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Armenian PM says Amulsar gold mine exploitation will proceed – regardless of environmental concerns

September 10, 2019March 12, 2026 Liana Toganian

JAM News

Sept 10 2019

There are currently no legal grounds for a ban on the exploitation of the Amulsar gold mine, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has stated during a live broadcast on his Facebook page.

Back in mid-August, the Investigative Committee of Armenia published the results of a comprehensive, which claimed examination that the development of the field does not harm the environment.

The Prime Minister then spoke for more than an hour in a live feed, assuring the public that the Amulsar mine would be exploited in accordance with environmental standards unprecedented for Armenia.

But environmentalists and residents of nearby settlements demanded exploitation of the mine be abandoned.

The fact is that approximately 100 tonnes of sodium cyanide per year will be used for gold mining operations in the area.

Opponents of the development of the mine believe that the case has a clear political context – they suggest that the government is turning a blind eye to environmental issues in order to avoid litigation with the company that obtained the rights to develop the field under the former government.

On September 9, Prime Minister Pashinyan again called for calm concerning the issue. He asked residents of the region of Jermuk to unblock the roads leading to Amulsar.

He explained his position as follows: the Lydian company, which received a license to operate the mine, will resume construction work no earlier than April 2020, therefore, there is no need to obstruct passage to the mine at the moment.

And the exploitation of the field itself can begin only at the end of 2020 or the beginning of 2021.

Meanwhile, having granted a license for the development of the Lydian mine, the country has undertaken obligations, and now cannot fail to fulfill them without damaging its reputation.

Nikol Pashinyan said that he has taken into account the opinion of concerned residents of the country, but has also considered the opinion of economists who argue the need to maintain a positive image of the country in international economic organizations.

In addition, the Prime Minister has assured the public they have no reason to protest, since his government does not accept any corruption deals and is concerned about the future of his country and its inhabitants.

The main issue is that the government can not prohibit the development of the Amulsar mine.

“But at the same time, we can’t not take into account the anxiety of the public,” Pashinyan noted.

PM Pashinyan said the Armenian government is obliged to systematically monitor all work in the Amulsar mine.

To this end, the Armenian Ministry of the Environment is going to acquire appropriate equipment by May 2020, which will make it possible to detect violations during the operation of the mine.

And since the Lydian company will not continue to work on the territory of the mine until that time, there is no need to rush the government.

Nikol Pashinyan spoke of some details of the last meeting with representatives of Lydian Armenia which took place on September 6.

According to Pashinyan, the company has committed itself to operating the mine in a safe manner.

“This means that not a single liter of polluted water will enter the rivers, the air will not be polluted, the groundwater will not be polluted, and there will be no problems with biodiversity. Representatives of the company strongly assure that there will be no negative changes in the environment.”

And most importantly: if any violations are detected, the mine will be closed for 90 days.

The Armenian Prime Minister voiced a number of proposals of how to solve the current situation.

To begin with, he asked the locals of Jermuk to unblock the roads leading to Amulsar. They blocked them after the revolution of 2018, hoping that the new government would support them and prohibit the development of the field.

“I officially ask the residents of Jermuk to open roads to the mine. I repeat. I’m asking you to open the roads,”, the phrase more than once appeared in the prime minister’s direct appeal.

Then Pashinyan said that the inspection body was instructed to start checks at Amulsar on a number of issues that were voiced at a recent video conference with ELARD – the consultations company which conducted a comprehensive safety review of the mine’s exploitation:

“A new investigation team has been formed, which will not only double-check the facts, but will also investigate new ones.”

Pashinyan’s arguments again did not seem convincing to environmentalists and activists of the SaveAmulsar movement.

Ecologist Shirak Buniatyan has already answered Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan about the possible operation of the Amulsar mine.

On his Facebook page, he wrote that the road to Amulsar will open only in two cases:

either government will abide by the unshakable decision of the Armenian people, adopted a year ago [ed. A speech given by Pashinyan that the mine will not be exploited];

or the authorities will use the methods of their predecessors [ed. Implying the use of force].

“But if they resort to this vicious practice of the former, then they will kill the popularity of the revolution. Amulsar is our homeland and that’s it”, wrote Buniatyan.

