davit Sanasaryan: We witnessed a false incident here

The new coordinators of the protest against electricity price hike which has been dubbed 'Electric Yerevan' made an announcement on Thursday evening. Speaking on behalf of the coordinators, Davit Sanasaryan, Spokesman for the opposition Heritage Party, spoke about the incident involving Paruyr Hayrikyan and his supporters. “We witnessed a false incident here, which was against freedom and devoid of values. Hayrikyan’s supporters came to us and said an announcement had been made against them and there were provocateurs here. I said it could not be true. I am not saying now that they came here to incite provocations but what happened after a warning was a provocation,” said Davit Sanasaryan. “People gathered here are not only fighting for a seven-dram increase [in electricity prices], they are fighting for freedom, but certain people are executing the orders of their bosses which is against the principles of a free citizen,” he added. Paruyr Hayrikyan, leader of the Union for National Self-Determination (AIM), arrived at Baghramyan Avenue late in the evening accompanied by several supporters, who carried the flags of Armenia and EU. Protesters began to shout angrily “Go away!” and urged Hayrikyan to remove the EU flag.  They viewed this step by Hayrikyan as a provocation. Hayrikyan explained his step by the fact that the citizens subjected to violence by the police on June 23 have applied to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). The argument between the protesters and Hayrikyan resulted in a short scuffle, with citizens dancing around Hayrikyan, scanning ‘Armenia’.