2020–2021 Armenian protests

2020−2021 Armenian protests
2020−2021 Armenian protests
	Protests in front of Yerevan Opera House against the terms of the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire agreement
Date	10 November 2020 – 25 April 2021
Location	Armenia: Yerevan, Gyumri, Vanadzor
Caused by	A cease-fire agreement signed by Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan; Government mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic;
Goals	Cancellation of the ceasefire agreement in Nagorno-Karabakh (previously); Resignation of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan (succeeded); Formation of a 1-year interim national unity government followed by snap elections;
Methods	Demonstrations, civil unrest, street blockades
Status	Ended Failed coup d'état attempt; Fresh parliamentary election; Resignation of Nikol Pashinyan to trigger snap elections; Nikol Pashinyan continues to serve as interim prime minister until 20 June elections; Nikol Pashinyan reelected in 20 June elections;
Parties
Anti-government protesters Opponents of the signed agreement; Ethnic Armenians displaced from Nagorno-Karabakh as a result of the war; Relatives of dead, injured, and prisoner of war soldiers.; Homeland Salvation Movement Armenian Revolutionary Federation ; Homeland Party ; National Democratic Union ; Prosperous Armenia ; Republican Party of Armenia ; One Armenia Party ; Apricot Country Party ; National Democratic Pole Sasna Tsrer Pan-Armenian Party ; European Party of Armenia (former member) ; National Progress Party of Armenia ; Union for National Self-Determination (supportive) ;	Government of Armenia My Step Alliance; National Security Service;
Lead figures
	Vazgen Manukyan; Ishkhan Saghatelyan; Artur Vanetsyan; Gagik Tsarukyan; Naira Zohrabyan; Arpine Hovhannisyan Supported by:; Serzh Sargsyan; Robert Kocharyan; Seyran Ohanyan; Yuri Khachaturov Nikol Pashinyan (Prime Minister); Armen Sargsyan (President); Vahe Ghazaryan (police chief)
Casualties
Detained	362+ people

The 2020−2021 Armenian protests (also known as the March of Dignity; Armenian: Արժանապատվության երթ, romanized: Arzhanapatvut'yan yert') were a series of protests that began following the Nagorno-Karabakh ceasefire agreement on 10 November 2020. After Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan announced that he signed an agreement to cede Armenian-occupied territories in Azerbaijan and put an end to six weeks of hostilities over the Nagorno-Karabakh region, thousands of people took to the streets, and hundreds stormed the Parliament building in the capital Yerevan. Protests continued throughout November, with demonstrations in Yerevan and other cities demanding the resignation of Nikol Pashinyan.

The protests were led by two different political coalitions: the National Democratic Pole, a pro-Western and pro-European alliance consisting of several political figures, and the Homeland Salvation Movement, a pro-Russian alliance consisting of several opposition parties. The former ruling Republican Party, the largest opposition party in parliament at the time, Prosperous Armenia, and the Armenian Revolutionary Federation joined the Homeland Salvation Movement. On 3 December 2020, the Homeland Salvation Movement announced former prime minister Vazgen Manukyan as their candidate to lead an interim government for a period of one year. Meanwhile, the National Democratic Pole, led by the Sasna Tsrer Pan-Armenian Party and formerly the European Party of Armenia, had also proposed for itself to lead an interim government for a period of one year.

In addition to the two political coalitions, numerous public figures had called on Prime Minister Pashinyan to resign, including the then president of Armenia, Armen Sarkissian, former president Levon Ter-Petrosyan, both catholicoi of the Armenian Apostolic Church, Karekin II and Aram I, and Edmon Marukyan leader of the then third-largest party in parliament Bright Armenia (who announced his own candidacy for the office of prime minister) as well as several regional governors and mayors. In early December, the ban on mass gatherings and strikes stipulated by martial law imposed in September was lifted. On 22 December, a general strike was called that reinvigorated the protests.

On 25 February 2021, Chief of the General Staff of the Armenian Armed Forces Onik Gasparyan and more than 40 other high-ranking military officers issued a statement calling for Pashinyan's resignation, which Pashinyan denounced as an attempted military coup. On 18 March 2021, Pashinyan announced early parliamentary elections, to take place on 20 June 2021. Pashinyan confirmed he would resign as Prime Minister in April 2021 but would continue to serve as interim prime minister until snap elections were held.

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