Among the first, one of the richest people in Armenia, the head of the Prosperous Armenia party Gagik Tsarukyan, reacted to Pashinyan’s statements.

According to him, the fate of the Amulsar field should be decided by the people. Moreover, he said he himself is ready to go out to a protest against the operation of the mine and join the people:

“You need to hear the people. If there is consent, open the mine. If this consent does not exist, let it not be worked out. The people live there and will continue living there. How can one ignore their opinion?”

The MP from the ruling parliamentary faction My Step, the head of the commission on economic issues, Babken Tunyan, agrees that there are currently no legal grounds to ban the operation of the Amulsar mine:

“At the moment, this decision has been made: there is no need to impede construction work on the mine. I adhered to this point of view from the very beginning … If during the year additional reasons appear that will allow us to stop the development of the mine, then certain measures will be taken.”

The topic of the exploitation of the Amulsar mine has become one of the most discussed in the Armenian Facebook segment for quite some time.

Social media users are divided into two camps: some are categorically against the resumption of Amulsar’s development, while others completely trust Pashinyan’s opinion and are of the opinion “he knows better”.

Here are some of the comments:

“We trust our prime minister!”

“Mr. Prime Minister, you are the leader of our country, and we, your people, unconditionally trust you!”

“We will protest and go to the end! Even at the cost of our lives! ”

“Stop your manipulations! The tourism sector can bring us much more money than the 10% of Lydian!”

“The larger half of the population is against it!”

“Is this how we are entering the second stage of the revolution?”

Amulsar mine is the second largest gold deposit in Armenia, and contains about 31 tonnes of ore and 40 tonnes of pure gold.

Lydian Armenia discovered the gold mine back in 2005.

Up until 2012, the company was looking for investors and was developing a mine development programme.

The same year Lydian Armenia and the Armenian government signed an agreement to develop and exploit the mine, and the company received the right to proceed with the project.

Protests against the development of the mine began in 2011.

They were attended by residents of surrounding settlements and environmentalists, who said that gold mining in the area could have a negative impact on the environment of the city of Jermuk, Lake Sevan and local rivers.

The initiative group ‘Jermuk will not become a mine’ was created at the time.

In 2012, the collection of signatures against the development of the mine began.

Activists repeatedly blocked the attempts of the mining company to approach the mine with heavy equipment. In 2018, they were able to have work at the mine suspended.

The Investigative Committee of Armenia then opened a case looking into environmental damage, for which an international assessment carried out by Elard was commissioned.

Several days ago after the release of Elard’s report, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that mining would continue, given the report’s findings.

“If it is true that operating the mine is safe for Sevan and the Jermuk water system, then the project will be implemented. However, if there is a threat, I, as the Prime Minister, will not be able to permit its operation regardless of anything.”

As a result, the examination concluded that the development of the mine does not contain “uncontrolled risks”. That is, the government had the go ahead to allow gold mining at Amulsar to resume

The Lydian company received the right to exploit the Amulsar mine after signing one of the largest investment packages in the history of independent Armenia.

The structure announced a figure of 325 million dollars, and said 1,300 people would be involved in construction work, and that 770 jobs would be available during the operation stage.

The development of the mine, according to the company’s estimates, should provide an annual growth rate of 1.4% or $185 million for Armenia’s GDP.

Export figures, according to preliminary estimates, could reach up to $286 million per year.

Armenia PM on non-smoking officials: I just learned an interesting information

August 26, 2019March 12, 2026 Liana Toganian

News.am, Armenia

Aug 25 2019

Armenia PM on non-smoking officials: I just learned an interesting information Armenia PM on non-smoking officials: I just learned an interesting information

19:11, 25.08.2019

Central Bank of Armenia: exchange rates and prices of precious metals – 21-08-19

August 22, 2019March 12, 2026 Liana Toganian

Central Bank of Armenia: exchange rates and prices of precious metals – 21-08-19

17:25,

YEREVAN, 21 AUGUST, ARMENPRESS. The Central Bank of Armenia informs “Armenpress” that today, 21 august, USD exchange rate stood at 475.90 drams. EUR exchange rate stood at 527.39 drams. Russian Ruble exchange rate stood at 7.13 drams. GBP exchange rate stood at 575.55 drams.

