2011 Armenian protests
Encyclopedia
The 2011 Armenian protests are an ongoing series of civil demonstrations aimed at provoking political reforms and concessions from both the government of Armenia
and the civic government of Yerevan
, its capital and largest city. Protesters have demanded President Serzh Sargsyan release political prisoner
s, prosecute those responsible for the deaths of opposition activists
after the 2008 presidential election
and institute democratic and socioeconomic reforms, including the right to organise in Freedom Square in downtown Yerevan. They have also protested against Yerevan Mayor Karen Karapetyan
for banning the opposition from Freedom Square and barring vendors and traders from the city streets. The opposition Armenian National Congress
, which has played a major role in organising and leading the demonstrations, has also called for a snap election
and the resignation of the government.
The government has granted several concessions to the protesters, including agreeing to the opposition's terms for an inquiry into the 2008 protest deaths, granting them a permit to rally in Freedom Square in late April, and releasing several imprisoned opposition activists.
, angry over Mayor Karapetyan's decision on 13 January to start enforcing a strict ban on street trading, protested outside the municipal offices of the capital city on 19 January. City officials insisted the ban was necessary for public health and safety, but demonstrators shouted slogans criticizing Karapetyan, a Republican Party of Armenia
official elected by the municipal assembly in December 2010 to finish out an incomplete term, and complaining that the municipality's ban has prevented many of them from making enough money to pay for food and shelter for themselves and their families. Some protesters, many of whose signs emphasized their peaceful intentions, called upon Karapetyan to either meet with them or resign. The protests in front of the municipal offices soon became a daily phenomenon stretching into February.
continuing and a revolutionary wave
spreading
throughout North Africa
and Western Asia, opposition politicians like Stepan Safaryan of the party Heritage
and former President Levon Ter-Petrossian
, who was defeated by now-President Sargsyan in the disputed 2008 election, of the Armenian National Congress
(HAK) suggested in early February that political upheaval could come to Armenia. Ter-Petrossian called for an opposition rally in Yerevan's Freedom Square on 18 February not just to protest the Karapetyan administration, but to protest the government of President Serzh Sargsyan. The government responded by saying Liberty Square would be off-limits due to "sports and cultural events". The HAK said it planned to rally in the square regardless of whether the city government and the national government allowed it to do so. Political analysts said national opposition leaders like Ter-Petrossian were harnessing an existing wave of unrest inspired by the Tunisian Revolution
and protests
in Egypt
and evident in such events as the ongoing street vendor protests, with some predicting that the conditions were right for major protests to gain traction.
and Egyptian
revolutions, and Ter-Petrossian compared the Sargsyan administration to those fallen regimes. "The plight of our people is no better than the plight of the peoples of those countries, and Armenia's regime is no less dictatorial and hated than the regimes in those countries," the former president said. He urged the government to resign and called for an uprising similar to those seen in Arab
countries near
Armenia. Ter-Petrossian also called on street vendors and others already organizing in protest of government policies to "politicize" their rallies and join with the national opposition in calling for sweeping changes.
after Sargsyan's disputed victory in 2008, when 10 protesters were killed. Protesters again demanded early elections and called for Sargsyan to resign. Ter-Petrossian spoke at the rally, calling the government a "bandit regime [that] seized power through falsified parliamentary and presidential elections and the bloody crime committed on 1 March 2008" and reiterating the demands aired at the 18 February protest. He also publicly called for the ban on street trading to be lifted and demanded economic reforms, including a higher minimum wage
and unemployment benefits.
and the Armenian National Congress, including members of parliament
, gathered outside a government building in Yerevan. Police moved to disperse them, resulting in a number of clashes. One HAK activist was arrested and one of the Heritage MPs was hospitalized with injuries. In defiance of a statement from Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan
promising an internal investigation into the allegations of police brutality, the police publicly blamed the MPs for inciting violence. The incident prompted renewed comparisons of the Karapetyan and Sargsyan administrations' policies to pre-revolutionary Tunisia
by some analysts and opposition parliamentarians.
, a leader of Heritage, began a hunger strike in Freedom Square on 15 March to protest the government and advocate for snap election
s.
Before the rally, opposition activist Samson Khachatrian was arrested after two plainclothes police officers alleged he assaulted them at the 1 March rally, a move one HAK leader called "a provocation". Khachatrian was later convicted of the assault, spurring mass outcry from the opposition.
MP criticized the hunger strike, saying it was not the best means of enacting change.
, including a Heritage MP, held a sit-in each day in Freedom Square starting on 2 April as a "logical continuation" of Hovannisian's protest action the month before. During the sit-in, attended by a handful of women each day, protesters sat silently for five hours before departing the square. Some critics within the opposition decried the sit-in as a gimmick, with one calling it a "waste of time".
. The rally, organized by the Armenian National Congress, drew 12,000 attendees to Freedom Square in the city center in violation of an official ban. Despite the ban by the Yerevan city council, police ultimately stood aside in the face of the crowd and permitted the gathering. Ter-Petrossian said that the Sargsyan administration must fulfill three demands by 28 April: promising an "objective inquiry" into post-election violence in 2008, giving the HAK the permanent legal right to demonstrate in Yerevan's Freedom Square, and securing the release of political prisoners. The former president also warned the opposition would "drastically change" its methods of resistance unless its demands were met.
At a press conference several days after the rally, Armenian National Congress official Levon Zurabian warned that the opposition saw the political situation as "a war, a real war". Zurabian added, "And if we want to achieve something in that war, we must and we will get ready for war." He suggested that mass striking, sit-ins, large-scale marches, and other acts of civil disobedience
could be the next step for the opposition. Zurabian also claimed that, contrary to suggestions from leaders in allied parties that the opposition is ready to negotiate a deal that keeps the Sargsyan administration in power, the goal of the HAK remains forcing Sargsyan to resign and a snap election to be held.
Reuters
reported a turnout of about 5,000 at the rally. Ter-Petrossian referred to the government's announcement of concessions on access to Freedom Square and the investigation into the 2008 post-election violence and told the crowd, "If the door to dialogue is not yet open, it is half open." For the first time since protests began in January and February, he suggested that the grievances of demonstrators could be addressed through negotiation rather than regime change. Ter-Petrossian also called on President Sargsyan to release jailed political dissidents and activists in time for the next planned rally on 31 May.
