KIRANTS, Armenia -- An outspoken archbishop and his supporters have begun marching to Yerevan from a border village in the northern Tavush Province that has been the epicenter of protests over the past two weeks against the Armenian government’s territorial concessions to Azerbaijan.
Archbishop Bagrat Galstanian, who has emerged as a leader of the protests, and other participants said they were taking their campaign to the streets of the capital to try to scuttle the handover of border areas adjacent to the village of Kirants and nearby Tavush communities.
Many local residents have been angered by the government’s plans, citing grave security concerns.
“The Tavush for the Homeland movement has decided that the people must just go to Yerevan… to demand that this process here and elsewhere be stopped,” Galstanian said in Kirants before starting the 160-kilometer journey to Yerevan.
SEE ALSO: Armenian Protests Continue Against Plans To Cede Territory To Rival AzerbaijanThe decision was announced two days after police cracked down on Kirants protesters who tried to stop authorities from clearing an adjacent area of land mines and make other preparations for its handover to Azerbaijan. The police presence in and around the village remained strong after the crackdown.
Galstanian, who heads the Tavush diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, said protesters plan to reach Yerevan on May 9. He gave no details of their planned actions once there.
His announcement drew statements of support from Yerevan-based opposition politicians and public figures who pledged to join the campaign.
The marching protesters, among them at least two opposition parliamentarians, spent their first night in Tavush’s medieval Haghartsin monastery. They resumed their march to the capital after attending a Mass there early on May 5.
“This march is going to give us one thing: honor and homeland,” Galstanian told the crowd of more than 100 people following the liturgy. He urged Armenia’s leaders to “behave well,” “repent,” and “stay away from all kinds of sins.”
Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian’s political allies and other supporters have verbally attacked Galstanian during the protests. Galstanian was highly critical of Pashinian and especially his handling of the conflict with Azerbaijan even before the protests.
During an April 30 session of the Armenian parliament, pro-government lawmakers branded Galstanian a Russian spy, accused him of provoking another war with Azerbaijan, and even called on Armenian border guards to forcibly draft the 52-year-old archbishop.
Pashinian has said the unilateral concessions are necessary to prevent Azerbaijani military aggression against Armenia.
The Armenian opposition maintains he is actually encouraging Baku to demand more territory from Armenia and use force for that purpose.