Spontaneous rally proceeds through Yerevan
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In the evening of March 21,
2008, an action in commemoration of victims of recent civil disorders
was held in Yerevan. REGNUM correspondent has reported that after the police, step by step,
started pushing back the people from the Freedom Square, the rally
spontaneously proceeded towards a square before the France's embassy
and Alexander Miasnikyan Monument. The people came with candles,
black ribbons, and photographs of arrested participants of early
March events.
At the same time, the action
participants started to stand in line along the roadside, up to the
very Miasnikyan Monument and embassies of Italy and France, holding
photographs of the arrested protesters, candles, and flowers, tied
with black ribbons. The square itself was surrounded by the police.
The action participants asked
the police to let them approach the monument, in order to lay flowers
in commemoration of victims of March 1-2 events, but the police let
in only five of them.
In the meantime, the police
tried to establish, who organized the rally, to remind, that the
procession to the monument was not sanctioned.They addressed ex-head of
National Security Ministry David
Shahnazaryan, who was present at the event, but he explained
that he was not an organizer and that everybody had come by their own
will and decided for themselves what to do.
No meaningful incidents or
clashes with the police happened during the event, the people went
home peacefully.
The event is expected to be repeated on March 22.
To remind, on this square, at
night on March 1, clashes between protesters and law enforcers
occurred. According to official information, 8 people died and about
200 were injured as a result of the events.