A significant number of protesters reportedly did not take part in a march through Yerevan following Ter-Petrossian's speech, with some continuing to occupy the square afterward rather than leave, and the former president elicited some boos, whistles, and jeers when he expressed confidence that the government would release all political prisoners within weeks. Although HAK official Levon Zurabian said the party remains intent on forcing snap elections, Ter-Petrossian did not mention the resignation of the government or new elections once throughout the speech.
, the leader of Heritage
, held an assembly in the Government Hall of Sessions in Yerevan reportedly attended by hundreds of citizens, including several fellow political figures and famous activists. Three panel discussions comprised the bulk of the town hall meeting, with topics of human rights, civics, and solutions to political differences featured respectively. Hovannisian set 4 June as the next date for an assembly, to be held in the more public setting of Freedom Square.
, and recently released ex-MP Sasun Mikaelyan, said the government was finally showing a willingness to engage with the opposition and meet its demands, as evidenced by the amnesty, and complimented protesters on their achievement in putting pressure on the government to fulfill the HAK's three preconditions for dialogue. However, Ter-Petrossian, People's Party of Armenia
head Stepan Demirchyan
, and amnestied editor Nikol Pashinyan, among others, reiterated the HAK's calls for snap election
s, criticizing the current government as the "result of rigged elections". Ter-Petrossian also said that in the coming days, opposition leaders would be meeting with the government to present its proposal for a transition toward new elections, though he cautioned that the government would likely have different ideas and present its own agenda. Demirchyan took a less conciliatory tone, saying, "If the authorities fail to go for snap elections, we must force them." A Heritage
MP also demanded the immediate release of her brother, whom she said should have been freed under both recent changes to the Armenian criminal code and the recent amnesty, which purportedly covers him. The rally reportedly concluded with a march around downtown Yerevan, a promise by HAK officials that another rally would be held in June, and mass chants of "Levon for President!"
was better prepared for a war over Nagorno-Karabakh
than Armenia "one of the most disgraceful...in the diplomatic history of the Third Republic of Armenia," claiming it strengthened Azerbaijan's posture in the ongoing dispute. Zurabian warned that if the government did not engage with the HAK directly in "a short time," people would gather in the streets for mass protests. He said the government knew that "the only way to avoid a revolution or a social riot is agree to negotiations." Ter-Petrossian said that unless the government agreed to the opposition's demands, including setting snap elections, by the next scheduled rally on 1 August, the HAK would return to the rhetoric of calling for Sargsian's immediate resignation. The tone of the rally suggested that the détente
evident in the spirit of the previous two HAK mass gatherings had decidedly cooled.
sought to capitalize on the wave of rising dissent, fueled by successful uprisings against regimes in Tunisia
and Egypt
. As such, the HAK emerged as the leading voice in protests, with its leader Levon Ter-Petrossian
addressing all major rallies in Yerevan
from 18 February onward. The HAK strongly encouraged merchants and others disillusioned with the government's policies to join them, and Ter-Petrossian has aligned his party's goals with those of the street vendors who began the initial protests.
However, the HAK has not been the only voice of criticism against the government. Heritage
, one of only two opposition parties with seats in the National Assembly
, has also been active in galvanizing protest, though its demonstrations have been on a smaller scale and have largely come in the form of civil disobedience
actions, such as hunger strike
s and sit-in
s, and public conferences. On 26 April, leader Raffi Hovannisian
released a statement demanding that the government convene a constitutional convention
, grant the International Criminal Court
jurisdiction over Armenia, and officially recognize the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
. He said his supporters numbered in the "tens of thousands".
Another opposition group that emerged in late April, though it has not had any major role in organizing demonstrations, is the Armenian Revolutionary Federation
(HHD), or Dashnaktsutyun, the other opposition party with a parliamentary presence. On 28 April, Dashnak leader Armen Rustamian criticized both Ter-Petrossian and President Serzh Sargsyan, saying neither the HAK nor the Republican Party of Armenia
(HHK) represent the interests of Armenians and that Ter-Petrossian's role in fomenting dissent is self-serving. Rustamian has called for "radical" change, suggesting that any compromise between the HAK and the HHK will not "lead to a meaningful improvement of the existing situation". The Dashnaks have reportedly urged Sargsyan, whom their party supported as a coalition partner until 2009, to dismiss the government and hold snap election
s. Both HHD and Heritage have adopted a hard line on Nagorno-Karabakh, jointly insisting in late June that the government not accept the terms laid out at a meeting in Kazan
, Russia
, and warning of massive street protests if Sargsian compromised on the breakaway republic's status.
served as an early vehicle for organizing action against the government. Activists set up a new website called Revoforum, shorthand for "Revolutionary Forum", on 2 April as a discussion board for the political situation in Armenia. Complaints over high cost of living and inflation
have reportedly driven historically apolitical but Internet
-savvy young Armenians to organize online, and some have used sites like Facebook, Revoforum, and Twitter
to get involved with street protests as well.
One government MP said the protest ban on Freedom Square was for activists' sake, suggesting that violence could erupt if demonstrators were permitted to gather in the square. He also said President Sargsyan is not a dictator and is "not Gaddafi", a reference to Libya
n leader Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi
, who has faced a sustained uprising
against his rule since February. Another HHK
official said the government would not make any concessions as long as the opposition continues to make demands.
On 31 March, in response to ongoing discontent from vendors petitioning for the re-legalization of street trading, the deputy mayor of Yerevan said of the crackdown, "These actions aimed at enforcing the law are resolute and final." He brushed aside the anger of protesters attending a parliamentary hearing on the matter, saying that the municipality already provides for trading in approved markets as a reasonable alternative to vending on the street.
On 12 April, the office of Yerevan Mayor Karen Karapetyan
reaffirmed its protest ban on Freedom Square, a ban the opposition signaled it would continue to ignore. At a press conference, Karapetyan defended the ban, saying, "There are places in all countries of the world where no demonstrations are allowed to be held." The mayor said he did not view the ban as a violation of the opposition's freedom of speech
.
