YEREVAN -- Thousands of people took part in a demonstration in the Armenian capital on June 17 in support of the Tavush for the Motherland movement, which has been holding rallies calling for the resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian over plans to hand over several border areas to Azerbaijan as part of a peace deal.
The demonstration, led by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanian, started on Baghramian Avenue, which was closed.
There was also a police presence during the demonstration but no violence was reported, unlike on June 12, when clashes erupted near the National Assembly during a rally by the movement.
Police used stun grenades and detained more than 100 people, and nearly as many were injured in the clashes. Pashinian angered the opposition by defending the use of force, saying it was "legitimate and professional."
SEE ALSO: Nikol Pashinian: From Jailed Activist To Beleaguered LeaderGalstanian said at the June 17 demonstration that the people who were injured had not been visited by a "forensic doctor" until the night of June 16 as part of an effort to cover up what happened.
"June 12 is another stigma on the face of this government and its leader," Galstanian said, vowing to start legal proceedings against the perpetrators of the violence.
Opposition deputy Garnik Danielyan also addressed the crowd.
"We will continue the struggle as long as Nikol Pashinian and his regime exist," he declared.
The deputy also referred to an extraordinary session of parliament that failed to take place earlier on June 14 because opposition parties could not secure a quorum.
At least two opposition parties wanted the meeting to discuss a draft on the resignation of the government and the formation of a new one.
National Assembly speaker Alen Simonian told RFE/RL that Civil Agreement faction members declined to attend the session because they did not want to "serve the agenda of the opposition."
Simonian added that the government "is legitimate, therefore they will not discuss the issue of the resignation of the government."
Galstanian told the demonstration that the movement would continue its discussions and "expand the toolkit for the struggle." The movement will meet to discuss "having a new quality country and other ideological issues," he said, adding, "There is no such thing as a retreat for us."
The Investigative Committee said earlier on June 17 that 12 criminal cases had been filed in connection with the clashes on June 12. The cases include charges of mass disturbances and hooliganism filed against eight people. Two of them are under house arrest, and one was banned from leaving the country.
Ruben Melikian, a lawyer for one of the two defendants under house arrest, said the criminal cases against the protesters were political persecution. The authorities are trying to justify the violence that police used against the demonstrators, Melikian said.
The government must answer to Armenia and the international community "because these brutalities of the police are in front of everyone's eyes," Melikian told RFE/RL.
Melikian's client, Tigran Saribekian, is accused of hooliganism. Melikian said Saribekian's ears were injured by a stun grenade. After he was injured, he picked up a piece of wood from the ground and threw it at the police, according to Melikian.
"They are trying to show that some serious crime happened and the police heroically defended it," Melikian said, adding that the portrayal of the police as victims was "artificial."