Anahit Bakhshyan, a member of the “Heritage” faction in the Armenian National Assembly, was an eyewitness to the events of March 1st.  Below, she answers questions posed by “Hetq”

Q - Mrs. Bakhshyan, do you think it was possible to prevent the events of March 1st from having the outcome that we saw? What was it that the government or the protest organizers failed to do in this regard?

A - First, let me say that the people who assembled near the French Embassy gathered there spontaneously, no organizers were present. They were the people who had been beaten and mauled in Freedom Square early that morning and who were quite perturbed as a result. The organizers showed up later and called for calm. I didn’t hear anyone make calls regarding the usurpation of the government or to violate the Constitutional order. In hindsight I believe that Levon Ter-Petrosyan, realizing that he couldn’t get to the people, should have called on the crowds to disperse as soon as it got dark. Isn’t it true that much later that night he issued the same directive? On the other hand, I truly believe that he didn’t expect the regime to act as it did.

The list of what the regime failed to do to prevent the outcome we witnessed is endless. When I got to the French Embassy there were only around 50-60 people assembled by the gate. Twenty minutes later the entire square was full. The authorities could have calmed them down in a polite manner. Force shouldn’t have been again used on people given their emotional state. If we women hadn’t formed a line between the people and the helmeted, truncheon carrying police, the former would have been beaten once again.

Soon the police chiefs showed up and proposed several exit routes for the crowd. I then heard one of the police say - get these people out of here or we’ll attack them. Davit Hakobyan, an intelligent young man who works in the U.N. office, turned around and said - how can you attack the people? He was immediately struck on the head by a police club. It later turned out that his head had been split open by the beating he received before being taken to the hospital.

What I also found strange is that the garbage truck collecting refuse at Freedom Square suddenly showed up where we were. The crowd wanted to know what that truck was transporting so they stopped it and began to empty its contents. Somebody was dusting off a shoe, saying it belonged to that child...Hysteria engulfed the people. I thought the entire incident looked staged in order to provoke the crowd. A bit later I got my colleagues together and we tried to figure out a way to diffuse the situation. We felt that it was impossible to leave the infuriated crowd confronting a police presence that was growing ever more ferocious. We also tried calling Tigran Torosyan, the President of the National Assembly, but there was no answer.

The rally at the Miasnikyan Statue continued until around 3:30 in the morning. The clashes took place further away, towards the Fish Market, Mashtots Avenue and Leo Street. People at the rally later told me that they didn’t even know that individuals had died just 2 kilometers from where they had stood. What I’d now like to ask is - What does the rally have to do with those clashes? What protestor was it that initiated a fight with the army? Who killed those people? Did these individuals shoot themselves?

You begin to think that it was to someone’s benefit that clashes broke out with the security forces so that under this guise the law regarding ‘public rallies’ could be modified in such a way to effectively ban all rallies and demonstrations and thus usurp the people’s right to freedom of expression. It was a chilling scene especially written for the occasion. The same playbook was used in 2003 and 2004.

In my possession I have photos showing a high-ranking police officer standing in front of the door to the Yerevan Municipality building pointing his revolver at the people. I have shots of three people looting a store. Let them broadcast these pictures and go after those individuals. On the contrary, they’re arresting people who command respect. And they are taking these people into custody only because they adhere to dissenting political opinions. It’s 1937 all over again.

Q - You have visited the families of those who died. Were you able to ascertain how they died? Why do you think the victims’ relatives avoid speaking to reporters?

A - The relatives of three of the dead have gone on “Haylur TV” and accused the opposition for what happened. That was their original reaction and I think some have thought differently later on. For example, one of them went on “Haylur” and condemned Ter-Petrosyan, but in an interview with an opposition paper that same person singled out the scoundrels. While I don’t rule out the possibility that many are silent out of fear, it’s most likely that they don’t talk because they aren’t able to substantiate whatever they say.

We have applied to the court forensics unit for information regarding the cause of death. They refused to answer our requests. I have personally visited all the families residing in Yerevan of those who died and have expressed the condolences of our party. I have tried to elucidate a few points. Most say their sons didn’t attend the rally. Grigor Gevorgyan called his wife up at 9 that evening and told her to heat up his dinner as he was heading home. When he was late his wife called him back, asking what had happened. He replied that the soldiers weren’t letting him through the street. Grigor never returned home that night. His death certificate states that his major brain functions ceased due to a gunshot wound to the skull.

27 year-old Zakar Hovhannisyan also died from a gunshot wound. His big brother was killed in the Karabakh war. He had no mother and his father is an invalid who Zakar took care of. Zakar was a somewhat restless person who usually didn’t attend the rallies. That day he fell near the closed market on Mashtots Avenue. He was taken to hospital for surgery but died soon afterwards. 33 year-old Davit Petrosyan, a jeweler by trade and a neighbor of Zakar, was another of those killed that day. He died from a bullet fired from a “Makarov” type revolver.

Q - What measures can be taken to extricate us from this crisis situation?

A - True dialogue is essential. On February 26th, when Serzh Sargsyan made a plea for dialogue addressed to all, even “our brothers and sisters” at Freedom Square, is just mere words. If he had taken steps to create such dialogue we might have wondered whether we were judging the newly elected president too harshly. Sadly, it turned out that he was only calling out to his “political customers” as he himself described them. Everything that is taking place today, the laws being passed, the repression, the arrests and political terror, will surely have a boomerang effect directed back at Serzh Sargsyan. He is the man whose election as the next president is questioned by a significant segment of this society. If he continues on the same path until he takes the oath of office we’ll find ourselves in an unpredictable state of affairs. How long can you keep plugging up a gas leak, sooner or later it will explode. It’s better not to guess what will happen. You just have to take a look at history.

We must put an end to the current status quo and work towards a political consensus. It’s the only way out. I also believe that the demands made by Levon Ter-Petrosyan can be addressed more expeditiously at the negotiations table. For example, he says that there can be no negotiations before those arrested have been set free. I believe that this issue can be resolved more easily if all involved sat at the table.

Generally speaking, the greatest impediment we face in terms of the political process is that the players involved believe what they have to say is the absolute truth; they generally dislike the ideas that they might be wrong.