The Central Bank has set the following prices for precious metals.

Gold price stood at 22898.79 drams. Silver price stood at 258.96 drams. Platinum price stood at 12928.96 drams.

ANCA-WR Delegation of Officials Arrives in Armenia

July 30, 2019March 12, 2026 Liana Toganian

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The ANCA-WR delegation that includes California Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounelakis with Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan on July 29

Meets with Armenia’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister

A delegation of officials from various Western states, led by the Armenian National Committee of America-Western Region arrived in Armenia Sunday and began meeting with Armenian government officials, among them Deputy Prime Minister Tigran Avinyan and Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan on Monday.

The ANCA-WR-led delegation includes California Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis; Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger and her chief of staff Anna Mouradian; Arizona State Senators Paul Boyer and Otoniel “Tony” Navarrete; Colorado State Senator Dominick Moreno; and Colorado State Representative Daneya Esgar.

The ANCA-WR Board chairwoman Nora Hovsepian is accompanied by fellow board members Sako Berberian and Lina Davidian, as well as ANCA-WR’s Community Development Coordinator Simon Maghakyan.

On Monday, the delegation met with Avinyan, the deputy prime minister, who stressed that Armenia attaches great importance to the comprehensive expansion of partnership with the United States, highlighting the relations with different states, particularly California.

California Lieutenant Governor Kounalakis said that she was happy to be in Armenia, especially into consideration the democratic transformations taking place in the country following the velvet revolution.

The role the Armenian-American community plays in advancing and strengthening U.S.-Armenia relations were stressed during the meeting.

The ANCA-WR delegation meets with Armenia’s Foreign Minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan

The sides touched on advancing Armenia’s relations with the states of California, Colorado and Arizona in the fields of science and education, including the opportunity to intensify student exchange programs and particularly in public administration and high technologies.

Avinyan pointed to the positive experiences of the Public Policy Program implemented by the USC Institute for Armenian Studies and the Los Angeles City Council.

The sides discussed steps necessary for activating economic relations, including the opportunity of opening trade offices in Armenia with various U.S. States. Avinyan briefed the delegation on the advancement in Armenia’s IT development, saying that cooperation with the U.S. can advance in that arena.

The delegation also met with Foreign Minister Mnatsakanyan, who in welcoming its members, emphasized that relations with the U.S. have been and remain one of Armenia’s key foreign policy priorities. The sided said the recent dynamics of friendly ties and partnerships between Armenia and the United States were positive.

Mnatsakanyan briefed the delegation on the latest developments in Armenia, the course of implementation of the government’s reforms and the country’s foreign policy priorities. He also presented Armenia’s position on and approaches to the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Supervisor Barger presented Avinyan and Mnatsakanyan with a proclamation from the LA County Board of Supervisors.

Chess: Movsisyan and Sargsyan win bronze in international chess tournaments

July 30, 2019March 12, 2026 Liana Toganian

MediaMax, Armenia

Movsisyan and Sargsyan win bronze in international chess tournaments

Armenian grandmasters Gabriel Sargsyan and Sergey Movsisyan have concluded two international tournaments.

Movsisyan finished 3rd in the chess festival in Pardubice. He earned 7 points out of 9 and shared places 2-3 with other players, but the overall point calculation gave him the bronze medal.

Sargsyan had the same result at Xtracon, where he came 3rd with 8 points.

The invisible bond: the Armenians of Myanmar

July 28, 2019March 12, 2026 Liana Toganian

Frontier Myanmar

By JARED DOWNING | FRONTIER
Photos STEVE TICKNER

YOU COULD count the congregation at the Armenian Church of St John the Baptist, Yangon’s oldest place of Christian worship, on one hand.

There was a young expatriate in the third pew, his head bowed in prayer, a little girl squirming in the front row, and her mother, wearing a lace veil and holding a hymnal. A choir of one, her clear, rich voice rose through the old beams and dusty portraits of Christ and the saints as the priest and lay vicar delivered the liturgy and homily and served Holy Communion.

Later, waiting for a torrential downpour to ease, the entire assembly sat with me under an awning at the 150-year-old building on downtown’s Bo Aung Kyaw Street. I had come at an odd time, they explained. The service had been held on a Saturday because the Armenian Church in Kolkata, India, which sends one of its priests to Yangon every second week, could not spare anyone for that Sunday.

