Events in Yerevan: coverage from Armenia and coverage from Europe

The central problem of Armenia continues to be the situation around the capture of ​​the patrol service regiment (PPS) by the armed group ‘Sasana Tsrer’ (‘Sassoon Braves’) in Yerevan's Erebuni district. On July 17th the group seized the territory of the regiment and took several hostages, including senior police officers. The group demands the release of the leader of ‘Founding Parliament’, Zhirayr Sefilyan, accused of the illegal possession of weapons, the release of political prisoners and the resignation of President Serzh Sargsyan. Subsequently, the hostages were released, but on July 27th the ‘Sasna Tsrer’ group took several ambulance staff, two doctors and a nurse as hostages again.

Some politicians and social activists are trying to reassure Armenian society that the events in Armenia are a political process. Others, including some mass media, actively inspire Armenian citizens that these events may be transformed into a political process, as these demands are political.

One of the opposition deputies, the leader of the small party ‘Civil Agreement’, Nikol Pashinyan, is sure that what is happening can be seen as a political event, so it should be discussed in the National Assembly (NA). He took the initiative to convene an extraordinary NA session on July 28th. However, instead of the 44 MPs' signatures that were required under the rules of the National Assembly, he managed to gather only 19. About two dozen non-governmental organizations urged to convene an extraordinary session of the National Assembly. It was noted in their joint statement: "Tension is growing, and the President does not make any appeal to the people, the deputies are enjoying their summer holidays." Despite some criticisms it is necessary to take into account the objective situation – the National Assembly is in recess. Accusations by some observers that politicians are ‘detached’ from events are not entirely justified. Representatives of the group expressed the desire to see government MPs as intermediaries in the negotiations.

No one has doubts about the practicability and usefulness of the discussions in the National Assembly. However, the Parliament is able to make recommendations, in general by making relevant statements. It is obvious that the executive power should deal with the resolution of this situation. It also includes law enforcement agencies, and the National Security Service (NSS), which operates online and has the opportunity to thoroughly monitor all the events taking place. Certainly, the National Assembly may require that full information be provided and the head of the National Security Service or the police to be summoned, but this is a situation in which decisions must be taken in real time, rather than a day or two to discuss the situation, which is changing rapidly.

There are claims that there are no preconditions that the process is political or it should be transformed into a political format. Yes, the group announced political demands, but it went beyond the political format. It acted in a violent way and used weapons to achieve its goals. Such an approach cannot be compared with a political process. That is why no single serious political force in Armenia has a desire to participate in this process, which has led to deaths, injuries and hostages.

Meanwhile, the German public radio Deutschlandfunk prepared a report on the events, noting that the demand for the resignation of the President by the armed group has received increasingly popular support. "People are coming out onto the streets because they support the armed group and their demands. First of all, they are protesting against the President. Many people hate his regime. Now they have a feeling that they can change the situation,’’ Deutschlandfunk cites one of the residents living near the recently captured PPS regiment. The author of the reportage, Stefanie Müller-Frank, emphasized the nationalist positions of the rebels.

The newspaper reminds that 8 years ago, after the presidential election, the government used weapons of war, dispersing people protesting against the fraud. 8 people were killed. "Now the government has faced armed resistance for the first time," Deutschlandfunk reported.

"People are angry. One woman curses the government in a loud voice, complaining of corruption and abuse of authority. Some demonstrators go to the police, trying to persuade them to join the demonstrations,’’ Deutschlandfunk wrote. Then the radio station cited a woman who came to a meeting with her young son: "I admire the rebels. Every day I come here with one of my children. I have no fear, the government has fear, and I am awaiting the President’s dismissal." In conversation with the Deutschlandfunk reporter she hinted th, if nothing changes, she will leave the country. An elderly woman who was standing next to her also agreed: "I'm a little afraid of what might happen. Certainly, we run a risk, but this risk is justified. If the authorities order the use of force, then we all need to be here, and citizens should be here as much as possible." The author concluded that in the last few days the armed groups have become heroes for Armenians. There is a demonstrator’s quote at the end of the article: "I am here to protect our heroes. It is a norm in our country that the police use force and human rights are violated. And we want to prevent this."

It should be noted that the article was published by Deutschlandfunk before the harsh dispersal on the night of July 30th when dozens of people were injured, including ten journalists. It is likely that, after the use of force against demonstrators, Western media will sympathize with the main part of the "Sassoon Braves" and the protest movements will only increase.