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| Caucasus/Russia/Central Asia |
| Armenia declares state of emergency |
| 2008-03-01 |
| YEREVANers - Armenian President Robert Kocharyan declared a state of emergency in the capital on Saturday as he sought to end protests over a presidential election which the opposition says was rigged. A statement from the presidential press service said Kocharyan had signed a decree declaring the state of emergency until March 20 “to prevent a threat to constitutional order”. Earlier, riot police fired in the air and used teargas in a bid to disperse an opposition rally in Yerevan, scene of street protests over a Feb. 19 presidential election which elected an ally of Kocharyan as president. The crowd of at least 5,000 opposition supporters massed in an area near the mayor’s office after a 10-day sit-in was broken up by baton-wielding police in the early hours. Later sporadic shooting erupted from the area and this correspondent saw red and yellow tracer rounds in the sky. A protester in the crowd, reached by mobile telephone, said: ”They (the police) shot in the air to scare us. They have fired tear gas. But people are standing firm. There are thousands of people standing here with us.” Hundreds of policemen in full riot gear cordoned off the area where several embassies are located. Some protesters near the mayor’s office held crowbars and metal rods. Some others protesters decanted fuel from the buses into bottles. The opposition, led by former president Levon Ter-Petrosyan, Armenia’s State Guard Service told local Mediamax agency it had effectively placed Ter-Petrosyan -- the first president after independence from the Soviet Union who ran against Sarksyan -- under house arrest. ”Otherwise, the State Guard Service is unable to bear responsibility for the safety of Levon Ter-Petrosyan, since it cannot accompany him to illegal events,” the service said. Police said they moved in after receiving information a coup was being prepared. They said they had seized pistols and grenades. The opposition denied the charges and said it was using only peaceful means. “Permission or no permission (from the authorities), we will all the same press ahead with protests, because rallies and marches can only be banned when there is a state of emergency,” Ter-Petrosyan told reporters. “I am deeply convinced that even if Sarksyan stays on, he won’t be a legitimate president,” he said. Police said they had used force after protesters started throwing stones and metal rods at them. “Calls for a violent coup were heard,” the police statement said. Ter-Petrosyan launched the protests after alleging Sarksyan had used ballot-stuffing and intimidation to steal victory. Western observers called the vote broadly fair. |
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