Tens of thousands protest as Armenia crisis deepens

Armenia's crisis deepened today as tens of thousands of people took to the streets after the opposition accused the government of refusing to negotiate a transfer of power following the resignation of veteran leader Serzh Sarkisian.

Authorities beefed up security in the capital Yerevan, cordoning off buildings housing the government and the ruling Republican party, and deploying hundreds of police and several armoured personnel carriers.

Protesters shouted, clapped, whistled, beat drums and tooted car horns in demonstrations that underscored the political turmoil gripping the impoverished former Soviet republic.

Led by 42-year-old Nikol Pashinyan, thousands of demonstrators marched through Yerevan against the Republican Party's unwillingness to facilitate the transfer of power after former president Sarkisian stood down Monday from his new post of prime minister.

Pashinyan sported his trademark khaki-coloured T-shirt and clutched a megaphone as protesters chanted "Nikol for prime minister" and "We are the masters of our country".

Demonstrators warned of possible clashes with the authorities if a solution to the crisis was not found quickly.

"There is a danger that riots, clashes could start if the Republicans do not leave in a calm manner," 40-year-old lawyer Ruzanna Vartanyan told AFP.

Stepan Grigoryan, a political analyst who joined the rallies, said it was a do-or-die situation, describing the current system as "criminal."
"The head has been chopped off," he said, referring to Sarkisian's resignation Monday, "but the body -- the Republican Party -- remains and it needs to be removed."