Epress.am News from Armenia
According to Yerevan Deputy Police Chief Robert Melkonyan, there were 1,000 people present at the rally organized by the People’s Party outside the Matenadaran (Mashtots Institute of Ancient Manuscripts) earlier this evening.
On the number of people, the Epress.am correspondent also asked People’s Party leader Tigran Karapetyan, who said, “I don’t know, dear, I don’t count people.”
Prior to the start of the rally, when there were fewer people outside the Matenadaran, Karapetyan, speaking to journalists, said that all the roads leading to Yerevan were closed, which explained the scarcity of the number of people at the rally.
Karapetyan made a decision to lead a march to Liberty Square to express his support for Heritage Party leader Raffi Hovannisian who has been staging a hunger strike there since Mar. 15.
During his speech outside the Matenadaran, Karapetyan said time will tell who is who.
“We are speaking of this injustice which rules here, about this pillaging, this impunity, about the truncheons. It’s true, we’re few, but it’s important for us to understand what we’re fighting for. We will now go to stand as support for Raffi Hovannisian and let them try to not permit us,” he said.
With police escorting and led by Tigran Karapetyan, a few hundred people began walking toward Liberty Square.
“I now ask you not to move from your place so that I come and lead you,” said the People’s Party leader when people reached Liberty Square.
“It’s very interesting, why it’s open before some citizens, but closed before others, that’s what I don’t understand. We’re going to support Raffi Hovannisian, what’s happened that you’ve closed [the way],” Karapetyan said loudly, presumably directing his words to police prior to entering Liberty Square.
Then after speaking for a few minutes with police, the demonstrators were allowed to enter Liberty Square from the entrance facing Northern Ave.
Entering Liberty Square, Karapetyan approached Hovannisian, squeezed his hand, kissed him on the cheek and said, “The important thing is that people understand we’re fighting for the Armenian people, for the Armenian type.”
The Heritage Party leader, in turn, welcomed Karapetyan and those gathered.
“This is our place, our freedom, our self-authority — here everything belongs to us. It’s welcoming that today Mr. Karapetyan’s rally entered Liberty Square, approached me, that gives me great strength, great support. I thank you, Mr. Karapetyan,” said Hovannisian.
Karapetyan was not permitted to make a speech on top of the platform set up in Liberty Square (as Armenian National Congress Levon Ter-Petrossian had done just days earlier), so he made his speech standing on the steps.
“I ask everyone to please come closer, people, welcome. We can also talk without a microphone. We came and we showed that we make one another strong, and why not, if we have mistakes, let’s confess them. We’ve done a great deed, we’ve come near Man with a capital M, we’ve stood by him. For us, an Armenian is a type, but the honest Armenian, not the jealous [one], not the Armenian who only wants it to be him. Our next rally will be on Apr. 10 at the Matenadaran. But now let’s ask Raffi Hovannisian to end his hunger strike, we implore you, we need your strengths; thanks to you, Raffi Hovannisian, we saw who is who,” said Karapetyan.
“Yes, Uncle Karapetyan, yes,” responded those present.
“All of us ask you to come out of this situation and let’s go forward together,” repeated Karapetyan.
“Unity, unity!” chanted demonstrators.
At the end of the rally, Epress.am asked Hovannisian whether he was getting ready to end his hunger strike; however, the Heritage Party leader answered that at this time he doesn’t have that intention.