Armenian Authorities Consider MP’s Naughtiness to be Dangerous: Opinion

Local Armenian TV channels yesterday covered the clash yesterday between police and Heritage Party MPs Zaruhi Postanjyan, Anahit Bakhshyan and Armen Martirosyan at Yerevan’s Republic Square, which took place during a protest against the ban on street trade.

At a meeting with journalists, Martirosyan, talking about the edited video footage shown on TV, particularly noted one video clip that was shot by police and provided to TV stations. In this clip, Zaruhi Postanjyan is seen sticking her tongue out to the camera operator, who had come in quite close to her face.

“How I understand it, from all the scenes this was the most loved scene by the authorities. A figure who is today subjected to similar persecution for her political views, her own brother arrested, can we say exactly how right or moral it is to show her behavior in such a way?” asked the deputy.

Martirosyan agreed with his colleague, MP Larisa Alaverdyan (also present at the press conference), that Postanjyan’s gesture was simply naughty or mischievous. “That doesn’t violate any article of the law. And, finally, probably our authorities find that even such actions are extremely dangerous for them. If this is dangerous, then I feel very sorry for the authorities,” he said.