Environmental Protest Action, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2007

Yesterday saw another environmental protest held in Yerevan. Actually, although they are staged from time to time, they’re not so frequent it has to be said — probably because few people here actually think about such things. Despite respiratory problems and air pollution being on the rise, the number of green areas in the capital continues to decline usually to make room for some monstrosity of a building or cafe belonging to a corrupt government official, their relatives or business partners.

The announcement of the protest, which I posted on Wednesday, read as follows:

We are against all the actions which cause ecological disaster in our city. The greediness of our “elite” is beyond measure. The construction business has purposefully destroyed the green areas and the historical and cultural monuments of the city for the latest decade, turning it into an asphalt-concrete desert.

Yerevan residents intensely struggle for the green areas near the houses, yet women and children face the attacks of the police and other armed forces.

It is the last straw that breaks the camel’s back. Emergence of a huge foundation pit for construction in Opera garden by the Swan Lake became culmination of negligence and arbitrariness toward the ecological and cultural environment and toward public opinion.

It has to be said that even if few people turned out for the action, the idea was a great one — if the authorities state they will fill in the pit but don’t, let citizens take matters into their own hands. Actually, it sounded pretty much like a Sksela event, although while many of its members attended the event and posted announcements on their personal blogs, the event was officially staged by a coalition of environmental NGOs.

Anush at Transitions Online’s The Armenian Patchwork has a great post on the event which is accompanied by many photographs.

All the construction in the town could not help resulting in some fuss around it, and basically a reaction of environmental activists was expected. And so it came. Yesterday evening a number of organizations gathered a bunch of people, some 100, to fill a hole in central Yerevan with some earth. The hole was actually a building foundation, but the act was symbolic to “assist the authorities”, like the organizers speak about it, because the authorities have been planning to cancel this construction.

One of the controversies around this spot is that the owner is not revealed, and this enrages the activists, although it looks like everyone knows who the owner is. I personally had a friend whisper it to my ear, which made me feel a member of a secret community of the knowledgeable about Armenian corruption.

The protesters tied black ribbons on their arms and hung posters saying “No to cutting trees” and “No to injustice”.

Bringing in an outsider’s perspective on the event as well as environmental destruction in general in Yerevan, Myrthe at The Armenian Odar also posts a comprehensive entry, again accompanied by photographs.

[…] from what I understand, it is not even clear what really is being built there and who is building it. Considering the location I assume it is indeed going to be some new entertainment place. And I am also going to assume that the construction is being done without the proper documents and permissions. Another illegal building owned by one of the country’s hotshots. […]

[…]

As usual, the amount of protesters was not enormous, but they were visible and people stopped and asked what was going on. So in that way, I guess the protest could be considered a success. Even though every single person attending realized that this would not stop the construction in any way. Even though in that way, these protests will not be successful any time soon, I still think such protest meetings should be held as they show other people that raising your voice is an option as opposed to staying put and just not doing anything apart from complaining how bad everything is and that you average Hovhannes Hovhannisyan cannot do anything to change this country. The latter seems to be the option most people pick in Armenia. Unfortunately.

Anyway, seems like the local blogging scene was out in force for this event and Zarchka at Life Around Me also posts an account as does The Armenian Observer and Tesaket. Tirami Su posts some more images from what must be one of the smallest but most photographed demonstrations I’ve ever encountered in Yerevan, while E-Channel has some video.

Actually, there’s also some more video here as well so even if it didn’t manage to attract many participants, the action certainly created a stir in the blogosphere.

Environmental Protest Action, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2007