“Normally we have a few more,” said Ms Rachel Minas, the woman with the lovely singing voice. “But never more than ten, except maybe on special days like Easter.”

Rachel and her father Richard, who had assisted the priest, were born and raised in Myanmar; the expat was Russian and the priest was born in the Republic of Armenia, a small former Soviet state.

Although the congregation of five hailed from three different countries, it shared an identity forged over centuries, one that continues to bind Yangon’s tiny community of Myanmar-Armenians, even if they don’t all show up for church services.

“We are like family,” said the priest, Father Artsrun Mikayelyan. “I know he is Armenian. She is Armenian. I am also Armenian …Wherever you go in the world, you will always find at least one Armenian.”

Once a prominent community of merchants and diplomats, the number of Armenians in Myanmar has dwindled to a few hundred at most. Yet they continue to learn Armenian (if only for liturgy and hymns), uphold Armenian traditions (even if they celebrate Thingyan alongside Orthodox Christmas) and maintain their church (even if many have become Buddhists).

Father Artsrun Mikayelyan administers a service at St John the Baptist Church on June 29. (Steve Tickner | Frontier)

The Armenian diaspora is in many places linked to the mass exodus that followed the Armenian Genocide at the end of World War I. However, the Armenian presence in Myanmar dates to the 17th century, when Armenians from a population that had settled in what is now central Iran sailed to Southeast Asia to trade in silk.

Industrious, diplomatic and possessing a famous aptitude for languages, Armenians served as advisors in the royal court at Ava and later Mandalay. They were later translators and clerks for the British colonial government and high profile trading partners with the East India Company. At its peak, the community numbered at least 1,300 people living in India, Burma and Indonesia, shows census data collected by the BBC.

Rachel is well aware of the community’s rich history. As a schoolgirl she never failed to point out to her friends such icons of Armenian business acumen as the Strand Hotel, once owned by famous Armenian hoteliers the Sarkies brothers, and Balthazar’s Building on Bank Street, built in 1905 by the Armenian company Balthazar & Son. Her friends usually responded with blank stares.

“At school, people were confused because our faith was different and they didn’t know where Armenia was,” Rachel said. “It was a bit hard growing up here because most of the Burmese people considered us as foreigners, sometimes mistaking us as Indian or Muslim.”

Rachel doesn’t think of herself as a foreigner, but although she speaks Burmese and looks Myanmar, she doesn’t think of herself as a fully Myanmar person, either. She and her family exist in an obscure niche in the social landscape, one occupied by the community’s tiny church, a handful of other families, and the knowledge of an Armenian diaspora beyond Myanmar’s borders, scattered but strong.

Rachel’s distant cousin, Ms Sharman Minus, was born and raised in Canada, but her father grew up in colonial Rangoon. When his health began to decline, Sharman started researching some of the stories from his boyhood in Burma, and she soon found herself down a historical rabbit hole that would lead to previously unknown ancestors.

“It was a shocker to learn I was part Burmese,” she said.

The Armenian Church of St John the Baptist in central Yangon. (Steve Tickner | Frontier)

Sharman was especially fascinated by Makertich J. Mines (his surname is a variant of “Minus”), who served as a customs collector in Pegu, now Bago, during the reign of King Mindon from 1853 to 1878. Fluent in both common and royal Burmese, he became Mindon’s kalawun, a sort of minister for foreigners.

When she first saw a photograph of Makertich, Sharman instantly noticed a resemblance. “I can remember looking at it and thinking, ‘That’s my dad.’”

When she finally visited Yangon in 2014, Sharman scoured the city, wandering through gardens and canvassing crumbling teak houses to discover where her great grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins may have lived. She also saw the ruins of the 18th century “Portuguese” church in Thanlyin, which is believed to have been founded by an Armenian priest named Nicolai de Agualar.

When she visited the Church of St John the Baptist in the downtown area, she discovered that one of the last refuges of the Armenian community was in dire straits. The church had fallen into disrepair and, worse, an unordained parishioner of Indian heritage, “Father” John Felix, was posing as its priest.

