Three thousand attend opposition rally in Yerevan

The participants of the today's action in Yerevan, held in support of the arrested activists of the "Founding Parliament", demanded from the authorities to release the activists. According to the organizers of the rally, it was about 3000 strong, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on April 7, members of the "Founding Parliament" (formerly "Pre-Parliament"), including Zhirair Sefilyan, the leader of the movement "100 Years without Regime", activist Gevorg Safaryan, Varuzhan Avetisyan, the Deputy Chairman of the movement, activist Pavel Manukyan, and Garegin Chukaszyan, the Chairman of the movement, were arrested on suspicion of plotting riots in Armenia.

The protesters were holding photos of the arrested Zhirayr Sefilyan and his associates; of Shant Arutyunyan, convicted in the case of "Million Mask March", and his friends; as well as a photo of Colonel Volodya Avetisyan, a veteran of the Karabakh War and an active participant of protests actions, who was sentenced to six years in prison on charges of a fraud.

Besides, the protesters raised banners reading "Freedom to heroes!", "Freedom to political prisoners!", "100 years without regime!" and national flags of Armenia.

According to their stories, no political repressions unleashed by the authorities can stop the Movement "100 Years without Regime". "They can't intimidate us; we'll fight on and overthrow the current regime," said the organizers of the rally.

Khachik Avetisyan, a Karabakh War veteran, addressed the rally and put forward an ultimatum to the authorities. He said that if the arrested were not released until 2:00 p.m. on April 20, a group of war veterans will begin a sit-in strike and a hunger strike in support of political prisoners.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.