Communique
Association of Melkonian Alumni and Friends
Los Angeles, California
DIASPORA MINISTER DR. HRANUSH HAGOPIAN MEETS WITH MELKONIAN ALUMNI & FRIENDS
Los Angeles, Cal. USA
On November 25, 2008, Armenia’s Minister of the Diaspora, Dr Hranush
Hakobian, met with the representatives of the Association of Melkonian
Alumni and Friends in the offices of Dr Harout Mesrobian in Glendale.
The meeting lasted approximately one hour. The minister was accompanied
by Mr Armen Liloyan, Consul General of Armenia in Los Angeles.
Representing the Association of Melkonian Alumni and Friends at the
meeting were Chairman Raffi Zinzalian and members of the Administrative
Board Harout Mesrobian, Zohrab Shammasian, Vahakn Gharibian, and Garo
Kasabian. The Melkonian alumni brought to the minister’s attention a
number of issues related to the closure of the Melkonian Educational
Institute (MEI) in Cyprus.
The closure of MEI by a decision of the Central Board of the Armenian
General Benevolent Union (AGBU) in June 2005 is no doubt one of the most
pressing issues of the Diaspora by virtue of its broader adverse
consequences. Consequently, it would be appropriate for Armenia’s
Ministry of the Diaspora to take up this issue with high priority.
Legal and other actions undertaken in Los Angeles and Cyprus in the last
few years with the leadership of the Armenian Patriarchate of Istanbul
and the joint efforts of Melkonian alumni organizations across the world
to halt the closure of MEI have not produced any positive results. All
legal rulings in these actions have favored the AGBU.
In late 2006, the Supreme Court of Cyprus ruled and affirmed that the
AGBU has full ownership rights over the MEI properties and that it can
dispose of them as it wishes. This ruling cleared the way for the
immediate sale of the Melkonian properties, which would have happened
had it not been for the intervention of the alumni in Cyprus.
In response to an appeal by the Cyprus alumni, the National Assembly of
Cyprus declared the original MEI buildings and 60 percent of its campus
of approximately 40 acres as a historic and architectural heritage site
and the adjoining grove of trees a "green zone." Although this
regulation reduces the monetary value of the Melkonian properties, it
makes the sale of the properties more difficult because it imposes tough
restrictions on any modifications on existing structures and
construction of new buildings in green areas.
Although the MEI has served as one of the most important centers of
preservation and advancement for Armenian existence and culture in the
Diaspora and provided high-quality education to thousands of Armenian
men and women over 80 years of its existence, it must not be viewed
solely as an educational institution. Indeed, it is an institution
established, above all, for the purpose of "avengement." The following
remarks by the benefactor Garabed Melkonian are so apropos and
memorable: "I am building this school to take avenge my nation. The Turk
decimated us. He first killed our leaders and then our entire helpless
nation. These young orphans must rebuild their patriarchal homeland, and
we must make leaders out of them. It is my wish that the existence of
these Melkonian educational institutions be perpetuated for centuries to
come and that they serve as hearths of enlightenment that train
productive and honest men and women for the Armenian nation, the
Armenian homeland, and all of humanity." This was the vision of the
founders of MEI. To that end, Krikor and Garabed, the two Melkonian
brothers gifted the vast sum of 600,000 British gold pounds to the
Armenian nation. That endowment is equivalent to hundreds of millions of
dollars in today’s prices. The interest on that gift was sufficient to
perpetuate the MEI "for centuries to come." The MEI opened as an
orphanage in 1924 to serve the needs of more than 300 helpless and
destitute orphans who had survived the genocide of 1915-1923.
Subsequently, hundreds of other orphans found shelter, food, and
education in Melkonian. Stretching in front of the twin MEI buildings is
a grove with hundreds of Roman pines. Those trees were planted by those
same orphans in memory of their lost kin and the uncountable victims of
the genocide. That grove is essentially the first "monument" that
eternalizes the memory of the victims of the Armenian holocaust.