President Sargsian expressed frustration in a 12 July interview over repeated questions as to the legitimacy of the elections that brought him and many of his parliamentary allies to power. He complained of a lack of civility in Armenian politics and said that just because Ter-Petrossian and his backers did not congratulate him on his victory or formally concede the election, that did not mean the results were illegitimate. Sargsian has vowed that parliamentary elections scheduled for 2012 will be democratic in keeping with the standards of the Council of Europe
.
finally passed a bill, which had been under debate for six months, expanding rights to free assembly. The new law gives people the legal right to gather peacefully, as demonstrators have done in Yerevan since January.
Armenian police chief Alik Sargsian said on 14 April that he would take a tougher approach to abuses and corruption in the ranks of the republic's law enforcement. "Let people understand that impunity is now unacceptable in the police," Alik Sargsian said. He did not specify whether he would focus on punishing police over alleged abuses of detainees and suspects.
On 19 April, Samson Khachatrian, the opposition activist convicted of assaulting police during the 1 March 2011 protest, was released after demands from opposition leaders that he be set free.
The Sargsyan administration vowed on 20 April to give greater priority to investigating allegations of violence against opposition supporters on 1 March 2008, a key demand of the protesters. "I expect new impetus and sharply intensified efforts to investigate the events," said Sargsyan at a conference open to press. Sargsyan also promised new reforms to make the Armenian justice system more effective and efficient. On 21 April, the government's chief investigator said, "The examination of the March 1 events will be reviewed entirely." He promised investigators would seek new evidence, review existing evidence, and reconsider its findings. Deputy Speaker Samvel Nikoyan, a parliamentary ally of Sargsyan, said he believed the concessions would prompt Ter-Petrossian and other major critics in the opposition to consider that "language of ultimatum is not expedient while addressing the authorities". Nikoyan said he expects the opposition will join in "civilized dialogue" with the government as a result of the promised reexamination of the case. A HAK official agreed that one of the opposition's demands had been met, but said two other demands—presumably the release of political prisoners and access to Freedom Square, which Ter-Petrossian also mentioned on 8 April—are outstanding and suggested he would not be fully satisfied by the promise of renewed investigation into the 1 March 2008 violence until the results were made public.
Karapetyan fulfilled another of Ter-Petrossian's demands, at least in the short term, by granting a permit on 26 April for the planned 28 April HAK demonstration in Freedom Square. On 27 April, Sargsyan expressed hope for a peaceful dialogue between the government and the opposition going forward, with Freedom Square as a forum for "alternative ideas". He said his administration was willing to make the "first steps" in the hope of achieving compromise and "cooperation".
On 26 May, the National Assembly passed a wide-reaching amnesty plan for hundreds of prisoners, including six opposition activists detained since 2008, thus fulfilling the HAK's third and final precondition for dialogue with the government. Levon Zurabian said the opposition party will enter into negotiations with the Republican Party of Armenia
for early elections to be held, as the HAK continues to dispute the legitimacy of the elections that brought Sargsyan and many government parliamentarians to power. Two jailed activists were released the next day, with more purportedly to follow.
The government offered another major concession on 9 July, with a spokesman for Sargsian saying the HHK and its two junior coalition partners, Prosperous Armenia
(BHK) and Rule of Law
(OEK), had agreed to form an ad hoc group to hold negotiations with the HAK. Several senior party officials and lawmakers were appointed to this group, which is intended to meet with a similar HAK delegation to discuss a solution to the standoff over Armenia's governance.
Armenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
and the civic government of Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
, its capital and largest city. Protesters have demanded President Serzh Sargsyan release political prisoner
Political prisoner
According to the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, a political prisoner is ‘someone who is in prison because they have opposed or criticized the government of their own country’....
s, prosecute those responsible for the deaths of opposition activists
2008 Armenian presidential election protests
The 2008 Armenian presidential election protests were a series of mass protests held in Armenia in the wake of the Armenian presidential election of 19 February 2008...
after the 2008 presidential election
Armenian presidential election, 2008
A presidential election was held in Armenia on 19 February 2008. Prime Minister of Armenia Serzh Sargsyan won the election in the first round according to official results, but this is disputed by former President Levon Ter-Petrossian, who officially placed second.The candidacy of Sargsyan was...
and institute democratic and socioeconomic reforms, including the right to organise in Freedom Square in downtown Yerevan. They have also protested against Yerevan Mayor Karen Karapetyan
Karen Karapetyan
Karen Karapetyan is the current mayor of Yerevan, Armenia. He became the mayor on December 17, 2010, after receiving the overwhelming support from the municipal assembly. Prior to becoming the mayor, Karapetyan was chief executive of the Armenian-Russian joint venture, ArmRosGazprom, since 2001...
for banning the opposition from Freedom Square and barring vendors and traders from the city streets. The opposition Armenian National Congress
Armenian National Congress
The Armenian National Congress is a coalition of 13 opposition parties in the Republic of Armenia led by former President Levon Ter-Petrossian and formed in 2008. Its direct predecessor was the Armenian Popular Movement...
, which has played a major role in organising and leading the demonstrations, has also called for a snap election
Snap election
A snap election is an election called earlier than expected. Generally it refers to an election in a parliamentary system called when not required , usually to capitalize on a unique electoral opportunity or to decide a pressing issue...
and the resignation of the government.
The government has granted several concessions to the protesters, including agreeing to the opposition's terms for an inquiry into the 2008 protest deaths, granting them a permit to rally in Freedom Square in late April, and releasing several imprisoned opposition activists.
Street vendor protests
Street vendors in YerevanYerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
, angry over Mayor Karapetyan's decision on 13 January to start enforcing a strict ban on street trading, protested outside the municipal offices of the capital city on 19 January. City officials insisted the ban was necessary for public health and safety, but demonstrators shouted slogans criticizing Karapetyan, a Republican Party of Armenia
Republican Party of Armenia
The Republican Party of Armenia is a national conservative political party in Armenia. It was the first political party in independent Armenia to be founded and registered . It is the largest party of the centre-right in Armenia, and claims to have 140,000 members...
official elected by the municipal assembly in December 2010 to finish out an incomplete term, and complaining that the municipality's ban has prevented many of them from making enough money to pay for food and shelter for themselves and their families. Some protesters, many of whose signs emphasized their peaceful intentions, called upon Karapetyan to either meet with them or resign. The protests in front of the municipal offices soon became a daily phenomenon stretching into February.
