Yerevan hosts action demanding the release opposition activists

Today, in front of the General Prosecutor' Office (GPO) of Armenia, a protest action was held with a demand of immediate acquittal and release of convicted young activists of the Armenian National Congress (ANC) Tigran Arakelyan, Artak Karapetyan, David Kiramidzhyan and Sarkis Gevorkyan.

The ANC holds actions in protest against the ruling of the court of general jurisdiction of Yerevan administrative districts Kentron and Nork Marash, which had sentenced the four ANC activists to imprisonment for two to six years.

The August 3 protest was about 100 persons strong, who settled on the sidewalk opposite the GPO. Policemen stood in a line between the protesters and the GPO building, but behaved with restraint, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

From time to time, the protesters chanted "We demand freedom! Many of them held posters "Freedom!", "Hands off freedom!" and "Drones, hands off our guys!" The MPs from the ANC faction were among the protesters.

"We demand an immediate acquittal of Artak Karapetyan, David Kiramidzhyan and Sarkis Gevorkyan and release of Tigran Arakelyan from prison," Areg Gevorkyan, an ANC activist, said at the action.

Levon Zurabyan, the leader of the ANC parliamentary faction, told reporters that the persecution of activists has the aim to pacify the opposition.

"I think that opposition activists are politically persecuted," said Arthur Sakunts, a human rights defender and the head of the Vanadzor Office of the Helsinki Civil Assembly.

So far, the authorities have given no immediate comment on the statements of the protesters.