Consequently, the MEI is closely associated with and an integral part of
the history of the genocide perpetrated against the Armenian people at
the beginning of the 20th century. As such, it is unthinkable to sell it
no matter how high the value of its physical assets.
Why was Melkonian closed? This question continues to torment our minds.
We believe that specious excuses to the effect that "the existence of
Melkonian is no longer justified" or that "Melkonian’s mission has come
to an end" are without grounds.
A comprehensive report dated November 23, 2003, and drafted by Mr Sarkis
Bchakjian, then Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the MEI, cited
reliable statistical data to present an optimistic picture of the
situation that existed at the time and the future potential of the
school. At that point, the number of students in the institute had risen
to 251 over the previous eight years and the potential existed to
increase that number to as high as 350. However, the AGBU Central Board
sent instructions that this number should not exceed 250 to avoid any
budgetary strains. At the time of the report, the educational standards
of the school had reached unprecedented heights. Specifically, 90
percent of MEI graduate were easily admitted to European and North
American universities to pursue their higher education. Thanks to the
generosity of the government of Cyprus and rent income from the MEI’s
commercial properties, the school’s revenues and investment returns were
on the rise. The institution was on its way to self-sufficiency.
Armenian schools in the Diaspora play a huge role in the preservation of
the Western Armenian language and culture, which remain in peril and
face extinction if we cannot keep these schools open. In some countries,
the use of local languages has become so prevalent among Armenians that
the few surviving Armenian schools are virtually incapable of teaching
our mother tongue. The MEI is the only Armenian co-educational boarding
school in the Diaspora. As such, it must be reopened so that it can
carry on its mission as a stronghold of Armenian education and culture.
The value of an educational institution lies in its output. Can the
"Melkonian Educational Center," a youth complex the AGBU plans to create
in Armenia, replace the MEI of Cyprus and assume the role it played? In
any event, the piecemeal information that has been provided about
planned Melkonian complex in Armenia does not inspire much confidence or
hope, given that the plan has not yet taken concrete form and appears to
be stumbling. We have been told that the complex will bring together
around 200 Armenian students from various corners of the world and offer
them instruction in the Armenian language, literature, and history. We
are told that such activities will contribute to the preservation of
Armenian existence, culture, and education. We are told that all these
can be achieved over a period of at most six months.
Situated in a hospitable and generous country like Cyprus, a member
state of the EU with a superb geographical location, the MEI can be
gateway to Europe for Armenia. The matriculation of a certain number of
students from Armenia at the MEI would provide these students with
high-quality secondary education and prepare them for admission to
European and North American universities. After specializing in various
professions, these students can return to Armenia and contribute to the
advancement and prosperity of their homeland. Their interaction with
students from other countries would also help the further strengthening
of ties between Armenia and the Diaspora.
Minister Hakobian and Consul General Liloyan carefully listened to the
information presented to them and expressed compassionate understanding
for the work of the Melkonian alumni across the world to have the MEI
reopened.
Dr Hakobian took notes throughout the meeting and assured the
participants that she will present the MEI case to the serious
consideration of Armenia’s President Serzh Sargsyan and Prime Minister
Tigran Sargsyan. She said: "As your representative, I am prepared to
present the Melkonian case to the president and prime minister of the
Republic. I will also personally meet with Louise Simone and Berj
Setrakian of the AGBU Central Board to discuss the reopening of
Melkonian. I will also meet with relevant government authorities in
Cyprus to discuss the status of Melkonian. I believe that the
preservation of the Armenian language is an essential prerequisite of
perpetuating the Armenian nation. I am aware of the contributions of the
MEI to the building of the Armenian nation." The Diaspora Minister also
expressed her opposition to the closure of any school in the Diaspora.
We thank Dr Hakobian for making room in her busy schedule for this
meeting and for listening to the concerns and problems of Melkonian
alumni. We are especially gratified by her commitment to work on the
Melkonian case and to find a positive solution to this problem. We also
thank Consul General Liloyan for his interest and patience in listening
to concerns about Melkonian.
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