Political protests
With minor protests in YerevanYerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
continuing and a revolutionary wave
Revolutionary wave
A revolutionary wave is a series of revolutions occurring in various locations in a similar time period. In many cases, an initial revolution inspires other "affiliate revolutions" with similar aims....
spreading
2010–2011 Middle East and North Africa protests
The Arab Spring , otherwise known as the Arab Awakening, is a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests occurring in the Arab world that began on Saturday, 18 December 2010...
throughout North Africa
North Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
and Western Asia, opposition politicians like Stepan Safaryan of the party Heritage
Heritage (Armenia)
Heritage is a liberal and centrist, opposition political party in Armenia. The party emerged as the fifth largest party in the Armenian National Assembly after its debut in the 2007 Armenian parliamentary elections. It obtained 7 seats and a popular vote of 5.81%...
and former President Levon Ter-Petrossian
Levon Ter-Petrossian
Levon Ter-Petrossian , sometimes transliterated Levon Ter-Petrosyan or Ter-Petrosian , was the first President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998...
, who was defeated by now-President Sargsyan in the disputed 2008 election, of the Armenian National Congress
Armenian National Congress
The Armenian National Congress is a coalition of 13 opposition parties in the Republic of Armenia led by former President Levon Ter-Petrossian and formed in 2008. Its direct predecessor was the Armenian Popular Movement...
(HAK) suggested in early February that political upheaval could come to Armenia. Ter-Petrossian called for an opposition rally in Yerevan's Freedom Square on 18 February not just to protest the Karapetyan administration, but to protest the government of President Serzh Sargsyan. The government responded by saying Liberty Square would be off-limits due to "sports and cultural events". The HAK said it planned to rally in the square regardless of whether the city government and the national government allowed it to do so. Political analysts said national opposition leaders like Ter-Petrossian were harnessing an existing wave of unrest inspired by the Tunisian Revolution
Tunisian revolution
The Tunisian Revolution is an intensive campaign of civil resistance, including a series of street demonstrations taking place in Tunisia. The events began in December 2010 and led to the ousting of longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011...
and protests
2011 Egyptian revolution
The 2011 Egyptian revolution took place following a popular uprising that began on Tuesday, 25 January 2011 and is still continuing as of November 2011. The uprising was mainly a campaign of non-violent civil resistance, which featured a series of demonstrations, marches, acts of civil...
in Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and evident in such events as the ongoing street vendor protests, with some predicting that the conditions were right for major protests to gain traction.
18 February
On 18 February, the Armenian National Congress held a major protest drawing between 5,000 and 10,000 in the city center of Yerevan. The protesters, including Ter-Petrossian, complained of low wages, unemployment, inflation, corruption, and a falling quality of living. Speakers at the rally also invoked the specter of the TunisianTunisian revolution
The Tunisian Revolution is an intensive campaign of civil resistance, including a series of street demonstrations taking place in Tunisia. The events began in December 2010 and led to the ousting of longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011...
and Egyptian
Egyptian Revolution
Egyptian revolution may refer to:* Egyptian revolution of 2011, a series of mass popular protests leading to the resignation of Hosni Mubarak* Egyptian revolution of 1952, led by Muhammad Naguib, Gamal Abdel Nasser, and the Free Officers Movement...
revolutions, and Ter-Petrossian compared the Sargsyan administration to those fallen regimes. "The plight of our people is no better than the plight of the peoples of those countries, and Armenia's regime is no less dictatorial and hated than the regimes in those countries," the former president said. He urged the government to resign and called for an uprising similar to those seen in Arab
Arab world
The Arab world refers to Arabic-speaking states, territories and populations in North Africa, Western Asia and elsewhere.The standard definition of the Arab world comprises the 22 states and territories of the Arab League stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the...
countries near
Greater Middle East
The Greater Middle East is a political term coined by the Bush administration to group together together various countries, pertaining to the Muslim world, specifically Iran, Turkey, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Various Central Asian countries are sometimes also included. Some speakers may use the...
Armenia. Ter-Petrossian also called on street vendors and others already organizing in protest of government policies to "politicize" their rallies and join with the national opposition in calling for sweeping changes.
1 March
The Armenian National Congress organized another rally in Yerevan on 1 March. According to estimates of the opposition, the rally was attended by over 50,000 citizens. The rally marked the third anniversary of post-election violence2008 Armenian presidential election protests
The 2008 Armenian presidential election protests were a series of mass protests held in Armenia in the wake of the Armenian presidential election of 19 February 2008...
after Sargsyan's disputed victory in 2008, when 10 protesters were killed. Protesters again demanded early elections and called for Sargsyan to resign. Ter-Petrossian spoke at the rally, calling the government a "bandit regime [that] seized power through falsified parliamentary and presidential elections and the bloody crime committed on 1 March 2008" and reiterating the demands aired at the 18 February protest. He also publicly called for the ban on street trading to be lifted and demanded economic reforms, including a higher minimum wage
Minimum wage
A minimum wage is the lowest hourly, daily or monthly remuneration that employers may legally pay to workers. Equivalently, it is the lowest wage at which workers may sell their labour. Although minimum wage laws are in effect in a great many jurisdictions, there are differences of opinion about...
and unemployment benefits.
3 March
About 50 street vendors backed by members of both the opposition party HeritageHeritage (Armenia)
Heritage is a liberal and centrist, opposition political party in Armenia. The party emerged as the fifth largest party in the Armenian National Assembly after its debut in the 2007 Armenian parliamentary elections. It obtained 7 seats and a popular vote of 5.81%...
and the Armenian National Congress, including members of parliament
National Assembly of Armenia
The Azgayin Zhoghov of Armenia is the official name of the legislative branch of the government of Armenia.-History:Until the promulgation of the Hatt-i Sharif of 1839, the patriarch and his clients, within limits, possessed authority over Armenian people in the Ottoman Empire...
