We are not Erdogan’s Turkey – violence or imprisonment of journalists will not be tolerated: Serj Tankian

Serj Tankian reflected to seizure of police precinct, which reads,

“Thoughts on the standoff in Armenia and the associated political undercurrents:

Most people around the world are confused as to why the takeover of a police station has caused what seems to be an irreparable rift between a segment of Armenia’s populace and the authorities.

Years of issue-based
peaceful protests,

Unending SYSTEMIC CORRUPTION including the perceived corruption surrounding the proper arming of the NK defense forces, JUDICIAL INEQUALITY, POLICE BRUTALITY, RIGGED ELECTIONS, FOREIGN INTERVENTION, lack of Economic opportunities, And the resulting NATIONAL DEPOPULATION have created a powder keg of frustration against the ruling gov’t of President Serzh Sarkissian.

Whatever happens in the next 24 hours with the Sasna Dzrer armed group at the police station, these are the resulting political truths:

1) Voter fraud, ballot stuffing and stolen elections starting with the Parliamentary elections in 2017 will no longer be met with apathy but with the full force of the Armenian populace. Only the irresponsible, inequitable programs and reactions of the government can create a revolution in Armenia. This means we all need to further strengthen civic society in the country and beef up the monitoring efforts of upcoming elections with international media presence and full transparency.

2) “We don’t want to be the bitch of any superpower”. One thing we learned from the protests in the past were how foreign powers were interested in using them as political tools for their own interests. We need to diplomatically shift away from unipolar geopolitics to one that sees everything in the interests of our homeland.

3) The Armenian Diaspora can no longer afford to just be a checkbook to Armenia but will be forced to organize to become “the checks and balances” we desperately need within the country. The Diasporan silence over injustices within the country over the last few decades has made our country worst, not better. There is no excuse for the further disconnect.

4) We can no longer expect to be “saved” by a leader or a President.
We shouldn’t require demagogues or idols. Our will and future discourse needs to be forged in collusion with all Armenians. That means public forums leading to real democracy.

5) We are not Erdogan’s Turkey: violence or imprisonment of journalists will not be tolerated. It’s in our cultural heritage to speak openly and loudly and we deserve it after 600 years of Ottoman oppression. Going after journalists is a sign of weakness by the government in any country.

6) The police chief and mayor of Yerevan should resign based on how the situation has been handled by Yerevan’s police. Re-training of the forces would also be recommended. Policemen who feel that people are being arrested without due cause should resist following their orders in lieu of hurting their people.

7) Non-violence: as frustrated as people are with the ruling elites, they should not hurl violence at police officers or anyone else. Most of these officers are our sons and daughters and are no more guilty of personal subservience to injustice than ourselves even if they are following the orders of the government. No one deserves violence. A country with a literacy rate of 90% like Armenia must not have mob rule.

The president and Armenian leadership must show leadership and de-escalate the situation immediately with concessions and reason at its core and realize all of this is not due to a standard hostage takeover but embodies the imbalance of their rule.

We can no longer see our homeland downtrodden and depopulated on our watch. The course of history is changed by action not apathy.

Most importantly, we need to stop the bloodshed on the streets of Yerevan now!!

Finally an international TV program focusing on this attached:

Love the quote by Richard Giragossian near the end of the program:
“There is no going back. There is no return to normalcy. The status quo previously has become egregiously and now demonstrably unacceptable.”