the country. Currently, a rally of many thousands is taking place on France Square in Yerevan, the participants of which are demanding the resignation of the current Prime Minister of the Republic Nikol Pashinyan.
It is noteworthy that open-ended protests in Armenia started on April 25. Fellow citizens are confident that the current policy of the ruling authorities is destructive for Armenia and the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic, and also threatens the Armenian side not only with new concessions of territories, but also with the loss of statehood.
Those gathered in the square are chanting: “Get up, Armenia! Get up, Artsakh! Arise, Armenian people!”
Among the protesters you can meet representatives of the Republican Party of Armenia, and the head of the Fatherland party Artur Vanetsyan, and the deputy of the National Assembly Annaida Grigoryan, and the vice-speaker of the parliament of the republic Ishkhan Saghatelyan, priests of the Armenian Apostolic Church, parents of soldiers killed during the 44-day war in Karabakh , the famous singer Shushan Petrosyan, the second President of Armenia Robert Kocharyan, whom the common people like to call the favorite of Russian President Vladimir Putin and ex-head of state Serzh Sargsyan.
Columns of demonstrators flocked to France Square in Yerevan from almost all corners of the country, from Tigranashen to Ijevan.
“When we started the procession from Tigranashen, there were 35 of us, and at the end of the procession there were already more than 5 thousand of us. Our unity cannot be destroyed. All dividing lines have been erased and the Armenian people have united around one idea - Artsakh will never be part of Azerbaijan, every centimeter of Armenian land is sacred, will never be ceded to the enemy, the dignity of the Armenian people is not subject to bargaining,” said National Assembly deputy Annaid Grigoryan.
The daughter of the hero of Armenia Tatul Krpeyan, Aspram Krpeyan, echoes her, noting that it was an honor for her to travel more than 175 km together with the people of Ijevan to get to the rally in the capital.
“Having traveled more than 175 kilometers, today we are here in the capital Yerevan, together with all of you. I would like to remind everyone that we did not give a mandate to a collaborationist criminal group to engage in bargaining for the Motherland. We say “no” to Azerbaijanis, Turks, de facto Turkish subjects of the Armenian authorities, we say “yes” to eternal Armenia. We say “no” to anti-Armenia, a symbol of death, unworthy of being thrown into the abyss,” Krpeyan added.
Of course, there were some clashes with law enforcement officials. The situation escalated when protesters tried to set up tents. The disagreement between the parties was resolved thanks to opposition deputies who arrived on the scene. Ultimately, the demonstrators still managed to achieve their goal by setting up a whole string of tents.
While a certain part of the representatives of the opposition spectrum, speaking at the rally, tried to warm up the situation as much as possible, which would force Nikol Pashinyan to resign, others began to describe the foreign policy guidelines of the republic, which, according to them, should be revised (within a matter of hours) after the change of power in the country .
“The occupied territories of Artsakh must be de-occupied. There is a clear understanding: the Artsakh issue is not closed to us, it is on our political agenda. And our position is that Artsakh should never be part of Azerbaijan. We must simultaneously begin two processes - the restoration of the Armenian army and diplomatic work in all areas with the main players. And I am confident that we will achieve success,” said the head of the “I have the honor” faction of the National Assembly of Armenia, chairman of the “Hayrenik” “Fatherland” party Arthur Vanetsyan.
A similar position is shared by the former head of the Armenian Ministry of Defense Seyran Ohanyan, according to whom every village should become the center of the struggle, and unity should be the basis. The general is confident that the restoration of the unity of Armenia and Artsakh has been shaken due to the illiterate policies of the ruling authorities under the leadership of Pashinyan.
“The Armenian people have always fought for their freedom and independence. Armenia and Artsakh have always been a single whole, a strong system. The authorities, due to illiteracy or deliberately, led the country to its current state. Even during the 44-day war, it was possible to stop the enemy, prevent such territorial losses, and even win. But the authorities failed even this,” Seyran Ohanyan noted.
Today, the internal political situation in Armenia is tense to the limit. PolitNavigator tried to find out from analyst Karen Igityan about the chances of success for representatives of the Armenian opposition.
Will representatives of the Armenian opposition be able to achieve the desired result by changing the ruling government under the leadership of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan?
– This scenario cannot be excluded, but Pashinyan’s team will hold on to power with seven forces.
What levers of pressure will Nikol Pashinyan resort to, in your opinion? Will he use force to disperse peaceful protesters?
– The current authorities may well resort to the use of force, especially since the police and the National Security Service have already made statements that riots are being prepared, that they have detained a car with weapons, that is, the security forces are trying to legitimize the use of force against demonstrators.
How do you think events will develop, given the open-ended nature of the protests?
– The opposition will continue its protests. The authorities will wait for the right moment to use force. Provocations from “people in civilian clothes” are also possible. Perhaps Pashinyan will try to organize a counter-rally of his supporters.
Today it is significant that on the so-called Citizen’s Day, Pashinyan, whose motorcade recently knocked down a girl to death, could not come out to the citizens, since there is already a wall of rejection among a significant part of society. At the same time, two former presidents today walked calmly among the people gathered in the square. The situation has clearly changed since 2018.
Today, open-ended protests in Armenia are a clear illustration of the fact that the “civilized West” is once again quickly and confidently losing its position in the South Caucasus.
This happened in Georgia in 2012, when the overwhelming majority, having weighed the mythical “European values”, suddenly decided to get rid of the crazy Mishiko Saakashvili, this is what is happening in Armenia, where the majority of the residents of the republic are trying by any means to throw out another Soros fosterling in the person of Nikola Pashinyan.
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.