, gathered outside a government building in Yerevan. Police moved to disperse them, resulting in a number of clashes. One HAK activist was arrested and one of the Heritage MPs was hospitalized with injuries. In defiance of a statement from Prime Minister Tigran Sargsyan
Tigran Sargsyan
Tigran Sargsyan has been the Prime Minister of Armenia since 9 April 2008.Tigran Sargsyan was born in Kirovakan, Armenian SSR . From 1980 to 1983, he attended Leningrad's Voznesenski Financial and Economic Institute. From 1983 to 1987 his postgraduate education ended in obtaining PhD degree...
promising an internal investigation into the allegations of police brutality, the police publicly blamed the MPs for inciting violence. The incident prompted renewed comparisons of the Karapetyan and Sargsyan administrations' policies to pre-revolutionary Tunisia
Tunisia
Tunisia , officially the Tunisian RepublicThe long name of Tunisia in other languages used in the country is: , is the northernmost country in Africa. It is a Maghreb country and is bordered by Algeria to the west, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Its area...
by some analysts and opposition parliamentarians.
15 March - "Fast for Freedom"
Armenian Minister of Parliament and Former Foreign Minister Raffi HovannisianRaffi Hovannisian
Raffi K. Hovannisian is an American-born Armenian politician and former Foreign Minister of Armenia. He is the leader of the Heritage party....
, a leader of Heritage, began a hunger strike in Freedom Square on 15 March to protest the government and advocate for snap election
Snap election
A snap election is an election called earlier than expected. Generally it refers to an election in a parliamentary system called when not required , usually to capitalize on a unique electoral opportunity or to decide a pressing issue...
s.
17 March
On 17 March, protesters continued to demand the resignations of the government, many members of which were elected in the disputed elections, in the evening at Freedom Square citing a will to replicate the Arab world protests. Ter-Petrossian, again a featured speaker at the rally, said that the demonstrations were "peaceful" in intent. As many as 20,000 Armenians attended the rally, though the government said 9,000 attended and organizers claimed a turnout of 100,000. Hovannisian, now on the second day of his hunger strike, was present in Freedom Square with his supporters but was sidelined by Ter-Petrossian and other Armenian National Congress leaders, straining relations between Heritage and the HAK.Before the rally, opposition activist Samson Khachatrian was arrested after two plainclothes police officers alleged he assaulted them at the 1 March rally, a move one HAK leader called "a provocation". Khachatrian was later convicted of the assault, spurring mass outcry from the opposition.
30 March
In a ceremony at Freedom Square, Hovannisian ended his public hunger strike by eating a hunk of bread symbolically blessed by an Armenian Orthodox priest. He said health concerns, including warnings from his doctor, as well as the arrival of his daughter's 18th birthday prompted him to call off the 15-day hunger strike, but he claimed the strike had affected "the public consciousness" even if it had not moved authorities to change their "consciousness and policies". Hovannisian also acknowledged cracks in the opposition to Sargsyan and the government, but he did not specifically acknowledge the simmering dispute between Heritage and the Armenian National Congress. A Republican Party of ArmeniaRepublican Party of Armenia
The Republican Party of Armenia is a national conservative political party in Armenia. It was the first political party in independent Armenia to be founded and registered . It is the largest party of the centre-right in Armenia, and claims to have 140,000 members...
MP criticized the hunger strike, saying it was not the best means of enacting change.
2–4 April
Several female intellectualsIntelligentsia
The intelligentsia is a social class of people engaged in complex, mental and creative labor directed to the development and dissemination of culture, encompassing intellectuals and social groups close to them...
, including a Heritage MP, held a sit-in each day in Freedom Square starting on 2 April as a "logical continuation" of Hovannisian's protest action the month before. During the sit-in, attended by a handful of women each day, protesters sat silently for five hours before departing the square. Some critics within the opposition decried the sit-in as a gimmick, with one calling it a "waste of time".
8 April
On 8 April, Ter-Petrossian gave a 35-minute speech in YerevanYerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
. The rally, organized by the Armenian National Congress, drew 12,000 attendees to Freedom Square in the city center in violation of an official ban. Despite the ban by the Yerevan city council, police ultimately stood aside in the face of the crowd and permitted the gathering. Ter-Petrossian said that the Sargsyan administration must fulfill three demands by 28 April: promising an "objective inquiry" into post-election violence in 2008, giving the HAK the permanent legal right to demonstrate in Yerevan's Freedom Square, and securing the release of political prisoners. The former president also warned the opposition would "drastically change" its methods of resistance unless its demands were met.
At a press conference several days after the rally, Armenian National Congress official Levon Zurabian warned that the opposition saw the political situation as "a war, a real war". Zurabian added, "And if we want to achieve something in that war, we must and we will get ready for war." He suggested that mass striking, sit-ins, large-scale marches, and other acts of civil disobedience
Civil disobedience
Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government, or of an occupying international power. Civil disobedience is commonly, though not always, defined as being nonviolent resistance. It is one form of civil resistance...
could be the next step for the opposition. Zurabian also claimed that, contrary to suggestions from leaders in allied parties that the opposition is ready to negotiate a deal that keeps the Sargsyan administration in power, the goal of the HAK remains forcing Sargsyan to resign and a snap election to be held.
28 April
Two days before the planned rally in Freedom Square on 28 April, the municipality of Yerevan reversed its earlier decision not to grant permits to HAK to gather in the square. The mayor's office agreed to a planned route that included a demonstration in Freedom Square, issuing a permit for the first time in over two years for the gathering. The government also said the ban on demonstrations in the square would be lifted from 28 April forward.Reuters
Reuters
Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...
reported a turnout of about 5,000 at the rally. Ter-Petrossian referred to the government's announcement of concessions on access to Freedom Square and the investigation into the 2008 post-election violence and told the crowd, "If the door to dialogue is not yet open, it is half open." For the first time since protests began in January and February, he suggested that the grievances of demonstrators could be addressed through negotiation rather than regime change. Ter-Petrossian also called on President Sargsyan to release jailed political dissidents and activists in time for the next planned rally on 31 May.