In the absence of an ordained priest, the man had slowly gained authority over services and the church property. Rachel and other parishioners were concerned he might try to acquire ownership of the land and the church, an accusation he vehemently denied.

Sharman joined Rachel and other Armenians in a campaign that saw the acting priest removed, control regained over the property and relations revived with the broader Armenian church. In October 2014, their efforts culminated in a visit by His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch of the Armenian Apostolic Church and Catholicos of All Armenians.

Speaking to the largest congregation St John’s had seen in decades, and a small throng of reporters and photographers, His Holiness reaffirmed the commitment of the Armenian Apostolic Church, saying: “We have come here to encourage Armenians and their children to preserve the tradition. We have come here not only to see the preservation of the church, but also to strengthen [Yangon’s] Armenian heritage,” The Irrawaddy reported at the time.

The following month, Sharman would write in her blog, Chasing Chinthes: “The church has already had two baptisms, a sure sign of regeneration.”

Father Artsrun Mikayelyan (top) and a view of the altar at the Armenian Church of St John the Baptist. (Steve Tickner | Frontier)

The regeneration has been gradual. The property dispute with the former would-be priest continues and has delayed renovation work, said Rachel, and church services rarely see more than a handful of attendees.

But despite the small congregation, the church continues to serve as a bastion of heritage and as a meeting place for all Yangon’s Armenians, regardless of whether they were born in Myanmar or abroad, such as Mr Vadim Zakharyan, the young expat at the Saturday service, and regardless of whether they are even Christian.

“When I first came here, I stayed in this hotel nearby. I was just walking down this street and I see this tablet that said, ‘Armenian Church in Yangon.’ I was shocked,” Vadim said.

He said it was comforting to know there were Armenians in Yangon. He was born in Uzbekistan and raised in Russia, and yet, like Rachel, has always thought of himself as Armenian more than anything else. Even though they did not speak the same language, he felt a close bond with the Armenians of Myanmar.

“Growing up, even though people did not know where Armenia was, and didn’t know what I was, I was proud,” said Rachel.

For her, the true value of the Armenian community is not measured in the size of its church, or city landmarks built by Armenians, or the number of remaining Armenian families. It is the invisible bond that links Armenians wherever they are, be it Yangon, Russia, Canada or the homeland itself.

70% of polled Armenians are optimistic about the country’s future

July 11, 2019March 12, 2026 Liana Toganian

MediaMax, Armenia

70% of polled Armenians are optimistic about the country’s future

The full report is available here.

The highest level of optimism was recorded among people aged 15-34 (86%).

22% of the surveyed were pessimistic about their future and 1% said they did not know.

As for the view on the country’s future, 70% of the polled were optimistic and 29% were pessimistic.

66% of the surveyed were satisfied with the way democracy works in Armenia, while 30% were not.

The survey was conducted over February and March of 2019 among 1000 people.

How One Journalist Sparked Armenia’s #MeToo Moment

July 9, 2019March 12, 2026 Liana Toganian

News Central 24×7, India

July 9 2019

How One Journalist Sparked Armenia’s #MeToo Moment

By Karena Avedissian On Jul 9, 2019

“Voices of Violence”: the new hashtag has prompted public debate about sexualized violence in Armenia. Image by Tom Venner.

Warning: This article features accounts of sexual assault which some readers may find disturbing.

On Monday, July 1, an independent Armenian journalist named Lucy Kocharyan began posting anonymous personal accounts of sexual harassment and violence on her Facebook page. By the end of the day on July 2, more than 200 stories had been shared and the associated hashtag, #of violence_the voice (or “voice of violence” in English), became the highest trending in Armenia.

The campaign developed after a case of sexual assault against a Czech woman named Eva was published by investigative news outlet Hetq.am. Eva, who lived in Armenia for one year, had been volunteering in Vanadzor, the country’s third-largest city, when she survived an attack and attempted rape. After escaping her attacker, she sought shelter in neighbors’ homes, but was pushed out and told that “it is impossible for such a thing to happen in Armenia.”

Eva’s story is significant not just for the social problems it unveiled — specifically victim-blaming and widespread denial of the problem—but because Eva pursued justice and her attacker was sentenced to three years in prison.

