“I feel so sorry that this happened. Such an attitude should not have happened to the EU flags. I do not want to qualify them and call them provocateurs. I am sure that they are astray and will be ashamed of their actions. I regret that some of the young men, because not all of them, they were just a group of young people protesting against it, do not know what the EU is. This is primarily a value system. The value system to which we aspire, we are trying to establish in the Republic of Armenia. Should this system be established here, today’s protests would be useless. The EU is 28 states united around 4 Freedoms”, – so commented the Head of Armenia’s National Security Service (1994-1995), David Shahnazaryan, in the interview with Aravot.am, referring to the incident happened to the Leader of NSDU Paruyr Hayrikyan in Baghramyan Avenue. According to him, Paruyr Hayrikyan’s argument is crushing.
“The protesters have applied to the European Court of Human Rights with regard to the violence on April 23, haven’t they? Some 10-15 thousand protesters applauded the news about sending an appeal to the ECHR, in fact, they have requested to discuss it by a special procedure, although there is not much hope in that regard. If the youth think that tearing the EU flag will help them for the ECHR to pass this issue by a special procedure, they are mistaken.”
David Shahnazaryan noted that this protest seems to have reached a deadlock. He said, “Generally, let’s understand that the demand is fully political and is directed against the Putin regime because the RAO UES is a Russian company, and the demand is directed to it. If some people are afraid of Russian mass media and think that they will reach something by adulation, then I must say that they are in delusion. Should there be such an attitude towards the Russian mass media, the movement of 1988 would not have happened.” To our observation that people say that even if the Russian flag were brought today, the protesters would have behaved the same way, David Shahnazaryan replied, “Russia’s flag is a specific state flag. A state that conducts the known policy towards the Republic of Armenia, the Russian state-owned companies torment Armenia. This is another matter. While the EU is a value system. I am confident that these young people are in delusion, to do everything not to make the Russian press and Russian officials angry. No, we are defending our interests, and this demand is from the Putin regime, they are the recipient of this demand.”
Hripsime JEBEJYAN