A significant number of protesters reportedly did not take part in a march through Yerevan following Ter-Petrossian's speech, with some continuing to occupy the square afterward rather than leave, and the former president elicited some boos, whistles, and jeers when he expressed confidence that the government would release all political prisoners within weeks. Although HAK official Levon Zurabian said the party remains intent on forcing snap elections, Ter-Petrossian did not mention the resignation of the government or new elections once throughout the speech.
21 May
Raffi HovannisianRaffi Hovannisian
Raffi K. Hovannisian is an American-born Armenian politician and former Foreign Minister of Armenia. He is the leader of the Heritage party....
, the leader of Heritage
Heritage (Armenia)
Heritage is a liberal and centrist, opposition political party in Armenia. The party emerged as the fifth largest party in the Armenian National Assembly after its debut in the 2007 Armenian parliamentary elections. It obtained 7 seats and a popular vote of 5.81%...
, held an assembly in the Government Hall of Sessions in Yerevan reportedly attended by hundreds of citizens, including several fellow political figures and famous activists. Three panel discussions comprised the bulk of the town hall meeting, with topics of human rights, civics, and solutions to political differences featured respectively. Hovannisian set 4 June as the next date for an assembly, to be held in the more public setting of Freedom Square.
31 May
Despite the general amnesty for jailed anti-government activists issued days before, the HAK held a major rally as scheduled in Freedom Square. The Armenian Police estimated a turnout of about 6,000, though the opposition disputed the figure and said it was much higher. HAK political leaders, including former Prime Minister Aram Sargsyan, former President Levon Ter-PetrossianLevon Ter-Petrossian
Levon Ter-Petrossian , sometimes transliterated Levon Ter-Petrosyan or Ter-Petrosian , was the first President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998...
, and recently released ex-MP Sasun Mikaelyan, said the government was finally showing a willingness to engage with the opposition and meet its demands, as evidenced by the amnesty, and complimented protesters on their achievement in putting pressure on the government to fulfill the HAK's three preconditions for dialogue. However, Ter-Petrossian, People's Party of Armenia
People's Party of Armenia
The People's Party of Armenia is a left-wing socialist political party in Armenia....
head Stepan Demirchyan
Stepan Demirchyan
Stepan Demirchyan is an Armenian politician and son of the Communist-era Armenian leader Karen Demirchyan.-Biography:Stepan Demirchyan was born in Yerevan and received his degree from Yerevan Polytechnic Institute in 1981. He is an engineer-electrician and a PhD on Technical Sciences...
, and amnestied editor Nikol Pashinyan, among others, reiterated the HAK's calls for snap election
Snap election
A snap election is an election called earlier than expected. Generally it refers to an election in a parliamentary system called when not required , usually to capitalize on a unique electoral opportunity or to decide a pressing issue...
s, criticizing the current government as the "result of rigged elections". Ter-Petrossian also said that in the coming days, opposition leaders would be meeting with the government to present its proposal for a transition toward new elections, though he cautioned that the government would likely have different ideas and present its own agenda. Demirchyan took a less conciliatory tone, saying, "If the authorities fail to go for snap elections, we must force them." A Heritage
Heritage (Armenia)
Heritage is a liberal and centrist, opposition political party in Armenia. The party emerged as the fifth largest party in the Armenian National Assembly after its debut in the 2007 Armenian parliamentary elections. It obtained 7 seats and a popular vote of 5.81%...
MP also demanded the immediate release of her brother, whom she said should have been freed under both recent changes to the Armenian criminal code and the recent amnesty, which purportedly covers him. The rally reportedly concluded with a march around downtown Yerevan, a promise by HAK officials that another rally would be held in June, and mass chants of "Levon for President!"
30 June
At a rally police said was attended by 4,000 demonstrators, HAK luminaries including Pashinyan, Zurabian, and Ter-Petrossian criticised the Armenian government. Pashinyan called President Sargsian's statement on 22 June in which he said AzerbaijanAzerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
was better prepared for a war over Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh
Nagorno-Karabakh is a landlocked region in the South Caucasus, lying between Lower Karabakh and Zangezur and covering the southeastern range of the Lesser Caucasus mountains...
than Armenia "one of the most disgraceful...in the diplomatic history of the Third Republic of Armenia," claiming it strengthened Azerbaijan's posture in the ongoing dispute. Zurabian warned that if the government did not engage with the HAK directly in "a short time," people would gather in the streets for mass protests. He said the government knew that "the only way to avoid a revolution or a social riot is agree to negotiations." Ter-Petrossian said that unless the government agreed to the opposition's demands, including setting snap elections, by the next scheduled rally on 1 August, the HAK would return to the rhetoric of calling for Sargsian's immediate resignation. The tone of the rally suggested that the détente
Détente
Détente is the easing of strained relations, especially in a political situation. The term is often used in reference to the general easing of relations between the Soviet Union and the United States in the 1970s, a thawing at a period roughly in the middle of the Cold War...
evident in the spirit of the previous two HAK mass gatherings had decidedly cooled.
30 September
At a rally on 30 September, HAK decided to start a "non-stop rally", which was demanded by the protesters.Composition
The most prominent demonstrations in the pre–18 February period of the 2011 protests were held by street vendors. The Armenian National CongressArmenian National Congress
The Armenian National Congress is a coalition of 13 opposition parties in the Republic of Armenia led by former President Levon Ter-Petrossian and formed in 2008. Its direct predecessor was the Armenian Popular Movement...
sought to capitalize on the wave of rising dissent, fueled by successful uprisings against regimes in Tunisia
Tunisian revolution
The Tunisian Revolution is an intensive campaign of civil resistance, including a series of street demonstrations taking place in Tunisia. The events began in December 2010 and led to the ousting of longtime President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali in January 2011...
and Egypt
2011 Egyptian revolution
The 2011 Egyptian revolution took place following a popular uprising that began on Tuesday, 25 January 2011 and is still continuing as of November 2011. The uprising was mainly a campaign of non-violent civil resistance, which featured a series of demonstrations, marches, acts of civil...
