25 August 2008, 15:34
Participants of sit-in strike in Yerevan attacked by policemen and agents in civilian
Today, at about 11 a.m. local time, 50 policemen and about 100 persons in civilian clothes, who unexpectedly appeared in the Northern Avenue of Yerevan, the capital of Armenia, attacked and destroyed all the posters and stands exhibited by the participants of the sit-in strike.
"The attack was accompanied by insults of the people here, including women, and threats of execution. Those who tried to save the posters were severely beaten; the attackers behaved like janissaries," Anait Grigoryan and Ofelya Markaryan, two participants of the sit-in strike, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.
As they said, the police took away and destroyed not only the posters but also the logbooks registering those people who signed-in for the Armenian National Congress.
We remind you that from July 4 in the Northern Avenue, adjacent to the Freedom Square, a sit-in protest action was launched; its participants demand immediate release of all political prisoners. They installed stands and posters with photos of arrested politicians and judges who have convicted them.
For over a month already, the protesters who have settled in the Northern Avenue, are collecting signatures under petition demanding to transfer Robert Kocharyan to the Hague Tribunal. Starting from August 18, they also accept individuals wishing to join the Armenian National Congress, which now unites 16 political parties.
Author: Lilit Ovanisyan, CK correspondent