After Kocharyan posted about Eva’s story on Facebook, she was approached by Armenian women who wanted her to show the public that sexual violence is not just experienced by foreign women in the country, but by Armenian women too. These women also wanted to fight the stereotype that Armenian women are not outspoken, and started to send Kocharyan their personal accounts of sexual assault, which Kocharyan published anonymously on her Facebook page. In an unexpected turn, members of the public — mostly women, but also men — trusting Kocharyan’s journalistic credentials and her ability to keep their identities confidential, began sending her their stories and asking her to share them. The wave of sharing grew, propelling the topic to the forefront of the Armenian public’s attention.

Kocharyan’s campaign was supported publicly by at least two members of government: Minister of Labor and Social Affairs Zara Batoyan, and Minister of Health Arsen Torosyan. The journalist was interviewed by various news outlets about the campaign, including CivilNet, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Azatutyun, and Petros Ghazarian, who hosts a popular political discussion show.

However, some parts of Armenian society are skeptical about the veracity of the stories being shared; they find it hard to believe that so many incidents could have actually happened in Armenia, especially those where the abuser is a family member. For example Sofya Hovsepyan, a member of parliament from Armenia’s ruling My Step Coalition, criticized the campaign on her Facebook page for creating what she considers an unfairly negative image of Armenia. Kocharyan has responded to such skepticism in interviews, saying that “sexual harassment happens in every society, including ours; our specific challenge is what we do about it afterwards.” As journalist Samson Martirosyan said on his Facebook page, the sheer number of stories emerging is hard for people to accept as they were truly unaware of the problem’s existence; nevertheless, he continued, they would have to accept reality at some point.

The more than 200 stories shared document all kinds of sexual abuse and harassment. There are stories of abuse from relatives, classmates, romantic partners, and strangers. Most of the testimonies were from women, but some men shared theirs as well, expressing the hope that their experiences would show that men are also subjected to sexualized violence.

Kocharyan vetted and fact-checked all the stories, and in some cases reached out to the authors to verify certain details. Kocharyan says that she was surprised by the response, especially as she had not made any announcement or calls for contributions. She sees the sharing as self-motivated, and a sign that those who reached out to her just wanted to be heard.

The campaign could be likened to an Armenian #MeToo. It has forced a very public questioning of what lies beneath the surface of idealistic understandings of Armenian society, how power operates in Armenia’s traditional and patriarchal society, why many people have not come forward sooner, what obligation broader society has to survivors, and what constitutes consent. Moreover, it has highlighted the importance of an effective law enforcement that can respond to individuals facing abuse and pursue perpetrators.

Perhaps the most significant aspect of this campaign has been the overwhelmingly positive reaction from the Armenian public. While Kocharyan has deleted comments that ridicule the survivors and blocked their authors, readers’ comments still overwhelmingly validate the horror that the survivors experienced, expressing compassion and support.

If nothing else, this campaign has given rise to a new community in Armenia: a community of those who believe and support survivors of abuse and who will neither ignore nor suppress of such incidents. This was demonstrated after one particularly harrowing account of a woman who was abused as a child by her mother’s partner.

After describing the abuse, the woman wrote, “Now I want to die every day. I want to ask him, why did you do that to me, why did you ruin a little girl’s life? Why did you cause me so much pain? I was a small, pretty, curly-haired, brave and strong child. Why did you turn me into a such an exhausted, frightened coward?”

The first comment beneath the testimony reads:

“Curly-haired girl, I want you to be reborn.”

One young woman writes:

“I was 15 and was friends with people who were two to three years older than me. It was one friend’s 18th birthday; they were celebrating in a pub. I was happy that they treated me like I was their age and invited me. I went and met their other friends. There was loud music and alcohol, but I didn’t drink. One boy seemed interested in me and he kept wanting me to drink, but drinking was unpleasant for me, so I decided it was time to go home. For the judgmental people out there: no, I was not wearing a short skirt, I was not drunk, I was not smoking, and everyone there knew my age. I went to the toilet to wash up and go home.

That boy entered the toilet after me. I was frightened, and he kept getting closer to me and smiling. He embraced me and I was already crying, hitting him with my fists, trying to break free. I was screaming, but I suppose the music was too loud and no one came. He raped me. I was a virgin. When he saw the blood, he became frightened. He pulled my hair and said, “If anyone finds out I’ll cut your throat. Understood?” My family never found out, no one found out. Because my mother would have said that it was my fault: “Why did you go there?”

