Armenia’s ruling party praises police for restrained response to opposition's actions

A spokesman for the ruling Republican Party of Armenia #40;HHK#41; praised today the police for professional and restrained response to thousands of opposition activists who have been protesting against the election of former president Sargsyan as the country#39;s new prime minister.br / br /

YEREVAN, April 18. /ARKA/. A spokesman for the ruling Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) praised today the police for professional and restrained response to thousands of opposition activists who have been protesting against the election of former president Sargsyan as the country's new prime minister.br

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In an interview with the Armenian Service of RFE/RL, Eduard Sharmazanov, who is also a deputy parliament chairman, said the authorities will be responding nbsp;to the protests in accordance with the Constitution and legislation, but accused nbsp;the opposition of being nbsp;short-sighted and seeking adventurism.br

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During these days you saw nbsp;that the authorities showed maximum restraint in responding to the opposition’s demonstrations, but there are cases when the situation gets out of control, as it happened yesterday or today, but the use of violence is absolutely unacceptable, he said.br

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According to Sharmazanov, it is unclear how the opposition is going to act from now on. He called on both nbsp;the authorities and the police, and the organizers of protests to demonstrate maximum responsibility. If you are leading so many people, you need to be responsible for their health. So, I call for dialogue and solidarity, we are all one people, regardless of who loves whom or not, he said.br

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Sharmazanov defended nbsp;the need for dialogue between the authorities and the opposition. It is unacceptable to disappoint those young people who are making their first steps as citizens, play on their feelings, he said.br

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Protests in Armenia have continued for the sixth straight day shutting Yerevan’s downtown. As many as 46 people, including six police officers, were reported injured during a clash on April 16. The protests were aimed at preventing former president Serzh Sargsyan from assuming the position of prime minister.nbsp;br

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He resigned as president a week earlier. Armenia’s new constitution approved in a 2015 referendum makes the prime minister the country’s most powerful figure. Sargsyan was elected as prime minister during a special session of parliament on Tuesday by a vote of 77 to 17.br

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The leader of the oppositional Yelk parliamentary bloc Nikol Pashinyan announced April 17 the start of the ‘velvet’ revolution in Armenia. I officially declare that a revolutionary situation has arisen in Armenia, and today I am announcing the beginning of a peaceful velvet revolution, Pashinyan said to his supporters.nbsp;-0-br

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