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Anna Bianca Roach
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Anna Bianca Roach is a graduate of conflict studies and a women’s rights-focused journalist based in Yerevan, Armenia.
‘The Police are Ours!’ — Armenia’s revolutionary police reform at a crossroads
Armenia

‘The Police are Ours!’ — Armenia’s revolutionary police reform at a crossroads

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Reform of the oft-maligned Armenian Police Force is in full swing following April’s ‘Velvet Revolution’, with reformers frequently citing neighbouring Georgia as a blueprint. While the reforms seem to have made a real dent in corruption, calls to take on the force’s reputation for brutality appear to be gaining less traction. ‘Ashot, your grandmother is in this crowd! Will you hit her, too?’ A protestor screams at a riot police officer at the height of Armenia’s April 2018 revolution.

Analysis | Heard but not seen: how women became the unrecognised architects of the Velvet Revolution
Armenia

Analysis | Heard but not seen: how women became the unrecognised architects of the Velvet Revolution

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The revolution that led to the downfall of Armenia’s Republican Party heavily relied on the roles women have traditionally taken in social movements. Until now, they haven’t been recognised; but the revolution might be changing that. Hours after the resignation of former Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan, three women walk down the centre of Amiryan Street towards Haraparak, the beating heart of Yerevan and the square that hosted the revolution’s nightly rallies. Between them, holding hands wit