. As such, the HAK emerged as the leading voice in protests, with its leader Levon Ter-Petrossian
Levon Ter-Petrossian
Levon Ter-Petrossian , sometimes transliterated Levon Ter-Petrosyan or Ter-Petrosian , was the first President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998...
addressing all major rallies in Yerevan
Yerevan
Yerevan is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's oldest continuously-inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Yerevan is the administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the country...
from 18 February onward. The HAK strongly encouraged merchants and others disillusioned with the government's policies to join them, and Ter-Petrossian has aligned his party's goals with those of the street vendors who began the initial protests.
However, the HAK has not been the only voice of criticism against the government. Heritage
Heritage (Armenia)
Heritage is a liberal and centrist, opposition political party in Armenia. The party emerged as the fifth largest party in the Armenian National Assembly after its debut in the 2007 Armenian parliamentary elections. It obtained 7 seats and a popular vote of 5.81%...
, one of only two opposition parties with seats in the National Assembly
National Assembly of Armenia
The Azgayin Zhoghov of Armenia is the official name of the legislative branch of the government of Armenia.-History:Until the promulgation of the Hatt-i Sharif of 1839, the patriarch and his clients, within limits, possessed authority over Armenian people in the Ottoman Empire...
, has also been active in galvanizing protest, though its demonstrations have been on a smaller scale and have largely come in the form of civil disobedience
Civil disobedience
Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government, or of an occupying international power. Civil disobedience is commonly, though not always, defined as being nonviolent resistance. It is one form of civil resistance...
actions, such as hunger strike
Hunger strike
A hunger strike is a method of non-violent resistance or pressure in which participants fast as an act of political protest, or to provoke feelings of guilt in others, usually with the objective to achieve a specific goal, such as a policy change. Most hunger strikers will take liquids but not...
s and sit-in
Sit-in
A sit-in or sit-down is a form of protest that involves occupying seats or sitting down on the floor of an establishment.-Process:In a sit-in, protesters remain until they are evicted, usually by force, or arrested, or until their requests have been met...
s, and public conferences. On 26 April, leader Raffi Hovannisian
Raffi Hovannisian
Raffi K. Hovannisian is an American-born Armenian politician and former Foreign Minister of Armenia. He is the leader of the Heritage party....
released a statement demanding that the government convene a constitutional convention
Constitutional convention (political meeting)
A constitutional convention is now a gathering for the purpose of writing a new constitution or revising an existing constitution. A general constitutional convention is called to create the first constitution of a political unit or to entirely replace an existing constitution...
, grant the International Criminal Court
International Criminal Court
The International Criminal Court is a permanent tribunal to prosecute individuals for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, and the crime of aggression .It came into being on 1 July 2002—the date its founding treaty, the Rome Statute of the...
jurisdiction over Armenia, and officially recognize the Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic , or Artsakh Republic is a de facto independent republic located in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia...
. He said his supporters numbered in the "tens of thousands".
Another opposition group that emerged in late April, though it has not had any major role in organizing demonstrations, is the Armenian Revolutionary Federation
Armenian Revolutionary Federation
The Armenian Revolutionary Federation is an Armenian political party founded in Tiflis in 1890 by Christapor Mikaelian, Stepan Zorian, and Simon Zavarian...
(HHD), or Dashnaktsutyun, the other opposition party with a parliamentary presence. On 28 April, Dashnak leader Armen Rustamian criticized both Ter-Petrossian and President Serzh Sargsyan, saying neither the HAK nor the Republican Party of Armenia
Republican Party of Armenia
The Republican Party of Armenia is a national conservative political party in Armenia. It was the first political party in independent Armenia to be founded and registered . It is the largest party of the centre-right in Armenia, and claims to have 140,000 members...
(HHK) represent the interests of Armenians and that Ter-Petrossian's role in fomenting dissent is self-serving. Rustamian has called for "radical" change, suggesting that any compromise between the HAK and the HHK will not "lead to a meaningful improvement of the existing situation". The Dashnaks have reportedly urged Sargsyan, whom their party supported as a coalition partner until 2009, to dismiss the government and hold snap election
Snap election
A snap election is an election called earlier than expected. Generally it refers to an election in a parliamentary system called when not required , usually to capitalize on a unique electoral opportunity or to decide a pressing issue...
s. Both HHD and Heritage have adopted a hard line on Nagorno-Karabakh, jointly insisting in late June that the government not accept the terms laid out at a meeting in Kazan
Kazan
Kazan is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Tatarstan, Russia. With a population of 1,143,546 , it is the eighth most populous city in Russia. Kazan lies at the confluence of the Volga and Kazanka Rivers in European Russia. In April 2009, the Russian Patent Office granted Kazan the...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, and warning of massive street protests if Sargsian compromised on the breakaway republic's status.
Role of social networking
The social networking website FacebookFacebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
served as an early vehicle for organizing action against the government. Activists set up a new website called Revoforum, shorthand for "Revolutionary Forum", on 2 April as a discussion board for the political situation in Armenia. Complaints over high cost of living and inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...
have reportedly driven historically apolitical but Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
-savvy young Armenians to organize online, and some have used sites like Facebook, Revoforum, and Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
to get involved with street protests as well.
Response
Police officials have accused opposition members of subverting peaceful protests, as in the case of the small 3 March protest that turned into a scuffle between protesters and law enforcement. A police statement claimed activists agitating for political reforms tried to "provoke fighting between citizens and the police" and defended the police response, which injured at least one protester.One government MP said the protest ban on Freedom Square was for activists' sake, suggesting that violence could erupt if demonstrators were permitted to gather in the square. He also said President Sargsyan is not a dictator and is "not Gaddafi", a reference to Libya
Libya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
n leader Colonel Muammar al-Gaddafi
Muammar al-Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar Gaddafi or "September 1942" 20 October 2011), commonly known as Muammar Gaddafi or Colonel Gaddafi, was the official ruler of the Libyan Arab Republic from 1969 to 1977 and then the "Brother Leader" of the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya from 1977 to 2011.He seized power in a...
