Last night, some 6,000 people marched towards President Serzh Sargsyan's residence in Yerevan. Water cannons against protesters have been used against participants in what has already been dubbed 'Electric Yerevan' in reference to the cause of the protests: rising energy prices.
Tuesday's initial mass protest against hikes in electricity tariffs, and the authorities' reaction against them, have had a noticeable effect on the country’s political situation. According to the Armenian police, 237 people were arrested on 23 June and, in total, 29 people suffered injuries, including 11 police officers. But while this situation has already begun to provoke comparisons with recent events in Ukraine, these protests have a domestic trajectory which should not be ignored.
Why are Armenians protesting?
On 17 June, 2015, Armenia's Commission on Regulating Civic Services examined a document from Electricity Networks of Armenia (the ENA, which owns and manages the country's national grid). This company is part of Inter RAO, a large energy holding company based in Moscow.
