Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

More than 3,000 anti-government protesters rally in Armenia

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

  • More than 3,000 anti-government protesters rally in Armenia

    Agence France Presse
    April 5, 2004 Monday

    More than 3,000 anti-government protesters rally in Armenia

    YEREVAN


    More than 3,000 Armenians took to the streets of Yerevan Monday to
    protest against President Robert Kocharian and demand a referendum on
    his contested rule in the impoverished, landlocked Caucasus nation.

    The demonstrators brandished portraits of Artaches Guegamian, leader
    of the opposition National Unity party, and posters calling on
    Kocharian to step down. He was re-elected in March 2003 in a poll the
    opposition says was rigged.

    "We will wage a protest movement to remove this illegal government,"
    Guegamian told the crowd, calling for a referendum on April 16 and
    vowing fresh rallies later this week.

    During his speech before the protestors in the centre of the Armenian
    capital, eggs and stones were thrown from nearby balconies but the
    rally continued.

    Meanwhile, unknown people grabbed two television cameras and two
    cameras from journalists covering the demonstration, smashing them to
    pieces in front of police, who did not intervene.

    On Friday, Armenian journalists held a rally to protest against the
    threat to freedom of expression in this former Soviet republic, which
    has been criticized by the Council of Europe for cracking down on
    independent media.
Working...
X