I didn’t leave the house for three months. I tried to kill myself. I overdosed on pills and woke up in the hospital. My family thought I was just a stupid teenager who decided to die. I cut off ties with everyone, I avoided men, and I didn’t speak to them. Two years later, I found a job so that I could afford to see a psychologist because I didn’t want to live. I tried to not dress up, to not be cheerful, to not be noticed. It’s now been four years and I am gradually overcoming my fear of interacting with men. But still, I am very, very anxious when there are men I don’t trust around me. Thank you for the opportunity to share this story. What you are doing is incredible.”

— Lucy Kocharyan, Facebook, July 3, 2019

Another woman described abuse she suffered as a child:

“I was 8 years old, we had lodgers in our yard – a husband and wife… I always spoke to them, and they supposedly liked me a lot, because I was a well behaved child))))

One day I was walking by their house and the husband said ‘Come here, I want to show you something,” and I went (because I was taught to obey my elders). I asked, ‘Where is your wife?’ He said, ‘She’s coming home now. See how many flies are on the ceiling? Grab the fly swatter and help me kill them.’ I took the swatter and he held me to lift me up. He was holding me by my butt, and I began to feel his fingers between my legs, and I could sense that something was not right. He was looking at me with a disgusting smile and breathing heavily. I said that I wanted to come down so that I could go and do my homework. He let me down and sat me on his lap and began kissing my neck with his disgusting heavy breathing, telling me, ‘You know how much I like you…’

I came down and ran home. Maybe everything was written on my face because my mother asked me where I was, and I told her. She said, ‘But his wife is not home. What business do you have alone with that man?’ I said, ‘He was holding me and we were killing flies.’ I felt like an accomplice in the incident, as though it was my fault, and that I was in a secret, disgusting pact with that stupid man. What my mother said to me convinced me of that; that what happened was my fault.

She said ‘PERVERT’, and I will never forget the look on her face. Ever.”

— Lucy Kocharyan, Facebook, July 3, 2019

This man recollected an incident from when he was a teenager:

“I was waiting at the bus stop and a car approached and the driver asked me where I was going; he told me to get in, as he’d take me there. I refused at first, but he convinced me. He said he was my neighbour, that he knows my family and that he was going in the same direction, and there was no problem. I was a stupid child, so I got in. He began to talk about different things and then started talking about sexual topics. I was leaning up against the window and praying that we arrive soon so that I could leave. He then took my hand and pulled it towards his penis and said, ‘I know you want to play with it.’ While I was frozen and trying to come to my senses, he was talking about how he had a wife and that one day the three of us should get together and ‘have a good time.’ We got to my destination and I left and tried to forget what happened once and for all. I never saw that man near our building, I had the habit of looking left and right. I never knew if I’d see him again. I was still a kid; it’s been years since that happened, but I haven’t told anyone. I haven’t told anyone also for a very grotesque and vile reason. When a male grows up in a society and is taught from childhood how to be violent, how to be a rapist, but then becomes a victim himself, if he talks about, he will be even more of a target. That means that he is no longer a member of the wolf pack. That means that he can also be ‘hunted.’”

— Lucy Kocharyan, Facebook, July 2, 2019

One man wrote about a friend who was assaulted in the army:

“Now that it’s the men’s turn I also want to tell a story. My friend went to the army and a bit later, when he came back on leave, he was very depressed. I didn’t know him that well, but it was as if he had come out of prison. He didn’t say a single word to me about why he was so depressed, no matter what I did. Two years passed and he came back. The day he returned he got reallllllly drunk and tried to kill himself. Somehow, I was able to take the razor from his hand. He calmed down and began to speak. Three men raped him, in every way that you can imagine. They made him lick their shoes. Two of them would rape him simultaneously from behind and then orally. It’s dreadful remembering the state he was in. Five years have passed, and he is now in a different country. I don’t interact with him that often, but it seems that no irreversible damage was done to him, or maybe I just don’t know better. He was from a village. Taking this to the police was not even an option. I later found out that one of the three men had been convicted of rape in another case. Only this time, the survivor wasn’t silent. In my subjective opinion, these incidents are huge in number. [Keep it] anonymous, please. I don’t want my friend to see and figure out that this is about him.”