, who has faced a sustained uprising
2011 Libyan civil war
The 2011 Libyan civil war was an armed conflict in the North African state of Libya, fought between forces loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and those seeking to oust his government. The war was preceded by protests in Benghazi beginning on 15 February 2011, which led to clashes with security...
against his rule since February. Another HHK
Republican Party of Armenia
The Republican Party of Armenia is a national conservative political party in Armenia. It was the first political party in independent Armenia to be founded and registered . It is the largest party of the centre-right in Armenia, and claims to have 140,000 members...
official said the government would not make any concessions as long as the opposition continues to make demands.
On 31 March, in response to ongoing discontent from vendors petitioning for the re-legalization of street trading, the deputy mayor of Yerevan said of the crackdown, "These actions aimed at enforcing the law are resolute and final." He brushed aside the anger of protesters attending a parliamentary hearing on the matter, saying that the municipality already provides for trading in approved markets as a reasonable alternative to vending on the street.
On 12 April, the office of Yerevan Mayor Karen Karapetyan
Karen Karapetyan
Karen Karapetyan is the current mayor of Yerevan, Armenia. He became the mayor on December 17, 2010, after receiving the overwhelming support from the municipal assembly. Prior to becoming the mayor, Karapetyan was chief executive of the Armenian-Russian joint venture, ArmRosGazprom, since 2001...
reaffirmed its protest ban on Freedom Square, a ban the opposition signaled it would continue to ignore. At a press conference, Karapetyan defended the ban, saying, "There are places in all countries of the world where no demonstrations are allowed to be held." The mayor said he did not view the ban as a violation of the opposition's freedom of speech
Freedom of speech
Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship. The term freedom of expression is sometimes used synonymously, but includes any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used...
.
President Sargsian expressed frustration in a 12 July interview over repeated questions as to the legitimacy of the elections that brought him and many of his parliamentary allies to power. He complained of a lack of civility in Armenian politics and said that just because Ter-Petrossian and his backers did not congratulate him on his victory or formally concede the election, that did not mean the results were illegitimate. Sargsian has vowed that parliamentary elections scheduled for 2012 will be democratic in keeping with the standards of the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
.
Concessions
In April, the National AssemblyNational Assembly of Armenia
The Azgayin Zhoghov of Armenia is the official name of the legislative branch of the government of Armenia.-History:Until the promulgation of the Hatt-i Sharif of 1839, the patriarch and his clients, within limits, possessed authority over Armenian people in the Ottoman Empire...
finally passed a bill, which had been under debate for six months, expanding rights to free assembly. The new law gives people the legal right to gather peacefully, as demonstrators have done in Yerevan since January.
Armenian police chief Alik Sargsian said on 14 April that he would take a tougher approach to abuses and corruption in the ranks of the republic's law enforcement. "Let people understand that impunity is now unacceptable in the police," Alik Sargsian said. He did not specify whether he would focus on punishing police over alleged abuses of detainees and suspects.
On 19 April, Samson Khachatrian, the opposition activist convicted of assaulting police during the 1 March 2011 protest, was released after demands from opposition leaders that he be set free.
The Sargsyan administration vowed on 20 April to give greater priority to investigating allegations of violence against opposition supporters on 1 March 2008, a key demand of the protesters. "I expect new impetus and sharply intensified efforts to investigate the events," said Sargsyan at a conference open to press. Sargsyan also promised new reforms to make the Armenian justice system more effective and efficient. On 21 April, the government's chief investigator said, "The examination of the March 1 events will be reviewed entirely." He promised investigators would seek new evidence, review existing evidence, and reconsider its findings. Deputy Speaker Samvel Nikoyan, a parliamentary ally of Sargsyan, said he believed the concessions would prompt Ter-Petrossian and other major critics in the opposition to consider that "language of ultimatum is not expedient while addressing the authorities". Nikoyan said he expects the opposition will join in "civilized dialogue" with the government as a result of the promised reexamination of the case. A HAK official agreed that one of the opposition's demands had been met, but said two other demands—presumably the release of political prisoners and access to Freedom Square, which Ter-Petrossian also mentioned on 8 April—are outstanding and suggested he would not be fully satisfied by the promise of renewed investigation into the 1 March 2008 violence until the results were made public.
Karapetyan fulfilled another of Ter-Petrossian's demands, at least in the short term, by granting a permit on 26 April for the planned 28 April HAK demonstration in Freedom Square. On 27 April, Sargsyan expressed hope for a peaceful dialogue between the government and the opposition going forward, with Freedom Square as a forum for "alternative ideas". He said his administration was willing to make the "first steps" in the hope of achieving compromise and "cooperation".
On 26 May, the National Assembly passed a wide-reaching amnesty plan for hundreds of prisoners, including six opposition activists detained since 2008, thus fulfilling the HAK's third and final precondition for dialogue with the government. Levon Zurabian said the opposition party will enter into negotiations with the Republican Party of Armenia
Republican Party of Armenia
The Republican Party of Armenia is a national conservative political party in Armenia. It was the first political party in independent Armenia to be founded and registered . It is the largest party of the centre-right in Armenia, and claims to have 140,000 members...
for early elections to be held, as the HAK continues to dispute the legitimacy of the elections that brought Sargsyan and many government parliamentarians to power. Two jailed activists were released the next day, with more purportedly to follow.
The government offered another major concession on 9 July, with a spokesman for Sargsian saying the HHK and its two junior coalition partners, Prosperous Armenia
Prosperous Armenia
Prosperous Armenia is a political party in Armenia. It was founded by Gagik Tsarukian, a wealthy businessman, in late 2005. It debuted in the 2007 Armenian parliamentary elections, winning 18 seats and 14.68% of the votes, making it the second largest political party in parliament.-External...
(BHK) and Rule of Law
Rule of Law (Armenia)
Rule of Law is a centrist political party in Armenia, led by Artur Baghdasarian. It is the fourth largest party in the Armenian National Assembly...
(OEK), had agreed to form an ad hoc group to hold negotiations with the HAK. Several senior party officials and lawmakers were appointed to this group, which is intended to meet with a similar HAK delegation to discuss a solution to the standoff over Armenia's governance.