Participants of action in Stepanakert demand to investigate incident in Martuni

Activists of the Artsakh Revolutionary Party (ARP) have blocked traffic along the main street of Stepanakert, demanding a meeting with the president of the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR). The action ended with clashes between activists and law enforcers; one protester was hospitalized; and 13 others were detained for several hours.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on March 17, the authorities of the district centre of Martuni did not allow oppositionists to enter the city for holding the election campaigning, the ARP has stated.

In the evening on March 18, the ARP continued its protest march in Stepanakert. A motor rally across the capital began at 5:30 p.m. local time. After the rally, the participants blocked the central roadway in Vazgen Sargsyan Street for holding a rally and invited the state officials to enter into dialogue with them, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent has reported.

Through a loudspeaker, Arthur Osipyan, the ARP leader, demanded a meeting with Bako Saakyan, the NKR President, in order to discuss the incident on March 17 at the entrance to the city of Martuni.

After some time, Stepanakert police arrived and detained over ten protesters, including Arthur Osipyan. During the detention, one of the activists received bodily injuries and was taken to the hospital, the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent has reported. After 10:00 p.m., the detainees were released.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 19, 2020 at 03:31 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.