No Construction Permit Granted to Lydian in This Area; Protesters Demand Removal of Company Cabins Today

The community of Jermuk has not issued a construction permit for this area, announced Jermuk Mayor Vardan Hovhannisyan during a protest in Amulsar. "Why aren’t you using your legal means to remove these cabins right now? There are so many people here, call them out. Who is going to stop you?" a protester asked the mayor.

"To avoid additional tension, they will come and remove them. We need to bring the GPS in the morning to show them the location for their cabin removal," the mayor responded.

It is worth noting that the Jermuk mayor previously told reporters that tomorrow the cabins of Lydian Company and the guards at Amulsar will be relocated to another area. He stated that the company's cabins had not been placed on community-owned land.

Today's protest marks the third day of continuous demonstrations in Amulsar. The protesters have three demands: first, to relocate the cabins of the newly hired security service by Lydian Company at least 30 meters away from the area; second, to remove the security personnel of the company from Amulsar; and third, to seek a clear decision from the Government regarding Amulsar.

It should be reminded that the new security service rented by Lydian had removed the cabins of the Amulsar guards and replaced them with their own.

For two days, the situation in Amulsar has been tense, with some detained during the protests and clashes occurring between police and demonstrators. Protesters attempted to move the cabins placed by Lydian Armenia’s security group in the area they rented in Amulsar. The protesters had blocked the road leading to the town of Jermuk. Members of parliament and the regional police chief were present at the events.

Recall that on July 20, 2018, a criminal case was initiated concerning the concealment of information regarding damage to nature resulting from the exploitation of the Amulsar mine.