‘We Are Staying.’ Protesters Opposing Electricity Price Hike Vow to Continue Sit-In
June 22, 2015
A scene from the continuing sit-in on Baghramyan Avenue (Screenshot from Azatutyun.am)
YEREVAN””Thousands of Yerevan residents were barricaded by police after a group of protesters began advancing toward the Presidential Palace on Monday evening, forcing the group to stage a peaceful sit-in on the street to demand that the government revise a decision to hike electricity prices in Armenia.
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The mass sit-in, which began Friday evening, comes on the heels of the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC) of Armenia voting unanimously on June 17 to raise electricity prices from 42 AMD/kWh to 49 AMD/kWh. This is the third consecutive price hike by the government in the last 3 years and the fourth since 2009, making Armenia the country with the highest electricity rates in the region.
The protesters began their march toward the Presidential Palace at 7 p.m. from Liberty Square. Armenian police forces immediately began advancing toward the protesters and officers in riot gear surrounded the perimeter of where the demonstrators had gathered. The events are being broadcast live on Azatutyun.am.
The dramatic standoff with the police did not escalate to violence as both demonstrators and police vowed to not provoke each other. The demonstrators, however, rejected a proposed meeting with five of their representatives at the Presidential Palace, saying that the government must answer to the people.
Chanting slogans such as “Free, Independent Armenia,”
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