Levon Ter-Petrossian Post-Election Demonstration, Yerevan, Republic of Armenia © Onnik Krikorian / Oneworld Multimedia 2008

Less than a week since the 19 February presidential election in Armenia and it feels as though the country is entering the final phase of the battle between president-elect, Serge Sargsyan, and the first president, Levon Ter-Petrossian. The supporters of both claim victory for their candidate.

Regardless, while the authorities are beginning to show some of panic with the what appear to be the illegal detention of three of Ter-Petrossian’s team, the rallies in Yerevan’s Liberty Square continue unabated. And if Public TV and Radio fails to report them adequately or even at all, the online media does.

RFE/RL reported on yesterday’s rally.

Ter-Petrosian urged Armenians to attend his rallies in even larger rallies and thereby put the authorities under greater pressure to call a repeat election.

“We must show these authorities that the whole people don’t accept them,” he told an estimated 40,000 people who gathered in the city’s Liberty Square. “We must show the entire world that the Armenian people do not tolerate such an unworthy and blasphemous government.”

“This square must be full day and night until the victorious end of our struggle,” he said.

[…]

In his speech, Ter-Petrosian also accused the United States and Europe of turning a blind eye to what he described as large-scale fraud that marred the Armenian election. “The West doesn’t care about democracy here,” he said. “The West is not sincere in trying to establish democracy in Armenia. They need a weak, dictatorial regime so that they can always have leverage against it.”

The full post is available on the Armenia Election Monitor 2008.