Police arrested 237 participants of Monday’s protests against rising electricity rates in the Armenian capital of Yerevan, local media have reported.
7 protesters were injured in clashes against police early in Tuesday. In turn, 11 police officers suffered injuries. Armenian media complained about police organs’ use of “brute force and special equipment”, while police stated that they are preparing to charge some of the protesters with hooliganism.
Last week, Electricity Networks of Armenia, the company that owns and manages Armenia’s electricity grid, raised electricity prices for households by 17-22 percent. The tariff rise is expected to take effect August 1st.
As a result, some 5,000 protesters organized by the ‘No to Plunder’ group took to the streets of the city center, chanting “No to robbery!” and “Don’t slip your hands into our pockets!”