— Lucy Kocharyan, Facebook, July 2, 2019

This article was originally published on Global Voices and has been republished under the Creative Commons license.

Ambassador Gevorgyan visits Latakia, meets local Armenians

June 18, 2019March 12, 2026 Liana Toganian

Public Radio of Armenia

Ambassador Gevorgyan visits Latakia, meets local Armenians

2019-06-17 15:52:33

Armenia’s Ambassador to Syria Tigran Gevorgyan visited the northwestern regions of Syria. In Latakia and Armenan-populated Kessab, the Ambassador held meetings with local self-government and the Armenian community representatives.

Ambassador Gevorgyan and Latakia’s Governor Ibrahim Khudr al-Salem discussed the perspectives of decentralized cooperation between Armenia and Syria. Reference was made problems facing the Armenian community of Latakia and the ways of solving them.

The Governor hailed the Armenian community’s contribution to the social-economic development of the province and voiced hope that local Armenians could serve as a bridge between the two countries.

The Ambassador, in turn, expressed gratitude to the leadership of the province for the warm and careful attitude towards the Armenian community.

Amb. Gevorgyan briefed local Armenians on the domestic political developments in Armenia over the past year, the latest developments in the Karabakh conflict settlement process and the perspectives of Armenia-Diaspora cooperation.

The Ambassador also visited Kessab, where he met with Mayor Vazgen Chaparyan and community representatives and visited the Armenian church in the town.

ARF Bureau Chairman Meets with Cyprus President

June 15, 2019June 15, 2019 Liana Toganian

Armenia

Artsakh

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ARF Bureau Chairman Hagop Der Khachadourian (left) with Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades

President Nicos Anastasiadis of Cyprus on Thursday welcomed a delegation to the presidential palace headed by Armenian Revolutionary Federation Bureau chairman Haop Der Khachadourian, who is in Cyprus to attend events celebrating the anniversary of Armenian Independence.

President Anastasiadis told the ARF delegation that the Cypriot government stands in solidarity with the Republic of Armenia and the Armenian people in Armenia and the Diaspora. He stressed that the Cypriot government through its work in international organizations, such as the United Nations and European Union, will always work tirelessly in defending the interests of the Republic of Armenia and the rights of the people of Artsakh.

Cyrpiot president Nicos Anastasiades presents memento to ARF Bureau Chairman Hagop Der Khachadourian

Anastasiatis confirmed that the Cypriot delegation at the European Parliament is already pushing for resolutions on issues related to Armenia and added that he has always enjoyed a positive working relationship with Armenia’s Ambassador to Cyprus.

Der Khachadourian thanked Anastasiatis for the particular attention his government pays to the Cypriot-Armenian community and assured him that the ARF, with its global organizational structure, is at the disposal of the Cypriot Administration to advance and assist in the just resolution of the Cypriot cause. He added that through the efforts Cyprus member of parliament Vartkes Mahdessian, during the last several years, massive efforts have been undertaken to strengthen relations between the government and the Cypriot-Armenian community. Der Khachadourian expressed confidence that the lasting relations will continue to strengthen.

Der Khatchadourian told Anastasiatis that the ARF, through its Hai-Tahd committees around the world enjoys relations with the Cypriot embassies, consulates, and diplomatic representatives, all of which work tandem to advance the Cypriot and Armenian causes.

The ARF delegation with Cypriot President Nicos Anastasiades

The chairman of the ARF Central Committee of Cyprus, Simon Aynedjian, briefed Anastasiatis about the number of meetings the ARF Bureau chairman has had with the newly-elected Cypriot Members of the European Parliament, assuring that the relations will also advance through the efforts of the European Armenian Federation for Justice and Democracy (EAFJD), in order to advance the interests of the Cypriots and Armenians.

At the conclusion of the meeting, which lasted half hour, mementoes were exchanged between the two leaders.

In addition to Mahdessian and Ayndejian, Der-Khachadourian was accompanied to the meeting by Vahan Aynedjian and Raffi Mahdesian. The Government Spokesman Protromos Prodromu also attended the meeting.