Aravot asked RPA candidate for deputy Davit Shahnazaryan that his views regarding the events of March 1st was heavily criticized, especially the episode about gathering bottles. Alen Simonyan said that he saw how Shahnazaryan ordered near the Myasnikyan statue that those who wished to take refuge in embassies were to be taken to the Hrazdan stadium. Aravot asked Shahnazaryan why he tried to do such a thing.
Davit Shahnazaryan responded, “First, I would like to call upon the representatives of the government to appeal to their propaganda body called the Special Investigative Service. I haven’t expressed anything about March 1st lately. I simply spoke about what I have participated in and what I have witnessed. You said bottles were gathered, I said they were broken. Of course, those were the broken bottles sold in stores provided by criminal groups. The issue was to prevent protestors from drinking from those bottles. Those people know very well what happened and what I said. Nothing extraordinary happened, because everyone knew what actually happened, and those who know it made themselves hoses. They are trying to confuse the relatives of those who died on March 1st and use them solely for political purposes.”
Mass protests were held in Armenia, after presidential elections on 2008. The protests were organized by the supporters of the First President of the Republic of Armenia Levon Ter-Petrosian. During the protest held on March 1, 2008, clashes broke out between police and protesters. President Robert Kocharyan declared a 20-day state of emergency.
Hripsime Jebejyan
