After the police breakup of a protest against electricity tariff increase in Yerevan’s Baghramyan Avenue a number of people were injured and were taken to hospitals.“Since 6 am we have received six patients with scratches and fractures of closed tissues. After respective medical treatment four of them left the hospital. During the last hour two other men were received who are under medical checkup now,” the head of the department of the hospital, Samvel Karapetyan said.
According to Karapetyan, the victims were transported to hospital in ambulance cars; he has not yet spoken to police officers.
“As a matter of fact 10 people received non-traumatic injuries, only scratches of soft tissues and fractures. They are still under control, but most probably they will be discharged,” he said.
Founding Parliament member Hrachik Mirzoyan was also among the injured; he was, by the way, stabbed during the March 28 Gyumri events organized by the radical opposition group. This time he was slightly injured.
“Until nearly 05:15 everything was peaceful, of course, it was predicted that the police would attack and they evidently waited for the people to become fewer. The organizers repeatedly announced that the event was peaceful. Police dressed as civilians were roaming among the protesters and probably saw that people had not been armed with anything. They grouped behind the sit-in, stood up from both sides and then the event took place,” he told ArmeniaNow, adding that he saw with his own eyes how they were hitting women.
Nevertheless, No To Plumber civil initiative members now are in different detention centers, their friends will continue the events. On Facebook an event “A march of unification – let’s cancel the decision of tariff increase” has started, and within a few hours around 7,000 people expressed the desire to join the protest.